White Water Raft the Pacuare River

The Pacuare River flows 67 miles through the jungles of Costa Rica into the Caribbean Sea.  The river is popular for white water rafting, kayaking and river boating.  It is considered by National Geographic to be one of the best and most scenic rivers in the world for rafting.  The lush jungles surrounding the river are home to many exotic animal species such as the jaguar, monkeys, ocelots, and sloths to name a few.

The Pacuare River is divided into sixteen sections.  The three most popular segments of the river to run are called the Upper Upper, The Upper, and The Lower.  The Upper Upper section is roughly sixteen miles in length and contains numerous class II through class IV rapids.  The Upper Section is approximately ten miles long and is considered a more technical section of the river with multiple class IV and class V rapids, as well as waterfalls. The Lower and most popular section flows for 23 miles from La Cruz to the town of Siquirres.  This portion of the run can be done in a single day or as an overnight by staying at one of the river lodges.  These lodges can only be accessed by boat so they are very secluded but beautiful. In this section of the river there are many class III and class IV rapids.  The highlights of this section include the waterfalls that flow into the river at the Huacas River Gorge as well as many other large waterfalls.