The twin volcanoes Tenorio and Miravalles lie within a few minutes drive of the Inter-American Highway yet a world away in their brawny, thick-forested, aloof appeal.

Mantled in savannah on the lower western slopes, montane rain forest at mid-elevations, and above by mist-haunted cloud forest, these contiguous volcanoes offer a lush, pristine, wildlife rich world seen by few tourists. Monkeys abound, as do sloths, agoutis and pacas. Visitors are as likely to see ocelots, cougars, or jaguars here as anywhere else in the country.

Heliconia Ecolodge, a biological research station and eco-lodge, makes a perfect base for exploring Volcan Tenorio. The arduous Lago Las Dantas Trail deposits you atop the volcano at 1,916 m, where tapirs reliably show up at dust to sip at the Crater Lake. Another trail leads to a waterfall of the Rio Celeste and thence to burbling mud-pools and fumaroles.