u/Belangia65

Where: Camino de Costa Rica, ocean to ocean trek from the Caribbean coast (Barra de Pacuare) to the Pacific Ocean (Quepos)

When: 11 day trip, from February 25 to March 7, 2026

Distance: 280km / 174miles

Total elevation gain: 9,157m / 30,043ft

Conditions: Hot & humid, especially at lower elevations. Cooler in the mountain regions, but very humid throughout. Occasional rain, mostly on the first day. Steep slopes and muddy footing at times. Some trail, but mostly walking on rural & farm roads.

Lighterpack: https://lighterpack.com/r/es7xiw

Useful Pre-Trip Information or Overview: Wilderness camping is really not possible, so it is necessary to set up lodging accommodations. An indigenous guide is required through native lands. It is best to hire a guiding company to arrange these logistics. I used the company Urritrek and can definitely recommend them. They provided me a private guide, arranged all accommodations and three meals per day, and set up passage through the indigenous territory.

I flew into San Jose the day before my hike. The guiding company arranged transportation early to start the trek, picking me up from my hotel.

Upon reaching Quepos, I arranged a flight on Sansa Air from their tiny airport back to San Jose. That option was cheaper ($115 vs $250) and much faster (20 minutes vs 3-5 hours).

Photo Album:

DAYS 1-4: https://imgur.com/a/ymBEfAP

DAYS 5-8: https://imgur.com/a/xJwjEGv

DAYS 9-11: https://imgur.com/a/FFmjzjD

The Report:

(I debated whether to do a trip report at all since this was so different from typical wilderness backpacking: it was guided trip with accommodations and meals provided by a guiding company. But since I asked for some gear advice, I thought I’d share something of my experience for those might want to do a similar trip.

First of all, I had a blast on this trip. Just me and a knowledgeable & personable guide walking ocean to ocean across beautiful Costa Rica. We walked on beaches and through coastal regions. We trekked through banana plantations, coffee farms, sugar cane fields, and palm oil forests. We followed steep muddy trails through the jungle on indigenous lands. I saw toucans, a resplendent quetzal, sloths, a poisonous fer-de-lance, several coatis, iguanas, a Mexican jumping pit viper, and too many colorful birds to name. We climbed into higher regions into cloud forests and over the continental divide. We walked through many towns and villages. I enjoyed interacting with the people of Costa Rica, who were always welcoming. The meals were hearty and excellent, locally grown and full of flavor. We slept in rental huts, on school porches, in people’s homes, and an occasional small hotel. The scenery was consistently spectacular and I touched both oceans.

My guide, Eliseo, was young and charismatic. He was very knowledgeable about local fauna and flora, which was valuable to me. He explained the processes and economics of the farms we passed through. My Spanish was poor, so it helped to have an able interpreter. I am an introvert and he seemed to respect that and not talk all the time. This was his 28th hike of the Camino.

Being ultralight on a trip like this was obviously easy. I only had to carry the equivalent of a daypack, in which I carried a rain poncho, a wind jacket, first aid kit, water, and a few snacks. But I also sense that being ultralight was rare, even on this kind of trip. My guide picked up my pack and gave me an amazed look that seemed to say, “that’s it??” If anything, my ultralight habits went too far. There was luggage transfer offered from accommodation to accommodation. My “town bag” could have been better supplied with multiple changes of clothes but — dumb me — I packed a single extra set of clothes and a pair of flip flops. I was able to regularly hand wash my clothes, but nothing fully dried in the humidity. Stupid light when I didn’t need to be.

This trip is typically 16 days. Eliseo and I completed it in 11. The trip was somewhat strenuous, I thought. Harder than my recent section hike of the Smokies on the A.T. for instance. The humidity added to the difficulty. It was a great relief to get to the higher altitude and cooler air of in the middle two-thirds of the hike.

My favorite day of the trip was also the hardest: the trek though the jungles of the indigenous territories. Hot, humid, steep and muddy. We hiked 19 miles and climbed 6500 ft in cumulative elevation gain. I busted my ass several times navigating the muddy slopes, including about an eight foot slide once that left me caked in mud. Even my experienced guide found the footing hard and slipped three times. This trail would have been impossible after or during rain. The humidity in Costa Rica was unrelenting: in the jungle, it was next-level. But the scenery was awesome. I loved hiking through the native village of the Cabecar peoples, with thatched roofs and free range animals. The day ended walking through a large enclosed pasture that contained prize bulls, for both bull-riding and bull-fighting. That was a little nervy, I must say, since there was no protection from a bull that decided to charge. (I didn't take a single picture of this section: my attention was fully focused on the staring bulls.) My guide even outlined a contingency plan in case we get charged, which involved running and diving into a drainage ditch. Luckily we didn't have to enact his plan!

All in all, I loved this trip and was glad to have done it. I love an unsupported wilderness experience, but this wasn’t it, even if full of natural beauty. Camping on my own wasn’t even a possibility. The whole idea of the trail was to help the economy of the parts of Costa Rica that are not otherwise visited by tourists. I usually like handling my own logistics, but I was glad on this trip to be relieved of that. I really enjoyed my time with Eliseo and we have stayed in touch post-trip. I heartily recommend such a trip to those looking for something fun to do in the winter months.

Gear Notes:

(GEAR WINNERS)

1. Trail Toes foot balm. Given the intense sweating and occasional river crossings, foot care was vital. I began a regimen of cleaning and treating my feet with balm and that made a huge difference, I believe. Eliseo told me many horror stories of clients whose feet were destroyed through maceration and blisters. I experienced not the first hint of a blister and attribute that to foot care. Incidentally, the Costa Ricans thought it was hilarious that I walked through streams in my *zapatos* without slowing down to change into river shoes (that I didn't carry). I'm sure they took me to be an imbecile!
2. Finetrack Mesh Elemental layer. Did I mention that there is a lot of humidity in Costa Rica? I stayed absolutely drenched, but the mesh layer had the advantage of pulling that seat from my body into the next layer, The result was that I felt somewhat cooler, my shirt dried faster, and I didn't have a clammy shirt rubbing against my skin while hiking, which helped to prevent rashes. It also kept me warm in static situations in the cooler mountain regions. Hat tip to u/AceTracer for suggesting that I think about using a mesh layer to aid in moisture control. I am a complete convert to the power of mesh! 3.
3. Button-up hiking shirt instead of sun hoodie. I brought a button down and a sun hoodie, so I got to A/B test the two garments in the heat and humidity. The hiking shirt was far superior due to the mechanical ventilation advantages. I could open it up so that the mesh layer could be exposed to the air.
4. Electrolytes. I was careful to replace minerals on trail. I'm glad I was.

(GEAR LOSERS)

1. Ombraz Sunglasses. Fogged up instantly in this climate and needed to be often wiped. But Ombraz are a little fiddly to take off and put on. They were annoying, although I have enjoyed them in drier, desert conditions. I ended up just relying on the shade of the brim of my sun hat.
2. Trekking poles with rubber caps instead of pointed tips. I took the pointed tips off my trekking poles and replaced them with rubber tips so that I would have no problem with airport security. The only time I need the poles were river crossings and slick, steep trails. For the latter application, they were useless as best.
3. Not packing enough spare clothes. Already mentioned. I should have packed my town bag to the hilt.