One hour west of the capital, in Gorgona, the Inter-American Highway gets close to the Pacific coast.
Along this coastline, from the tip of Punta Chame 70 km to Rio Hato, there are numerous settlements, fisher villages, hotel resorts, beach communities and lonely places. And it's less than an hour by car to reach the former volcano lake of El Valle or the mountain tops of Altos de Maria, at 1,000m.