Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica
It is our first day in Costa Rica! Cruising from Panama, we could not wait to see the rainforest and search for tropical wildlife. This country has set aside more than one quarter of its territory for conservation. Before our exploration could begin, we docked in Golfito, our official entrance to Costa Rica. Golfito is a port town inside Golfo Dulce, on the south part of the country. It was a busy center for banana exportation when the Bananera Company, a subsidiary of the United Fruit Company, was operating in the area from 1938-1985.
After breakfast, we went ashore to enjoy the botanical garden of “Casa Orquideas”, a great place for plant lover and birders. There are many fruit trees which encourage all kinds of tropical birds to come into the garden. We were amazde to be seen orchids and other plants from all over the world as well as spotting toucans, hummingbirds, haws and even four scarlet macaws perched up on the trees of this property. The morning could not have been better! In the afternoon on our Zodiacs, we explored Rio Esquinas on the far end of the Gulf. Wildlife was soon seen as we went across the very mature mangrove forest: a large number of shore birds were spotted including the migratory osprey. As we went up river and began entering the rainforest other wildlife was spotted, including toucans and a northern tree boa. The boa was certainly among the highlights of our exploration.
While on our Zodiacs toward the National Geographic Sea Lion, a large group of tropical dolphins were spotted swimming and jumping out of the water right next to the ship, in the background the sun was setting. Our first day in Costa Rica could not have been better!
