Costa Rica Family trip - turtles and rainforest, pacuare

Today we flew from Charlotte, NC, to San Jose's Juan Santamaria International airport. The flight was a little sketchy, but it was our own fault since we did not check in the day before OR arrive a full 2 hours before the flight. The flight was overbooked so we almost did not get a seat. Travelers beware -- get there early! Anyway, we got on eventually. It was WINDY upon landing in San Jose. At the airport, we made mistake #2 and spent time getting something to eat at the airport. Not only was it expensive and tasteless, but it put us at the very back of the immigration line! Got a cab through Taxi Aeropuerto, friendly driver -- to Hotel Bougainvillea in the Heredia area. The hotel is so beautiful, from the second you go through the gate. The surrounding area seemed okay -- good bakery within walking distance. There was so much to do at the hotel. The grounds are huge, with so many walking trails, hills, bridges, tunnels and overhangs. The kids loved the hedge maze, the frog ponds and the gorgeous pool. In the middle of the maze stands a gazebo, which can be the 'prize' for the first one to the center. From the gazebo we could see over the maze and more. It's a pretty popular first hotel for birdwatchers, so we followed some of them around for a bit trying to see what they saw. We did see a quetzal, but our favorite was the squirrel cuckoo. What a cool looking bird! Had dinner at the hotel bar. The kids loved the 'steak bits' children's meal and of course rice and beans. There was a vegetarian dish for me that was perfect! Warm relaxed atmosphere and service. This was our first test in translating colones into dollars to see how much we were spending on dinner. The hotel took our credit cards (our AMEX had pretty good exchange rates and the lowest fee). Early night, since we had plans the next day. Rooms were very nice -- great beds, wonderful view from balcony, and big shower. (room 309)

Since we came a day earlier than our Adventure Life tour started, we planned a day trip through the hotel. We'd heard about the Aerial Tram grounds and decided to check it out. The views from the tram were absolutely spectacular. The tram runs on a loop, one below the other, so outgoing you're close to the ground, and on the way back you're way up high. It's amazing to see the same location from the lower and upper view. The guided nature hikes were very informative (easy hiking), a snake exhibit, Frog and Butterfly Garden. We also saw a sloth and the biggest walking sticks I've ever seen. They have a web site if you google 'costa rica aerial tram'. The tour group who took us out there also took us for a ride on the Sarapiqui river and lunch at Selva Verde Lodge. See pictures of our tram ride and the GIANT trees!

Got up early today to meet the driver Jorge. He was there right at 7 a.m., with a big van for just the four of us. We drove out through Braulio Carillo National Park to HWY 32 (stopping for rice and beans along the way, of course!), through Guapiles and Siquirres, through Matina and the banana plantations to a boat dock. After a few minutes waiting, a Pacuare staff member picked us up in a motor boat. The ride through the canal was beautiful and we got to know Kate, a volunteer that was there for two weeks, who had come along for the ride. The Pacuare Reserve was an amazing place. There's the lodge, where we stayed, a house for the security team (the guys who walk the beach 24/7), several houses for the volunteer staff, a classroom and a kitchen. The lodge was the nicest, with a great view of the beach and the river, about 10 feet from the start of the rain forest. Huge wrap-around porch with hammocks (they were rarely empty!). Everyone eats together in the kitchen building (daily at 9, 1, and 6, and don't be late!). Lots of vegetarian meals, which I loved. The purpose of the reserve, as I understand it, is first to protect and second to study the leatherback and green turtles that nest in the area. There are real research opportunities there, and I learned there are international turtle conferences yearly where people share info. The directors, Scott and Sara, and all the folks there are really organized and focused on their work -- and there's so much to do. About an hour after we got there, we were asked to accompany two volunteers on an excavation. This is where they dig up a nest that has already hatched and count the eggs in categories (hatched, and not hatched but: fertilized, not fertilzed, and some more fine categories). The digging is done by hand, scooping out sand, the eggs and anything else you find down there: crabs, maggots, and turtles that haven't yet made it out of the nest. Some of them are no longer alive, but this day we found six live healthy babies! They are set on the sand to perk up and make their way out to sea. The kids were beside themselves with excitement as each little one crawled across the beach. One with a bent shell they nicknamed Peanut. Another baby had a slightly bent flipper. Hope the little guy or girl made it once they started swimming! I was up to my armpits in sand digging, and the kids helped with the digging, and counting once all the babies made it to the ocean. What a way to start our visit! That night we went on a patrol with Sara. It's a 7 km round trip up the black sand beach at night with no lights. We did not see much turtle activity. Laying season for the leatherbacks was essentially over, and the green turtles hadn't yet started. We went at this time because the leatherbacks were hatching. However, it was fascinating as she explained about their work at Pacuare, quizzed the kids about turtle facts, and made it a fun walk. It was just us on the dark sand beach with the ocean crashing on one side and all the stars above us.

