Looking for Climbing in Costa Rica

Hope this is the right place to post this...

I'll be in Costa Rica for about a month soon... Mostly on the Pacific Coast between Puerto Jiminez, through the Osa Penn and Drake Bay, then up towards Dominical and Jaco, and finally Cerro Chirripo for a good week or two. I'll have shoes and chalk, no trad gear to speak of, and possibly a pad. Any and all info on where there is moderate to good boulders would be great... I've had little luck finding info online so if anyone can point me in the right direction I'd be grateful.

THANK YOU!

Joanne DeSoto

It's Costa Rica! the pacific side has some of the best surf breaks, from manuel antonio up to Jaco, and west onto the peninsula . put away the climbing shoes and borrow, rent, steal a surf board and lessons. You can boulder back here in CO. regardless, have a great trip.

Here are some photos I took on a trip to the Osa Peninsula (specifically Drake's Bay) to show you what some of the coast line may have to offer. From what I remember rock quality is more of the issue than the quantity. But I would imagine your biggest obstacle will be access, especially to any rock on the coast. The pacific is a force to be reckoned with.

I would hate to deter you from bringing a pad based on my very limited memory, but I do recall that luggage weight and size were a bit of a challenge in getting from San Jose to the Osa if you are taking a plane. Maybe just something to consider.

Not sure what your itinerary is but I would HIGHLY recommend searching out the "Bug Lady" in Drake's bay. She does night-time guided tours of the jungle for the 2 or 3 lodges in the area and i bet you could book a tour with her on your own if you ask around. I can't remember her name but she's a gringa and I'm sure most anyone working in the bay will have heard of her.

Sorry for the long winded post. This was one of the best trips I've ever taken. Hope its the same for you!

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions about what we did in the area.

Doug

Hey,
I lived in CR all of last winter. I am a climber and hoped to find some climbing, bouldering, whatever.

I found limited bouldering and no real climbing.

I would say, leave the shoes at home and surf your ass off.

If you're hitting domi (Dominical) check out costa canyoning ( costacanyoning.com ), my buddy Scotti runs the operation and will take you to the most badass waterfalls around, and rap them with you!

If you head south of Dominical (10km's), check out Uvita, beautiful town, Parque Nacional de Marino Bajena is right there. Good breaks, not too mushy even in low swell. Look up the Flutterby House for a cheap place to stay and cheap surfboard rentals as well as good lessons from Justin.

www.flutterbyhouse.com

Run by a great Woman from Nor-Cal, it's a great place to stay, 300m's from the playa.

Have fun!

We've travelled there quite a bit. The only climbable (I use the term loosely)sort of rock I ever saw was on some rocks on the way to the hut on Chirippo, on the trail from San Geraldo de Rivas. This is in the Chirippo Nat Park. They're big enough you'd want a rope, but there are some smaller boulders around the base. I believe you can find a website by some guy who climbed those Tors if you search around for Chirippo Nat Park. The whole country is volcanic outflows and the erosion from all the rain just tears it down quickly. I never even think about climbing down there, I just take a pair of binos and look at birds and chill on the beach. It's a great country, not third world at all and they like gringos. Most of them have worked in the States to make a nest egg. Even if you don't find any good rock, it's a wonderful place to travel.

I concur with Ricardo (nice name dude). Forget climbing. GO SURFING! Even if you've never done it before, it's easier than you think...

A while ago I was also looking for climbing in Costa Rica and had very little luck with the online bata. However I was successfull after being their for several months to find climbing. Good climbing at that. It's near a place called Catchi. Had to find locals to get the low down and have them take me to this heaven but it was well worth the effort. The huge wall has bolted routes up 5.13b and it's all clean basalt. The guy who owns the property was once a farmer but now actually rents gear out and has everything you need. You can even camp at this location and there is a freshwater spring and river to bath in. I am tempted to not put this out on the web because this location is almost too good to be true but seeing as the owner actually sells his climbing services I think it will be ok.
PS they even have a cave here. There are no routes put up yet and it hasn't been cleaned out but it has potential.

Some useful CR climbing links

FREE GUIDEBOOK

issuu.com/dustinjj/docs/cli…

Good R&I article

rockandice.com/news/1325-co…

Cheers!

wow,so nice.good luck.

Hello,

i am jordan and i have been in costa rica for a month. i have been looking for a place to climb online and the only place i can find that actually looks good is Cachi. I have not been there yet but when i go i plan on boulting new routes and developing the area as the best spot to climb in costa rica. If anyone wants to help me on my mission to bolt these walls let me know and come help me out. thanks, jordan

Hola, mi nombre es Nils Nelson y soy un viajero en el área de San José y busco un compañero de escalada. Tengo todo el equipo necesario, incluida una soga y sorteos. Contáctame al 541-631-1283. ¡Gracias! Publicado el 10 de enero de 2018.

Hello, my name is Nils Nelson and I am a traveller in the San Jose area and looking for a climbing partner. I have all the equipment necessary including a rope and draws. Contact me at 541-631-1283. Thanks! Posted Jan 10 2018.

Sean Tully wrote: A while ago I was also looking for climbing in Costa Rica and had very little luck with the online bata. However I was successfull after being their for several months to find climbing. Good climbing at that. It's near a place called Catchi. Had to find locals to get the low down and have them take me to this heaven but it was well worth the effort. The huge wall has bolted routes up 5.13b and it's all clean basalt. The guy who owns the property was once a farmer but now actually rents gear out and has everything you need. You can even camp at this location and there is a freshwater spring and river to bath in. I am tempted to not put this out on the web because this location is almost too good to be true but seeing as the owner actually sells his climbing services I think it will be ok. PS they even have a cave here. There are no routes put up yet and it hasn't been cleaned out but it has potential.

I wouldn't worry about putting this on the web... I found out about this place in 2012 through the costa rica lonely planet book. If it's in there it's out there. I stayed there for a couple days, super friendly family and a great experience overall.

Hello! I just bought a condo in CR, near Playa Flamingo. There are a couple of large, accessible ocean walls with decent rock quality very near the condo. Can anyone enilghten me on the rules / laws in CR regarding bolting? I would love to develop a small local area near my place.

Also would be interested in meeting up / climbing with anyone interested when I come down there!

brigham.willis@gmail.com

Thanks

B

I'll second Sean's recommendation. Bouldering in CR is hard to come by, but Escalada Cachi (the name of the business; the cliff is Piedra de Cachi) is a very nice place for toprope and lead climbing on really grippy basalt.

Others have highlighted the surfing. I'll add that if you're a kayaker, the whitewater is world-class. If you're a birder, the place is incredible. It's hard to not have fun in CR. Enjoy!