By the time we had arrived in Doradal and had lunch we decided it was best to wait til the next morning to venture into the National Park of Rio Claro. Instead we relaxed by the pool of a local hotel and spent the evening hanging out in the very small, but lively town. We were really admist the locals living their everyday life and must have been the only gringos. It felt good to be off the gringo trail again.

After waiting for half an hour on the side of the main road in Doradal we finally jumped aboard and old 1960s GMC bus in the direction of rio claro, some 15kms down the road. We jumped off and walked the short distance into the reserve where we were met by a gorgeous small river slowly crashing over the boulders that lay in it. It was set within surrounding jungle and vertical cliff face each side rising up to some 100m, it was breathtaking. And at 35 degress we couldn`t wait to jump in. We walked along the river for a few K`s until we found a secluded spot where the river didn`t run too strong, stripped off and swam into the watery utopia. We had the place to ourselves to polish off the picture. After a good cooling off swim we walked a few more Ks to find a beach of all things alongside the river, so we sat down prepared lunch and admired the views around us. At this point the cliffed valley must of been at least 150m high with sporadic trees and tropical plants stuck to their sides like a giant had thrown and stuck them on, and to top it off condors soared overhead. After lunch we walked a little further and found another idyllic spot for a splah around in the sun before heading back for Doradal where we finished the perfect day with pizza and beer.