Woke up early to find volunteers coming back from the morning patrols. People were excited because there were pancakes for breakfast, which was a treat. We had a visit from a mica snake (non-poisonous, see pics) in a bush by the lodge, with one of the resident cats hassling it a bit. It was a beautiful snake. Later on it ended up on our front porch, but one of the guys kindly relocated it for us. Maria and I were coming back from breakfast early. We got about three steps from the top and I saw a black line lying on the porch. I grabbed Maria and pulled her down a few steps. The snake popped his head up to look at us, from behind my hiking boots! He was not aggressive at all, just exploring, but we beat a hasty retreat. We went back to the kitchen and explained the situation. One of the guys went out to the porch. James followed a few minutes later to find the guy coming back. He said he moved the snake. When we got back to the porch we found he'd only moved it from the middle of the porch to the corner of the porch! Still not entirely comfortable with that... ahem... we enlisted Kate and her far superior spanish to explain we'd like the snake off the porch. She did and the snake found his way back to the jungle. I imagine it was a good snake to have around -- eats rats and other pests. It was just a little too close for me, however. We played in the surf that morning, and the girls found some fruit they could break open and use the shells as containers for their 'treasures'. The surf was pretty high so we only went in up to our knees. After lunch (awesome curried veges), Scott and another guide took us on a jungle hike. The jungle starts about 15 yards from the beach. We couldn't believe all the living creatures we saw -- frogs, crabs, lizards, monkeys, all sorts of exotic bugs, and even an eyelash pit viper, safely coiled on a branch by the path (couldn't see his face, though). One of the spider monkeys must not have liked the looks of James as he lingered behind taking pictures, and started throwing sticks and fruit at him! Must be a macho thing. Scott mentioned that sometimes the monkeys throw poo, so we quickly moved on. On the way back from the walk we went to do another nest excavation on the beach. Again, the kids loved it, even though we didn't find any live babies (boo hoo). Maria opened all the undeveloped eggs herself and helped categorize all the eggs. Scott was telling us about the International Sea Turtle Society, with annual meetings around the globe. There's a neat web site we checked out when we got home with some info and updates if you google 'international turtle conference'. We were tired when we got back, so after dinner (pasta with a creamy sauce) the kids fell asleep before our nighttime patrol. Kate went with us and our guide this time. On patrol we found LOTS of hatchling tracks, but most of them we missed by what must have been less than an hour. At one nest, there was one little turtle who got left behind. His eyes were not yet open, so he wasn't quite ready to strike out on his own and we re-buried him gently back in the nest. On the way back, we saw fresh tracks out to the ocean, so perhaps that was our little guy making his move. The nighttime walks are tiring and James carried Sirena on his shoulders some of the time. Generally, though, the kids were troopers and walked the whole way. Went to bed very tired.

