The Rich Coast of Central America: a place to grab your Speedos and head for the Pacific. From the Nicoya Peninsula in the North to Osa in the South, Costa Rica is a surfer’s paradise, and as a bonus, comes minus the high-rise hotels.

Day in, day out, huge waves break on the beach at Malpais, a village on the southern point of the Nicoya peninsula touted as the Hawaii of Latin America. Despite feeling it might be advisable to keep the churning, pounding surf at arms length, after a few trips through the spin cycle my travel buddies were persistent in their desire to conquer the wave. We rented a tiled floor with roof and walls - you might say apartment, but that would overstate it. Despite being recently built, we got the impression that the ramshackle structure stood little hope against the damp, heat and salt that will no doubt eventually crumble this collection of huts.

The only board rental shop is what a Harley Davidson showroom would be if Hell’s Angels were surfers. Big tattoos were displayed on bulging biceps and arcane symbols in twisted metal swung heavily from stretched, pierced flesh. Despite initial appearances though, all the staff were rather friendly, and didn’t seem to mind that their shop served as an optional hangout for passing backpackers.

Back in the surf one afternoon, I was staring up at the sky and pondering, somewhat dazedly. On balance, it is a good idea that you’re attached to the board by a short length of flex. But it doesn’t seem that way when it hits you in the back of the head mid-tumble, before you’re spat mercilessly on to the beach.

Still, proof of ineptitude on the waves appeared to endear us to the rental shop crew, and we found ourselves invited to the local “disco”. After a few Cerveza Imperials (essential lingo) and surf-chat, the homeward sway was novel - no taxi, tube or bus; just a long walk on muddy roads and the inky sky for company.

Chastened from my surfing experience, I moved on to what I had thought would be gentler pursuits. In the cloud forests of the Cordillera Talamanca, mossy trunks reach upwards into a haze whilst orchids nestle rootless on the boughs. Some are delicate, but the pink petals and protruding parts of others are incredible, almost vulgar in their construction. Predictably, the forest is under threat from pasture, housing and logging.

I worked with Steve and Paula on Genesis II, their reserve-cum-house. Steve is a tough old sexagenarian, and you get the feeling he would have been right at home in the northern wildernesses of his native Canada. To bring in tourist dollar, he’s carved a network of trails, built bird hides and platforms and even a natty king-of-the-jungle style zip line via which you can whiz across to “better appreciate the bird life”. For the cost of board & lodging, I helped him measure, chop, pave and clean for a month. This involved experiencing long days, rain, mosquitoes, rare trees, monkeys and the occasional hummingbird for good luck. The latter especially are, in the truest sense, amazing.

It’s hard to tell whether the jungle is malevolent or hospitable. The sloping roof and gently puffing tin chimney of my hosts' self-built home seemed either to nestle within or to be imminently consumed by the encroaching, evergreen wall of growth. But putting aside nature’s exuberance, freshly cut bamboo is undeniably sharp - think Leo DiCaprio’s dope-farmer-impaling antics in The Beach - and, as Leo himself might have noted, the jungle gets to you. On one particularly oppressively cloudy morning I was acting out scenes from Apocalypse Now by macheteing my way through a stand of the panda-nourishing plant when the two-foot long blade slipped in my grasp. And before you even see the blood, you're aware that it’s an awfully long way back to bandages and iodine, and start to wish that you actually possessed some knowledge that might be useful, such as which moss might be effective as an antiseptic compress. It’s a good job I wasn’t fighting the Viet Cong from my corrugated tin hut.

Know before you go:

- Currency: The "Colón". One pound is equal to 1030 Colónes

- National language is Spanish

- British nationals do not usually require a visa to enter the country and can stay for 90 days. Check with the Foreign Office for latest advice.

Key Spanish phrases:

Where is the toilet? "¿Puedo usar el baño?"

"Bless you." --> "Salud."

"I am lost." --> "Ando perdido."

"Help!" --> "Socorro!"

Companies to check out:

United Planet Volunteers

For those interested in doing more than sightseeing while on a gap year, there are various volunteering opportunities in Costa Rica. United Planet offers social or environmental programs where you stay with a host family and help out in the community.

Costs: £600 for one week stay, up to around £1,700 for a 12-week stay

Turtle Conservation Programs

Conserve endangered ‘Lora' turtles with anti-poacher night beach patrols, including helping with egg collecting, tagging and releasing baby turtles.

Costs: For two weeks of volunteering the program which includes accommodations and meals is £459, with extra charges if you need supplemental Spanish language courses.

Surfing gap holiday

Chill out in bunk-bed housing with your mates after your two-hour daily surfing lessons at Zopilote Surf Camp on Playa Hermosa.

Cost: Six nights' accommodations, surfing lessons, surfboards and meals for around £400 per person.

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