Just last month, my family and I embarked on the vacation of the decade. Sometime ago we had been seen a television special on the pristine little country and since then, have been able to consider little else. We are a family who enjoys exploring the outdoors together so it seemed an obvious choice.

As we learned in the documentary that first drew us to this exotic destination, Costa Rica is a small, peaceful country located in Central America. It is located in what is considered a land bridge between North and South America and thought to be one of the most ecologically diverse areas of the world. Additionally, it has conserved nearly 12% of its forests. Its trail systems in the parks and reserves is seemingly endless.

Our first stop on our itinerary was to be the cloud forest community of Monteverde. Monteverde, or Green Mountain as it were, was establish in 1951 by a group of Quakers who were attracted to Costa Rica after it had abolished its army in 1949. Then around 1970, as the story goes, a scientist by the name of George Powel came to Monteverde and explained to them the significance of the Cloud Forest ecosystem they had settled in. They then began protecting the land around the community and the rest is, as they say, history.

The road to Monteverde is, for many, the first adventure of their time there. For us, it was no exception. It is a rugged, unpaved road with dramatic drop offs and equally dramatic vistas of the gulf of Nicoya in the distance. The sunset, was one of the most breathtaking I have ever seen.

Our first planned activity was, as it turns out, our very best. We woke to an impossible chorus of birds and after finishing breakfast, were picked up by a driver and shuttled up to a place called Selvatura. To say that Selvatura offers canopy tours would be a gross understatement. They not only offer zipling but also a series of suspended bridges, a butterfly garden, an insect museum and more.

Our dream for sometime had been the zipline canopy tours and that was to be our first adventure. The sensation of flying through the forest canopy suspended by nothing more than a steel cable was exhilarating beyond words! Fortunately, because of the way it was built, it also felt totally safe for my kids to do as well.

We enjoyed much more of what Monteverde had to offer including horseback rides to see the active, Arenal volcano, hikes through the cloud forest reserve and much more. After departing Monteverde we went on to explore other parts of Costa Rica. We journeyed on to the southern region of the country with its lush tropical rainforests and remote beaches and later to the Caribbean with its unique flavor and style.

As our plane rose above the clouds and leaving Costa Rica in its pristine glory far below, my family and debated the highlights of our time here. Zipling, it was decided, remained our favorite. Followed, however, close behind by the many other unbelievable experiences we had enjoyed in this lovely country.