Everyone told me it was impossible. You can't reach El Castillo on San Juan River by vehicle, only in a boat. My response: "no, no, no, my Baby can go anywhere with cuatro por cuatro." Boy was I wrong. Look at the photos of Baby stuck in the mud. I wasn't moving a mere foot let alone making it to Rio San Juan. Thankfully a friendly farmer hauled us out with his tractor. The farmer, owner of a pet tepescuintle (looks like a big rat and super-delicious according to Ticos and Nicas) and eagle, let us leave Baby at his farm while we did the trip to El Castillo on foot. El Castillo is gorgeous! The fortress is in decent shape and overlooks scenic Rio San Juan. Highlights: funky chickens sleeping in a tree; outhouses over the river (yuck!); and a super-fun horse ride back to Costa Rica. This was my first time to actually gallop and it was a blast! Poor Puppy, Deborah's dog, was exhausted and covered in mud. Puppy had to trail our horses through streams, pools of mud and moutainous terrain. This trip absolutely tops my adventures to date!