Costa Rica: The Osa Peninsula

We woke up at 5:30 am for a 6 am start with Royer. First stop, breakfast at the bakery in Puerto Jiménez. The bakery was full of locals buying breads and cakes. We got banana bread and a breakfast empanada with potatoes. We then hit the road heading south on 245 passing through some rural farm land and palm oil plantations. We entered a stretch of road lined with large tropical trees. Royer told us that an American billionaire had bought a huge chunk of farm land years ago and let it grow, creating an area of privately owned secondary forest as well as a private retreat for himself.

As we entered this stretch of road, several cars were stopped due to a fallen tree blocking the road. As we waited for locals to cut through the road block we got out to watch the squirrel monkeys and red-lored parrots forage in the trees around us. With the road cleared, we travelled a little further only to find that a second tree blocked our path. This second tree was much much larger. As we waited for this second tree to be removed several local ranchers herded some cattle down the road and around the block. Spider monkeys moved in the far off branches only offering us a few glimpses. Once cleared, we stopped near some flowering plants to watch several species of hummingbird feed and fight for the best blossoms. This was going to be a day for the birds.

245 is the main road in and out of the Osa Peninsula. For us the road was more like a country/county road, winding its way through patches of jungle just to open up to huge farm fields with stunning views of the Golfo Dulce and the mountains on the other side. We stopped several more times to see various song birds and hawks. At one point near a field of cattle, two scarlet macaws came flying in, squawking loudly as they landed. They spent several minutes preening and resting while I broke out the 400mm and snagged some shots. Birds, birds, and more birds! Dozens of species of songbirds, tiger herons, caracaras; it was hard to keep track.

We rounded a bend and crossed a large bridge and stopped to have a look around. As we returned to the car a large troop of squirrel monkeys began jumping from one tree to the next in spectacular fashion. The monkeys made huge leaps of faith from the upper most limbs across a span, bending the branches of the next tree as they landed. As the troop moved through, several of the females with babies took a lower route, still making huge leaps from one tree to a fence and then on again to the next tree, all with a baby clinging to their backs.

After the troop moved on it was time to go looking for sloths. We drove 245 north back past Puerto Jiménez up to Playa Sàndalos. Along the way we saw capuchin monkeys foraging in the trees above the dirt road to the beach. The beach was small and at low tide the roots of the mangroves were well exposed. Royer led us through the muddy knobby mangrove roots at a quick pace, the tide was rising. We came to a small shallow ocean inlet. Royer looked around and said that to go around would take too long. I secured my camera to my cotton carrier chest piece and we began to wade across. The waterproof boots were helpful right up until the water poured over the top into the boot soaking our socks and making the boots heavy. On the other side of the inlet Royer marched on unphased by the added weight and wet socks. He was on a mission to find sloths for us. We passed by a black howler monkey low on a branch and just past that Royer found his quarry: a two-toed sloth high up in the trees just barely visible in the dense vegetation and drizzling rain. We spent several minutes watching the slow creature but the rain began to intensify and once again we did not have our rain gear.

Royer also informed us that the tide was rising rapidly and if we didn’t want to swim the inlet we should get moving. We took off half jogging through the mud back to the inlet. It was definitely deeper this time and with the incoming tide and the rain it was difficult to see the bottom. This was perfect crocodile territory. I pushed the thought away and we crossed without incident. With our half day tour coming to a close we dropped Royer off, cleaned ourselves up and went out in search of food. We found dinner/lunch at RapiRicos restaurant. A simple lunch of salchipapas (fried hot dogs and french fries) and chicken fajitas. Several stray dogs begged (successfully) for table scraps. And we went back to the cabin for a much needed nap before our second night hike.

Iceland: Hindsight

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