Rained most of the night, keeping us up. We said our goodbyes this morning -- some folks stayed after breakfast to talk with us and we took a group picture. A few people there had been to Selva Bananito and were telling us how cool it was. I really wish everyone there lots of luck. They're doing a great job I was impressed. We hopped on the boat again back to the dock to meet our taxi. Kate came with us to say goodbye. I believe she was staying another week. The taxi was on-time, just perfect. The driver was the owner of the taxi company but came in his own personal car because the taxi was having mechanical problems. Very nice car! Since it had rained the last night, we drove through some pretty deep water on the way out. We stopped for root beer and cookies at a convenience store in Matina. The 'chicky' cookies are seriously tasty! The store didn't want to take us dollars and we didn't have any colon, but James worked it out. We drove east on HWY 32, then turned off past Puerto Limon, driving along the beach and the airport, then turned inland toward Bananito Sur. There we met Carlos! who would guide us the next few days. Our taxi went partway into the grounds, then Carlos drove us the rest of the way in a truck. We went through several small and one pretty good sized river with a guy hanging on in the bed of the truck! The kids though that was great. Selva Bananito is just gorgeous. See the pictures out the back of our lodge and on their web site. The kids spent all their free time on the two hammocks on the back porch, reading and singing. The bathroom is really nice, with tile floors and walls and a big shower. About an hour after we arrived, Carlos stopped by to arrange our adventure package activities for the three night stay. We were pretty tired from the last night of little sleep (because of the rain), that we opted to just relax our first day there. We got cleaned up, walked around the grounds, played in one of the rivers, and tracked the leaf cutter ants back to their home. Those are some hard-working creatures. They were James's favorite of all the new creatures we saw. As we were walking around, Carlos spotted us and pointed out a family of toucans all living in this skinny tree. He got out his telescope so we could see them better. There were at least 9 we counted all going into the trunk through a small hole! Another bird's nest looked like a leftover burlap sack of potatoes hanging from a tree. The bird would just fly straight down into the nest. Again, see pictures. We had a good meal (meat for the first time in days); and got warm and dry. Enjoyed our welcome drink of coconut milk (served in the coconut with pretty flower on top). The adults contained an extra ingredient -- rum! Put me right to sleep. It really is like we'd read the “Most Beautiful Bedroom in the Rainforest”. We all slept well, perfect temperature, gentle breeze, with the sounds of the jungle around us

Today was Rivers, Waterfalls, and jungle trails day! Woke up early to go on the Waterfall hike, with Carlos, his helper Victor, and another family with two kids. The family was from Germany and we got along rather well. This was a hike that spoiled us for all other hikes! We must have crossed the river 20 times, with everyone splashing through up to our knees (and the kids waist) soaking wet. We then headed up through the jungle to a gorgeous waterfall (see pics). On the way we saw funky mushrooms, colorful frogs, seriously giant beetles, vultures, and learned about the 'not ready rocks'. The kids had a ball climbing, playing in the water, and breaking the 'not ready rocks' with their bare hands pretending they had super strength. When we got to the first waterfall we all spent time climbing up and getting a good shower of blissfully cold water. Everyone got soaking wet and it felt great. Next, we walked a short way and we got to rappel down to the bottom of the next waterfall. James and I each went with one child -- so we were strapped to a rope, she was harnessed to another rope, and then we were hooked together with about a 2 foot rope. Felt really safe with Carlos, as he was hooking things up and checking it twice, three times. So we worked our way down -- it was so cool being able to do it together. The kids so proud of themselves when we were down! Then we watched the other family come down and took pictures for each other. Victor had brought lunch in his backpack and he warmed it up for us. On the way back Carlos found little areas of the river where Sirena could lift her legs up and float. He was goofing off with the kids quite a bit and had them really laughing. None of the children complained about being tired. All told, the hike took 8 hours and we all ate a huge dinner that night. After the mostly vegetarian meals at pacuare (which I do love, as I said), I think I was needing some protein. We all ate the great beef, chicken and fish at Selva Bananito. And of course, great rice and beans. The kitchen really did a good job. The kids, of course, loved the dessert. The guides usually ate with us, which was great -- so we could get to know them a little better, ask questions and plan the next day. Someone (can't remember who) pointed us to a great sauce; tasted great with rice and beans. Rain tonight.

Today we slept in! After breakfast at 8, we teamed up with same family again. Carlos and Victor led us out to the Canopy tour. There's a 30 minutes hike across some fields and through the jungle to get to the first point. Again, James and I each paired up with one child (the kids didn't weigh enough to get all the way across on their own). Each was looked to the cable twice, and also to each other. We zipped out to a platform on a giant tree, then back to the trail, then walked to the start again and went back out to the platform. The zip lines went right through the leaves! You can't see the end from the start. When everyone was out to the platform, we hooked to a different rope and lowered ourselves down the tree to the creek at the bottom. It was faster than the rappel yesterday and much less work (no rocks to stay away from, just lowering down at a good pace). We went first and got to take pictures and watch everyone else come down. The hike back included more walking through streams. We were soaking wet again! I think our clothes just stayed wet for the rest of the trip. In the afternoon we went horseback riding to a swimming hole. The horses took guidance well, though they did love to grab a snack as we rode through the high grass. The scenery was amazing. Halfway through it started to rain but no one cared. We'd been wet for days (it's the RAIN forest!). My horse loved to go fast, and would break into a trot whenever some space opened up. Maria's horse had a mouthful of grass or leaves at all times. It's hard to keep them from eating when the food is at mouth level. My favorite part was fording a stream that came up to our ankles. Those horses are seriously strong. That night we had some packing to do before our departure the next day. Exchanged email addresses with some folks to share pictures, etc. Even more rain that night.

