X-ray Two: The Final Word by Sebas Leon

Day 14
It was still early in the morning when we turned our back to Rincon de la Vieja camp site’s icy cold showers, delicious Pina Coladas (virgin, of course) and buffet dinners, to once more face the dry rocky road that would lead us to our next destination; and what a long road it would turn out to be.

Trek is not always about following an obvious, straight path; it often involves decision making and this also implies the possibility of going wrong, as X-ray Two can tell you from experience. Here’s a hint: before you go up a really steep, rocky hill under a ruthless Guanacaste sun, make sure that the road doesn’t lead to a dead end.

Don’t be alarmed – there’s always hope, and our hope came in the shape of a ranger who gently pointed us to a shortcut (although not a particularly short one, as usual). It was a nice, tree-lined path, and every once-in-a-while we could glimpse Cerro Congora. However, our love for this easy path soon turned to dismay when we realised we had taken a wrong turn four kilometres ago. And so we were forced, once again, to turn around and walk back to that infamous junction. A few hours later, having taken the right turn this time, we made it to the ranger station and set up camp in the garden. It was a long, tough day for X-ray Two, and although we might have had fears and frustrations, making it to the end always cheers us up - and so does dinner!

Day 15
When you’re on trek, some morning you faff, some mornings you don’t, and we definitely didn’t on our fifteenth day. It was still pitch-black when we finished packing, as so we spent half and hour doing energisers and laughing at Katie’s hilarious dance moves. Sunrise eventually came and we started walking – and what a wildly varied walk it would prove to be. The first hour we spent in a densely forested area with river crossings and machete action. After going up a small hill, we found ourselves in a huge field populated with thorny, spiky plants that gave our legs a wide assortment of scratches and cuts.

Finally making it through the field of torture, we crossed through a lovely hacienda which featured an amazing lake and some friendly locals. Road and then more road took us to a really windy junction at which we had a tuna-and-cracker-dust lunch.

It wasn’t long after lunch break that we crossed a somewhat deep spring and started the last few kilometres through farmland. A gigantic pig greeted us at the side of the road as if pointing towards the town that was only a kilometre away. We managed to find a place to stay – conveniently at the pulparia-owner’s home!

Day 16
What’s this? We have to climb a huge, really steep mountain? Our PMs are nowhere to be found, leaving only a letter with clues for a scavenger hunt? There are no shops, no civilisation on our route? It’s a world gone mad!

That was the state of play for X-ray Two as we woke up on the morning of our sixteenth day – our PMS had organised that we undertake a solo day, filled with plenty of challenges - so we got on with the task straight away! Photo with a local? Let’s ask that policeman over there! 20 kick-ups with a football? Just ask the lady from the shop to lend us one. Carry 16 eggs without breaking them? Max was ready to look after the delicate cargo. Trek up Cerro Cacao? Uuugggggh... but OK!

It was, contrary to popular belief, a rather short way up the hill, although steep enough to make us stop every twenty minutes to catch our breath. Sooner, much sooner that we expected, we found ourselves in a shockingly beautiful grassy plateau that could have easily been the garden of a medieval castle. It was there that we were reunited with our dear PMs who had been secretly following us every step of the way.
A very short walk through the woods finally took us to our destination. Cerro Cacao’s ranger station featured a shower and mattresses, and was the perfect setting for Roisin’s birthday – we celebrated with a banoffee pineapple cake that was much appreciated by all.

Day 17
The day began on a different note as Day Leader Mark reinvented his own version of Radio Raleigh: “Gooooooooood Morning X-ray Two” bellowed Vietnam-style probably disturbed all the wildlife in the park we’d slept next to.

We kicked off with some much-needed entertainment by from Mark and James in the form of an energizer of singing, before heading out into the clouds and bitterly windy conditions. Thankfully, it was a short journey on our second-to-last day, but certainly not an easy one. As soon as we left the ranger station the road turned into a narrow forest path, mostly downhill, which caused us to go very slowly and extra-carefully.

Even though we had a fair amount of river crossings, we managed to keep our boots dry through some clever rock usage, and we walked down the steep slopes with the grace of a Guanacaste jaguar. Nothing was too great a challenge now for the expert trekkers of X-ray Two. It was just in time for lunch that we arrived at Maritza ranger station and caught our first glimpse of the sea. Excitement reached critical levels as we prepared for what would be our final day of walking.

Day 18
Speed never before seen in X-ray Two enhanced our morning packing. Ready and excited to be so close to our goal, we waited for the sun to light our way, one last time. The road that was set before us was simple but long, and so we walked as quickly as our legs (and rucksacks) allowed. It wasn’t even lunch time when we arrived at the Pan-American highway (our half-way point) and so we carried on under the baking Guanacaste sun.

The highway eventually took us – hot and fatigued – to the final supermarket! Juice, coke, ice cream, biscuits, cereal and more refreshing, sugary things were soon emptied from the supermarket shelves by trekkers, and more welcome news: only four kilometres stood between us and the much-dreamed-of beach.

And so, four kilometres later, Playa Junquillal’s calm, fresh waters were set before our serendipitous eyes. At once, fifteen rucksacks were dropped in the sand and throbbing feet were released from their boots. All together, we ran into the waters, oblivious to the blisters, wounds, aches and pains, and we gave ourselves to the ecstasy that is finishing this 284km trek. Salt met salt as we cried out our absolute happiness. Even some over-excitement prevailed as Hugo managed to nose-plant as he dived into the sea. But the nose, the dehydration, the sore feet and swollen ankles were all overwhelmed by an amazing sense of achievement. After eighteen days of brave trekking up hills, through forests, across rivers, down roads and around volcanoes, finally X-ray Two had made it to their final destination. In true Raleigh style, we got out there!

 
Next: The Final Word from X-ray One