Swimming with Sardines and Climbing the King of Waterfalls

“The Osa is a mysterious place,” said Raquel de Toro, the manager at our hostel. “Keep your eyes open and you’ll be surprised what you can see.” And in fact, as we drove toward the trailhead for the King Luis Waterfall, we realized that indeed it was a tough spot to find.  But this fun and free waterfall hike is worth the scavenger hunt!

The trail is near Matapalo beach, located near Puerto Jimenez. After gunning our 4x4 over a couple of small rivers we parked near the beach and slipped into the small, slender trail. 

“Wear hiking boots or water shoes for the river crossing and rocks,” a local guru simply named Rooster suggested.  He was right! The path crosses back and forth along the river and my boots quickly filled with water and my shorts were soaked. This was dry season!

We arrived at a soaking pool, the first of many. Water cascaded over a flat rock face making a tempting-looking slide, if only it had been made of rubber rather than sheer rock!

Morpho butterflies swooped and flew in dizzy patterns as we hiked higher, munching on the apples and peanuts that we’d picked up in Puerto Jimenez. That outpost of a town is the only grocery and gasoline stop for miles, so stock up before you continue towards the trailhead. 

Soon we arrived at a rappelling rope over a midway waterfall.

If you have the common sense of a sea slug or if you are like my husband and teen children, you can rappel up or down this mid-sized fall as the water rushes past you like commuters trying to catch a rush-hour subway train.  If everybody’s limbs are still intact, you can keep climbing up, up, up to the main attraction.

The trail is short, but steep in parts and rocky in others. Expect that the river rock where you are about to place your left foot will suddenly wobble and twist, dumping you and your sore ankle into the drink. Refreshing!  Keep your camera in a waterproof bag!

Nobody could tell us why the 90 foot cascade in the Osa jungle was named King Luis, but the moment my family and I saw the towering falls, the majestic name made perfect sense.

We dipped into the shallow pool and stood under the pounding water for as long as we could stand it, reveling in the cool waters. We had conquered King Luis!

We returned that afternoon to one of the many beaches near Pan Dulce and Matapalo (named for the many strangler figs that grow there.) We watched monkeys jump in the trees, and we wished we had our shoes on as we waded into the rocky sea out to where kids were throwing fishing nets off of surfboards.  Pelicans and gulls surrounded us as we swam, dive-bombing the water. In an instant, we knew what had incited the barrage of seabirds and fishermen. 

Sardines were everywhere! They nipped at our knees and toes and jumped, airborne out of the water.  One sardine hit me in the eye.  My macho husband, Steve, was squealing like a stuck pig, and claimed that he saw one sardine fly into my son’s ear and exit the other side!  It was like being caught in a battle between the kamikaze assaults of the pelicans and the crossfire of the surging sardine soldiers.

There would be no armistice.  We fled the waters as ocean refugees.

Tired from adventuring: animal spotting, waterfall climbing and sardine avoiding, we fell quickly asleep that night, despite the sounds of the howler monkeys grunting in the trees!

Directions: Drive from Puerto Jimenez to Matapalo beach and park near the Surfside Bungalows or Osa Vida Hotel.  Walk along the rough road parallel to the beach.  When the road splits, veer right, and ender the small path into the jungle on your right before the road splits left.