Time to leave Selva Bananito ... but first, one more adventure we hadn't planned on! The kitchen woke up early for us to lay out some fruit, bread and cereal. Very nice of them. We'd asked for a small snack in the morning but they really went out of their way. So sweet. It had rained so much the night before that our vehicles couldn't make it across the river -- so we got to zipline across to where our taxi was waiting! This time the girls got to go by themselves, rather than be hooked to us. The guide gave them a BIG push over the river. They were psyched to do it w/o mom or dad. Our luggage got to zipline also. By this time we'd been in the harness 4-5 times so we were pretty comfortable with it. So we ended our time at Selva Bananito with a flourish. Our taxi took us back to town where we met a van full of people going rafting with Exploradores Outdoors company. The van took us to their 'home base' where they had breakfast laid out for us. Since Sirena was too young to do the regular whitewater trip, our family went separately with two guides to a slightly easier part of the river. She lost a contact in the van on the way out and we weren't about to put her glasses on (they'd end up at the bottom of the river). Our guides were Ricki and Kenneth. We had to drive quite a ways to get to our starting point. Though it was a class III river, they made it exciting, joking with the girls, and yelling 'Oh my gosh' when a wave was about to hit (as if the boat were about to be swamped at any moment). The kids were smiling the whole time. We've been rafting before, but never with such great scenery every where. The primary forest was all around us. We made stops at a number of swimming holes, one with a short waterfall. I saw a bunch of blue morpho butterflies, my favorite. There were also a few places to hop out of the raft and float. Fresh pineapple for snack, and a good lunch at the end -- sandwiches with tortilla, fruit, and Maria cookies with jelly and cream cheese on top. Ricki chatted with us on the way back, showing us the area, talking about sports, stories of other trips and how he got started being a rafting guide. It was a fun ride. Back at the 'home base' we transferred to the van back to San Jose and Hotel Bougainvillea. We were the first ones dropped off (score!) so we had plenty of time to settle back into our luxury room (yippee for electricity and hot water!!) and spend time exploring areas of the grounds we'd missed last weekend. Picked up some gifts, postcards and souvineers in the hotel shop with the rest of our colon. And yes, hotel had free internet access -- 5 computers in the lobby. After dinner (the steak bits were back) we laid all our wet clothes out on the balcony (of course, they didn't dry overnight) and propped our wet boots against the railing. I dried our water shoes with a blow dryer just so we wouldn't have to get on the plane the next day with squishy wet shoes.

Back to Charlotte today; all four of us were sad to leave! After our last costa rican breakfast -- seriously I'll have to make rice, beans and fried eggs at home -- the hotel arranged a taxi minivan to the airport and our flight home. We'd come back in a heartbeat. We came in the rainy seasons, but really it only rained a little in the morning and sometimes at night. The only time the rain interfered with our activities was that the horseback ride at Selva Bananito was cut a little short. James's favorite thing was watching those leaf cutter ants. Sirena's favorite was the rafting trip. Maria's was the horseback ride at Selva Bananito. I guess I'd have to say I loved that the girls got to do the rappel and the canopy tour, and that it was such a safe environment to do so. But my favorite thing may have been the night patrols at Pacuare Reserve. We would travel with Adventure Life again. The level of involvement was perfect for us. All the accomodations and transfers went smoothly, with everyone right on time, but yet we were still free to do much of the trip on our own and negotiate to our own liking while we were there. I also appreciate the focus on using local guides and services. It makes you feel like you're not imposing too much on the natural environment. Now we have to start saving for the next adventure!