Before students arrive on course, a common question we receive is, “Who are my instructors?” While our Meet the Team page provides some info about the Outward Bound Costa Rica crew, we thought it would be fun to share a little more. Instructor Santiago headed out with our Tri-Country group last week to guide them on their coast-to-coast hike. Before he left, we managed to have a quick chat and find out a little more about him.

Santiago “Chago”Lopez Salazar was born on October 29, 1981 in San Isidro, Costa Rica. He was the ninth of what would become 18 Lopez children! When he was six years old, his family moved to Piedras Blancas, a small remote village only accessible by foot or horseback. At the time, there was no school house in Piedras Blancas, so Chago, like his siblings, spent his days helping on the family farm. With so many siblings, Chago always had a playmate who also enjoyed swinging from tree vines and pretending to be cowboys.

He is currently making his 17th cross-country trek and says that one of his favorite parts of being an instructor is teaching students about the various plants and animals they encounter on their hike. During his 11 years as an instructor for Outward Bound Costa Rica, Chago has also developed a particular love for SCUBA diving, the Rio General and any course where he gets to really help students with their Spanish.

While he loves being an instructor, there’s nothing quite like being at home in Piedras Blancas with his wife, Giselle, and two children Diego (age 7) and Guadalupe “Lupe” (age 4). There he continues to help his parents on the family farm and relaxes by taking the kids to fish in the river or reading a Paulo Coehlo book in the hammock. While Chago hopes to one day visit the United States, he thinks Piedras Blancas is pretty much the perfect place to live. For those of us who have had the chance to visit, we can certainly see why.