Carissa Hanson sits on the steps of her rural Bricelyn home.

I really like travel, and I thought it was important to give that experience to my kids,” says Katie Hanson, a resident of rural Bricelyn.

It was this opinion which inspired her to give a unique gift to her daughter, Carissa, on her 14th birthday: a trip to Costa Rica.

Carissa’s sojourn to Costa Rica was facilitated through Outward Bound Costa Rica, an outdoor adventure nonprofit organization. The Tropical Trek, Raft and Waves trip which Carissa participated in was organized through the Girl Scouts of the USA program.

While adventuring in Costa Rica from July 9 to July 23, Carissa traveled through the thick tropical rainforests which are far removed from Costa Rica’s typical tourist routes. During her journey through the rainforest, Carissa completed a multi-day hike from a series of trail campsites and a mountain eco-lodge.

“After three days of hiking, we went to a waterfall,” Carissa recalls. “It had a little basin you could swim in.” 

The next leg of the expedition brought Carissa into Manuel Antonio, a region of Costa Rica which is known for its beautiful coastline populated with colorful forms of wildlife and plant life.

Meeting the native wildlife was one of Carissa’s favorite parts of her experience in Costa Rica.

“I enjoyed seeing the animals and plants,” she says, noting she was able to catch glimpses of monkeys, sloths, tucans and crocodiles in the depths of the rainforest.

Service work was an additional component of the program. Participants were involved in environmental service projects which included replanting cacao plants and helping a local family.

“We learned a lot about how people lived there,” Carissa explains.

The final portion of the trip was perhaps the most exciting: an opportunity to zipline through the cloud canopy.

“You could see the whole city, and volcanoes,” Carissa remembers as she recalls the breathtaking journey she took high above Costa Rica.

Before this month, Carissa had taken just one international trip previously. When she was very young, she traveled across the northern border to Canada with her family, which includes her mother, Katie, as well as her father, Al, and two sisters, Elise and Maddie.

Carissa’s trip to Costa Rica represented the longest time she had ever been away from home by herself. It was also the first time she has flown on a plane without her family.

Carissa insists she had no qualms about venturing on such a big trip alone, however.

Though she did not know any of the other 24 girls who signed up for the trip, she says she met people easily.

In fact, Carissa, who will be a ninth grader at United South Central High School this fall, enjoyed her time in Costa Rica so much that she hopes the international excursion will be one of many to come in the future.

When asked if she wants to travel more some day, she says, “Oh, yeah,” adding Greece is at the top of her travel bucket list.

She also says she would encourage others to take the opportunity to travel if it is given to them.

“Definitely do it for the experience,” she urges.

For example, she figures the opportunity to swim in the basin of a waterfall in Costa Rica is probably an experience she will never have again, and one which she will not forget easily.