Our group visit to La Fortuna included some free time. Several of us decided it would be nice to hike somewhere around the Arenal Volcano. Unfortunately, because of heavy rains and landslides, many of the hiking trails around the base of the volcano were closed when we visited. Instead, we hiked on a trail in the national park that provided nice jungle, lake and volcano views.
The Peninsula Trail is a comparatively new area in Arenal Volcano National Park, and is located a few kilometers from the volcano. The trail is paved and considered handicap accessible.
(The Peninsula Trail is paved)
The Peninsula Trail starts near the entrance to this section of the park and passes through the jungle, leading gently downhill to the shore of Lake Arenal. The walk provides lovely views of the lake itself, the jungle around you, and in places some classic views of the Arenal volcano.
(Bromeliads in the jungle)
The distance from the park entrance to the lake shore is 1.5 km (0.9 miles) one way. You return the way you came, with an optional diversion into the jungle.
(Views of Lake Arenal from the Peninsula Trail)
There are two viewing platforms along the way, the first providing nice views of Arenal Lake and its island.
(First viewing platform)
(Elevated viewing platform near the tip of the peninsula)
The second platform is elevated (12 meters above the ground) and near the end of the peninsula. It provides nice lake views, as well as some of the best views of the volcano you’ve ever seen…..
(Arenal volcano viewed from the second platform)
From the second platform, you can see the end of the trail, which is where we then headed …
(Lake view from the end of the Peninsula trail)
After a short rest, we headed back the way we’d come.
There’s a chance you might see wildlife during your hike. The most interesting thing we saw as a keel-billed motmot….
I end this post with a video of some industrious leaf-cutter ants we encountered on our walk,
