· AmchePayn · Costa Rica · 6 min read
The Ultimate Secret -Catarata del Toro
Bajos del Toro is a small town in Alajuela, that has several beautiful waterfalls and rivers tucked away in the mountains. We heard many beautiful stories of…
Bajos del Toro is a small town in Alajuela, that has several beautiful waterfalls and rivers tucked away in the mountains. We heard many beautiful stories of this place, especially Catarata del Toro.
The Story behind Catarata del Toro:
A long time ago the Indians created a sculpture of a bull (Toro), that was made out of pure gold. To please the gods, the Indians threw the gold bull into the crater at the base of the Catarata del Toro. As per local folklore, if you visit this place on a full moon night and stand at the top of the waterfall. You will be able to see the glitter of the gold bull as the moonlight hits it.
View from Bajos Del Toro
Rio Agrio
Overview of Catarata del Toro
Catarata del Toro was our first place we explored in Bajos del Toro. The name comes from the fact that the River Toro feeds this waterfall. The sight of the Rio (river) Toro (bull) falling 300 feet into an extinct volcanic crater is worth a visit. The Rio Toro is fed by several other rivers and creeks. One of these is the Rio Agrio, which gets its water straight from the slopes of Poas volcano and hence is very acidic and is good for the skin.
Catarata del Toro Waterfall
Catarata del Toro is a private reserve owned and operated by a Dutch- CostaRican couple, Wil and Donais. We met with Wil when we were there. He is a lovely person. He manages the main office, where you can get entry tickets or book any of the various activities they have to offer. They offer Hiking trips, rappel, hummingbird photoshoots, guided tour of blue falls of Costa Rica. Oh, they also offer lodging for the night.
Entrance to Catarata del Toro
If you ever need to book with them, here is the information:
Catarata Del Toro Adventures S.A. 6km Norte de Bajos Del Toro
Sarchi, Alajuela, Costa Rica
E-mail: info@catarata-del-toro.comPhones: +506 2476-0800 / +506 8399-7476
Web: www.catarata-del-toro.com
The Hotel and Garden:
At the entrance you will find their beautiful restaurant with a garden at the back. The garden has many beautiful humming birds. The owners have placed hummingbird feeders all around and these attract a lot of humming birds. In the corner to the right they have a spot where they put out food for the squirrels and birds. We also saw some Coatis.
A post shared by John P Fernandes (@streetratz) on Jul 28, 2018 at 9:01pm PDT
Humming Bird in the Garden , Catarata del Toro
Coati spotted at Catarata del Toro
Birds sitting in the Garden.
Baby squirrel at Catarata Del Toro
As you walk past the humming birds and through the garden, you will see the top of the gorgeous waterfall. There is a neatly maintained path the leads into the trail, down to the waterfall. We spent about 40 minutes admiring the roaring waterfall just from the top 😀
Gorgeous view of Catarata from the view point
About the trail:
The trail is about 1000 meters, it starts roughly 30 meters from the entrance towards the right.
The Garden
It has many beautiful viewpoints with nice benches to sit and admire. The first half of the trail is through the beautiful forest where you can see different types of birds and trees.
The Forest Trail
The second half has a lot of concrete steps, descending towards the bottom of the waterfall. The steps are well maintained. They can get a bit slippery, so be careful. As always going down is easy, climbing back up is a different story.
Concrete steps
As you get closer to the waterfall, the pathway gets muddier, so be sure to wear hiking boots. Up close, the sight of this huge waterfall splashing into the volcanic crater below was a jaw dropping moment for us.
Admiring the beauty of waterfall into an Old Extinct volcanic Crater.
From afar the waterfall seems calm and peaceful with a slight hum in the air. But when you get close, you will quickly realize the true force of mother nature. The force is so great that it creates a kind of mist at the base, everything gets drenched including us and our cameras 😂
Comparing the falls with my husband John 😀
It took us about 2.5 hours to complete the hike. But then we did stop to take a lot of pictures. About half way down to the falls you will see a trail marked Jardin (garden) that branches off to the right. The garden area is great for outdoor photography, bird watching or just chilling with a picnic basket.
The sign Boards . Catarata = Waterfall Jardin =Garden
The Beautiful Jardin.
The Roads in Bajos del Toro
Almost all stretches of the road are curvy. At many places, it gets very steep. We visited in July 2018, the roads were terrible, with lot of potholes. As the road is through the mountains, the rain and fog keep visibility to a minimum. Even though we managed the roads in our 4×2, you will need to be very careful. On the way back, we left at around 5 in the evening. The place was covered with a slight fog and driving back became difficult, especially as night was setting in.
Particulars:
Hours of operation:
Monday to Saturday 7 am to 5pm
Access to the waterfall is closed on Sundays.
Entry Fee:
Non-residents: $14 for Adults and $7 for children
Local/Residents: ₡10,000
Location:
Waze: https://waze.com/ul/hd1u466ern
Google Map:
See our short GoPro video here:
Visit and let us know if you like this place. Please like, comment share and subscribe to your channel.
NOTE:
Book your tickets on their website and save 15%.
Swimming is not allowed here.
The place remains closed on Sundays.
We visited this place in July. Avoid extreme rainy months paths can get slippery.
Parking lot is free and secure.
Parking spot at Catarata del Toro
