San Carlos, Rio San Juan, and Solentiname Archipelago

[Daddy-YO]

i think ill try this crossing in a few weeks when i gotta head across again.

Good luck. Please let us know how it goes.

Since the bridge 5 miles from this border crossing was completed nearly a year ago, in August, I wonder if it was being used in the meantime to visit Ticolandia without all the rigmarole: fees & return ticket &c.

And is Nica migracion y aduaña set-up to collect their pittance after having one fill forms & wait hours?

[bill_bly_ca]

Looks like it did open to foot traffic only Saturday, 5 hours late of course.

Some light vehicles on Sunday.

It seems to allude to the fact that they use tablets to process the border crossing but it my spanish is not good enough to be sure ...

La Prensa

[KeyWestPirate]

Good luck. Please let us know how it goes.

Since the bridge 5 miles from this border crossing was completed nearly a year ago, in August, I wonder if it was being used in the meantime to visit Ticolandia without all the rigmarole: fees & return ticket &c.

And is Nica migracion y aduaña set-up to collect their pittance after having one fill forms & wait hours?

I'd like to try it too, my car is in CR while I visit the US for ten days. I've never been in that part of the country.

Only problem, I have the Peñas Blancas crossing wired, I've been using a guy called "Conejo" to help me, he goes in one direction, I go in the other. I pay him C$200.
I could do it myself and have, but with the Conejo's help I'm through in a half hour, even when it's really busy.

Immigration and Aduana are still not in the new building, although there are a lot of vendors selling stuff next to the building.
It's gotten to be an efficient process; on foot you could be through in 15 minutes. CR was really fast too; I think the improved Spanish helps.

I picked up three riders, an older woman and two young girls, south of Managua, and gave them a ride to the border.
She had the feeling of a madam with her two charges, but who knows?
There's a Nicaraguan-staffed house of ill-repute in Libera; I'll have to stop by and see if they are there on the way back.

They were crossing "por monte" , and I assumed that they would want to get out before we actually got to the border.
But, they got out right at the plaza.

Two police checkpoints south of La Cruz, nothing before,, both waved me through, nothing else to Alajuela.
Much of the new concrete InterAmericano completed south of Liberia, but still not 4 lane. They are still working on bridges. Joy to drive on, however, and fast.

Still slow to San Jose once the new highway ends. Huge new shopping center going up next to the airport. Airport was packed, but again, the process is very efficient.

[bill_bly_ca]

Canal 15 tweet showing the bridge, looking in "Ready to drive across" state but no actual cars shown.. ...

Tweet 1

Canal 15 tweet #2 showing a Tico car just after crossing...

Tweet 2

[el duende grande]

It will be great to have a second easy route to CR. I did the trip about 2007 by double decker bus from San Jose, then by boat to San Carlos, another boat to El Castillo and Canoe to Bartola. Great area to see "before they destroy it''. I think San Carlos is one of Nic's truly unique towns, a little slice of Caribbean-style squalor surrounded by water and jungle, like a cheap trip to the Amazon. I came back by plane to MGA as at that time the bus/dirt road scenario was a 13 hour misery.