Two windsurfers play on Lago Arenal
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At seven o'clock on a flawless April morning, the
sun has been up for an hour, and Volcán Arenal is blowing smoke on the
horizon to the east. Some 700 feet below the breakfast tables at Hotel
Tilawa, two windsurfers are at play on the lake surface. The wind is
howling a steady gale, and they appear to have all 48 square miles of
the lake's surface to themselves.
"Would you look at those guys?" exclaims
one of the diners. "Every once in awhile they are catching 15 feet
of air." The woman, visiting with her family from Virginia, learned
the sport with her husband in the Persian Gulf while they were living
and working in the Middle East. Even so, they did not come to Costa Rica
for the windsurfing. The two travelers are touring the country with
their adolescent children, and happened to notice that windsurfing is
available here. They are in luck. With its near-ceaseless wind, mild
weather and gorgeous scenery, Lago Arenal is known as one of the top
windsurfing locations in the world.
The conditions at Arenal inspire a sort of loyalty
among some windsurfers that borders on fanaticism. One windsurfer here,
an American guy whose mother is Costa Rican, recently pulled up stakes
in the US and moved to Tilarán, the nearest relatively large town to
the lake. He is now windsurfing Lago Arenal nearly every weekend.
Another surfer from Seattle drove down here on his
fifth trip in a big, beat-up old van, and he is intimately familiar with
the lake region. "This is really a technical place to
windsurf," he said. "If you can do it here you can sail almost
anywhere." His name is Garth. Playing on his name, Costa Ricans at
the marina nicknamed him "Lagarto", or lizard. Coincidentally,
his pale Seattle complexion did look a bit reptilian cast against the
muted earth tones that form the main color scheme on the lakeshore.
At first glance, Arenal may seem a bit too
challenging for complete beginners, but marinas in the area disagree.
They note that there are no reefs or current to contend with and,
counter intuitively, contend that the strong steady wind makes those
first practice sessions fly by for novices. Their theory is that you
never have to wait for the right wind conditions to get up on the board,
because the conditions are always right.
A pair of windsurfers, Portugese nationals who are
living and working in New York City, compared Lago Arenal to Lago di
Garda in Italy. "The conditions at Arenal are very similar, but the
water here is warmer. You don't even really need a wetsuit." The
water is generally a comfortable 73°F, while daytime air temperatures
average 70-80°F year-round. Lago Arenal is at its windiest from
December to April, when the average windspeed is about 25 mph, or 17-22
knots. The calmest periods during the year are May-June and
August-October, but even then wind speed averages more than 10 mph. The
low season in terms of wind also corresponds to the rainy season, which
runs from May-November.
Coming to Lago Arenal from the capital of San
José, there are plenty of clues in the final 30 minutes of the drive
that the windsurfing is going to be spectacular. It seems as if all of
the trees are paying homage to the setting sun.
They sport a swept-back look that comes from
growing up in a strong prevailing northeasterly wind. On the tops of the
ridges, huge windmills reminiscent of California churn that wind into
electricity.
Lago Arenal itself also produces electricity. The
lake is a reservoir formed in 1978 when a hydroelectric dam was built at
the northeast end of the valley. It is Costa Rica's largest lake and
supplies water and power to Guanacaste Province. The windsurfing mostly
takes place on the western end of the lake. Some enthusiasts park
themselves at Hotel Tilawa,
an impressive pile of
stone with frescoes and ochre columns reminiscent of the Palace of
Knossos in Crete with a spectacular view of the lake. The hotel is owned
and managed by a talented windsurfer and is the fanciest place to stay
on the lake. Tilawa maintains a
marina
down below the hotel proper, which is situated on the southwest end of
the lake. Just across the lake on the north side, Tico Winds is the other major place to rent
windsurfing equipment. Both Tico Winds and Tilawa have on hand dozens of
sets of shiny new gear, laid out side-by-side in warehouse structures at
the water's edge.
Other activities in the area include sailing,
jungle hikes and horseback riding. Both Tico Winds and Tilawa can
arrange other activities, or put travelers in touch with other
businesses that manage excursions. After hours, things are generally
pretty quiet around the lake. Every Saturday night, however, a
discotheque called Equus throws a big fiesta. The dance floor and
surrounding areas are all done out of native rock, and the place looks
impressively tribal.
Perhaps the most entertaining thing of all to do
around the lake at night is just to sit and watch the volcano. After
about 500 years of slumber, Volcán Arenal (which lies just east of the
lake) exploded on July 29, 1968, destroying the village of Pueblo Nuevo
and killing 78 people. It has been continuously active ever since, and
its nighttime pyrotechnics are particularly captivating. When the view
is clear, it is not uncommon to see fiery lava flowing down the side of
the mountain, and even being shot up into the air. This does require a
fair amount of luck, because Volcán Arenal makes its own weather, and
it is frequently shrouded in mist and smoke. Even so, the best season
for windsurfing, the December-April dry season, just happens to be the
time of year when viewers have the best chance to witness the volcano's
spectacular show.
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