Costa Rica's Pacuare River Is Tops for Whitewater Rafting

[Shannon Farley]

For its sheer beauty and phenomenal whitewater rapids, the Pacuare River of Costa Rica is one of the world’s top whitewater river rafting adventures. The Pacuare thunders down a long gorge and canyon through primary and secondary rainforest of the Talamanca Mountains on Costa Rica’s Caribbean slope. You have the feeling of being completely isolated in a lost world when rafting down the river. Waterfalls pour in from high rock walls, brightly colored toucans and electric blue Morpho butterflies fly by, and sometimes the chirping cicadas are so loud you can’t hear anything else.

The whitewater is just as spectacular. The section of the Pacuare River most commonly run for commercial rafting trips is class 3-4. The 18-mile one-day run has 52 rapids; few rivers in the world can offer you so many.

The first four miles of the trip warm you up with fun class 2-3 rapids – time to test your new river skills and build your teamwork. Then you enter the famous Pacuare River Gorge – five miles of some of the best whitewater in Costa Rica. You will pass by the dramatic 150-foot Huacas waterfall, maneuver around boulders bigger than houses, and rocket down exploding rapids.

After the narrow gorge, the river opens up in the wide Pacuare River Valley, giving you the chance to rest (if only a little bit!) and hopefully spot some wildlife. You’ll stay alert, though, as this section has big and tricky rapids to navigate. When you pass the last class 4 rapid, called Dos Montañas, the river pushes through a very narrow steep-walled gap between two mountains. The jade green water is deep and flows quietly. Now is your chance to jump out of the raft and float through this wondrous ravine for one of the most memorable experiences on the Pacuare.

Very shortly, you finish near the town of Siquirres. You will go to the rafting company’s operations center for a shower, change of clothes, and maybe a celebratory drink.

The Pacuare River is a perfect blend of wilderness and excitement for a Costa Rica one-day adventure tour. When staying on Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast at Hotel Le Caméléon (“The Chameleon”) by Puerto Viejo, you can easily enjoy a one-day Pacuare River rafting tour and many other Caribbean adventure tours. The upscale boutique hotel is located at the beautiful golden sand beach of Playa Cocles, where the hotel has a private beach club. Le Caméléon is anEnchanting Hotel of Costa Rica.

Article by Shannon Farley