La Fortuna

The cone reaches 1670 metres and reads as an almost perfect triangle. Cloud catches on it often, so the summit shows on barely half the days.

Streams warmed by the volcano are held in stepped pools. The higher pools run hotter and the forest keeps the shade deep.

Five hundred steps drop to the foot of it. The water falls 70 metres and spray fills the pool below.

Bridges hung at canopy height carry a walk through the upper forest. The longest runs 98 metres and it sways underfoot.

A dam made this lake and two villages lie under it. Steady wind at the western end brings kite surfing there.

A guide carries a telescope and finds sloths up in the branches. They move only a few metres a day, so once found they stay in view.

Lava that ran in the 1968 eruption lies hardened where it stopped. Moss and young trees have begun to take hold on it.

The limestone cave is entered on foot with water still running through it. Tight sections mean a helmet and a low crouch to get past.

From where two streams join, the colour shifts to sky blue. Minerals scatter the light and no dye is involved.

A torch picks out frogs and snakes that come out after dark. The red eyed frog sleeps by day and climbs onto the leaves at night.

A deep pool in the river near town, where you swing out on a rope tied to a bankside tree and let go. Entry is free, nobody charges, so local kids gather in the afternoon. The day after heavy rain the current picks up, and staying out is the better choice.

A warm stream off the volcano runs under a road bridge here, and soaking costs nothing. Rocks are slick, so water shoes help. Cars end up parked on the roadside, so valuables should not be left inside.

Rubber rafts run on two nearby rivers. The Balsa has class 2 to 3 rapids that first-timers manage fine; the Toro, class 3 to 4, races down a narrow gorge. Everything gets soaked, so dry clothes wait in the vehicle.

Roped in, you lower yourself down waterfalls in a forest gorge. A guide belays from above, so plenty of people try it with no experience. Footing is on wet rock, and grippy soles beat ordinary trainers.

A slow river drifted in a raft while you watch the banks. Iguanas and herons show up, and with luck a sloth. With almost no paddling, parents with small kids ride along easily.

Wetlands near the Nicaraguan border to the north, listed as a Ramsar site. Boats on the Rio Frio pass waterbirds, caimans and monkeys. As the dry season lowers the water, animals gather at what is left and become easier to see.

A small village above Lake Arenal's southern shore, looking at the volcano from the side opposite La Fortuna. It has a butterfly conservatory and a cable car gliding over the canopy. The last stretch up is an unpaved hill, so small cars crawl.

A rescue centre that nurses injured or hand-raised animals and sends them back into the wild forest. Tours explain one by one how each monkey and parrot ended up here. Tours need booking ahead, and one version adds same-day volunteering.

A white church faces the central park, and Arenal Volcano rises right behind it. Steeple and summit both fit into one photo. Photographers come early, before cloud gathers.

Villages of the Maleku people on a reserve near Guatuso, a 60-minute drive out of La Fortuna. Visitors hear the language and see medicinal plants and the craft of painting on bark and gourds. Money paid for crafts here goes back to the community.

A route to Monteverde crossing Lake Arenal by boat rather than looping round by mountain road. A van runs you to the shore, a boat crosses, and a second van meets it opposite. The volcano looms largest from the water, so the ride doubles as sightseeing.