What is a Blue River?
Let’s dive straight into the blue-waters of Costa Rica’s rivers. They are so blue it looks like it could be bottled and transported home. But unfortunately it can’t!
There is a scientific explanation for the blue-rivers. They are an optical illusion created by clear water flowing over special sediments in the river beds. The river’s bed has been coated by chemicals transported from the volcano by the water and covering the bed. When sunlight is reflected off, it changes the way we see the resultant light rays.
There was much speculation over the cause of the brilliant blue-water. The confusion arose since no one could explain what took place in another famous blue-river the Rio Celeste. There two crystal-clear rivers flowed between Alajuela and Guanacaste Provinces in the Tenorio National Park and…show more content… Colorful Rivers in Costa Rica
Rivers come in many colors here, blue, white, yellow and green to name a few.
The Blue River or Rio Azul is an example of the varying shades of blue. They flow from the Rincon de la Vieja volcano passing a short distance from the Blue River Resort and Hot Springs.
Rio Celeste ‘the light blue-river’ flows from the Miravalles volcano in the Tenorio Volcano Park, and is another stunning example of a blue-river. The Rio Celeste is an easy hike to her blue-pool.
Rio Blanco, the White River starts from the Miravalles volcano in Guanacaste.
Rio Sucio, the yellow river is a tributary of the Rio San Juan. It gets its color from the rich sulphur deposits from the Irazu volcano.
The river Toro Amarillo, the yellow bull, begins in the Turrialba volcano.
Rio Negro, the black river, also flows from the Rincon de la Vieja volcano. The water is crystal clear but there are sections where the vegetation settled on its bed makes it look
