The Upper Pacuare River Gorge is one of the most beautiful sections of whitewater I've experienced in Costa Rica. Tumbling out of the Talamancas, this run includes two Class IV-V gorges, miles of continuous rapids, and some of the cleanest and clearest water I've seen in this country. In short, the run is epic.

We met up early down in Turrialba to make sure we had time to squeeze in the Upper Upper and the Upper in one day. With seven paddlers in the car, it was a bit of a tight squeeze. We had to pick up boats all over town, which made getting all the boats strapped down quite the mission. In Costa Rica, the preferred method is to strap them all together on the ground and then hoist the 'brick' of kayaks up onto the roof and strap that down. Once all that was sorted, we headed an hour up towards the put in.

Tie them all together, then put them on the roof...

The road to the put in was bad, although not that bad by Costa Rican standards. I've gotten used to truly miserable roads in this country, so this one really wasn't that bad by these standards. There were beautiful views the whole way, and an incredible first sighting of the river through the jungle. Spirits were high.

First sight of the Upper Pacuare, sheer bliss.

We put in at the bridge, crossing paths with Costa Rica Rios, who were running the Upper Upper. We breezed through the Upper Upper and got down to the Upper Gorge. There is a hanging footbridge that crosses the river, and then a second, signaling the entrance of the Gorge. We stopped for a break to discuss game plan on the nice beach.

Mikey at the footbridge

The first rapid as you enter the gorge is a tricky one to call. There are a jumble of boulders, one huge one in the middle, and a few different lines. We went hard left, but decided at the bottom is is possible to go far right as well. There are also some slots between the boulders in the middle, but they had rocks at the bottom. From here down the walls close in, get steep, and the action really fires up.

Looking back at the first rapid. Notice the large rock in the back center. Hard left or right.

Below is where the gorge really gets going. There are a few rocky read and run boulder problems before the first Class V, Bobo Falls. The lead in to Bobo's is difficult, and should be approached cautiously. There is a large pool before a bouldery Class IV leadin to the main rapid. In this leadin you need to run left to right through the boulders and end in the eddy river right to scout Bobo's, highly recommended for first timers.

Beautifully steep gradient and boulder gardens leading up to Bobo Falls.

The rapid and beautiful pool before the lead in to Bobo's. Scout right. AMAZING GORGE.

Bobo Falls itself is a Class V rapid with two moves. The first is a tricky entrance hole that you need to go through and then ferry in front of sieved out boulders. Once you have cleared the boulders, there is the actual falls which is a 7-8 foot drop into a sticky hole with a few oddities. If this doesn't sound good, the portage is easy on the right bank. Safety is important on this rapid as Blood Hydraulic is just around the corner.

Nick approaches the ledge at Bobo's after the scary ferry in front of the sieves (to the left of the leftmost rock in the photo).

Diego slides sideways at the ledge hole at the bottom of Bobo Falls.

Mikey seal launches below Bobo Falls

The Czech runs Bobo Falls

Some guy runs Bobo Falls, High water trip

The bottom hole in Bobo's is a tricky one. You are coming left to right in front of the sieved out boulder fields, and need to drive right and ride up onto the right wall pillow. If you hit it too high your nose will pillow off and you'll plug deep into the hole. If you're too low, you'll fall into the seam and plug deep into the pocket. Time this one just right, or send someone else first.

Just around the corner from Bobo's Falls is Class V Blood Hydraulic. This rapid was named because the first person who saw it thought you'd need hydraulics in your blood to make it through. Apparently not true, but worth a scout. You can get out left or right, but the real crux is better viewed from the right side. The leadin to this one is tricky and exhilarating. You come at the left channel with a bit of speed and ride the pillow off the right rock at the entrance. You use this to push you a bit left, but not too far to avoid the undercut left wall. A few low braces and you've cleared the entry. The second move is more challenging. At the bottom of the rapid, there is a rock that has a really gnarly undercut and no space to get a boat through on the left and a narrow slot on the right. All of the people in our trip ran the entry to this rapid and then walked around this part. Mikey said he saw someone disappear under the left side for 10-15 seconds on a previous trip. Approach this drop with extreme caution.

Peering down into Blood Hydraulic.

Past this is the Magic Tongue, which really is magic, at lower water. It is a 8 foot slide that ends in a 3-4 foot ledge drop. It is uniform across the river, and at high water creates a perfect recirculating hydraulic. At low water it is a simple paddle down the middle, or anywhere really. At high water, you must go right. Hard right.

Magic Tongue marks the end of the first canyon. There is about a mile of relaxed Class III with some nice beaches and rapids before the walls close back in for the second canyon. The second canyon is quite a bit easier than the first. There are a number of Class IV boulder gardens and some fun holes and playwaves. The only part of the lower canyon of specific note is the Mushroom Rapid. The Mushroom is a rock where all the water hits it, and then fans and pillows all directions. The best way to hit this one is right into the center left side of the rock. This maneuver will launch you into the air and land you in some busy water behind the rock. If not, run left of the rock for best results.

Che Diego flys over the mushroom, the large boil looking thing to river right.

The rest of the run is Class III-IV boulder gardens until the takeout. There are a few takeouts that are useable depending on what you have arranged with your shuttle driver. The Tres Eqis takeout/ putin is the standard for this run because it is the lowest down on the river and will give you a few extra rapids. This is also the putin for the Lower Pacuare.

daysontheriver.com

All content © Jonathan Blum, 2004-2008 • Contact webmaster
No part of this page may be reproduced, copied, sold, or used for promotional materials without the express written permission of Daysontheriver.com.