Casa Orquideas & Rio Esquinas, Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica
After a whole night at sea, the Sea Voyager sailed across the mirror-flat waters of Golfo Dulce. Translating to "sweet water gulf", the name honors the several rivers that dump their waters here. It is known to be the only tropical fjord in Central America; a fjord is a gulf whose center is very deep (here, over 600 feet) but its entrance is shallow (60 Feet). Different from its temperate counterparts in icy regions, this fjord has not been carved by a glacier but formed by the action of micro plates which separate instead of colluding, therefore sinking the center area.
Today was our first day in Costa Rica and our arrival to this country was inaugurated with beautiful sightings. The morning outing brought us to the botanical garden Casa Orquideas, owned and well cared for by two expatriates, Ron and Trudy MacAllister. The garden runs from exotic orchids to native heliconias, fruit trees, blooming hibiscus and gigantic palm trees. And if you're not a plant lover, the availability of fruit trees and flowers here is the best excellent attraction for birds. Luckily enough we got to see very closely the quintessential tropical birds: a triplet sighting of Scarlet Macaws and two species of toucans, the large Chestnut-mandibled Toucan and the Fiery-billed Aracari, among long-tailed hummingbirds, summer tanagers and an impressive King Vulture.
The sun was striking quite forcefully, so to cool off after our garden walks we jumped into the calm waters of the Golfo Dulce. After that we repositioned the ship to the mouth of the Esquinas River, were we all explored the area by kayaks and by Zodiacs. The first few minutes were quite tranquil, but as we were leaving the mangroves behind we had incredible wildlife sightings: two boas constrictors, white-faced monkeys, squirrel monkeys, parrots, iguanas, and more. The amount and variation of sightings made it seem like we were in a zoo, but it was so much better because the experience was very real!
The day ended with that traditional tropical shower, strong but quick, one that cleans every leaf from a forest and looks like a curtain that pulls down from the sky, giving real meaning to the Tropical Rain Forest.
After a whole night at sea, the Sea Voyager sailed across the mirror-flat waters of Golfo Dulce. Translating to "sweet water gulf", the name honors the several rivers that dump their waters here. It is known to be the only tropical fjord in Central America; a fjord is a gulf whose center is very deep (here, over 600 feet) but its entrance is shallow (60 Feet). Different from its temperate counterparts in icy regions, this fjord has not been carved by a glacier but formed by the action of micro plates which separate instead of colluding, therefore sinking the center area.
Today was our first day in Costa Rica and our arrival to this country was inaugurated with beautiful sightings. The morning outing brought us to the botanical garden Casa Orquideas, owned and well cared for by two expatriates, Ron and Trudy MacAllister. The garden runs from exotic orchids to native heliconias, fruit trees, blooming hibiscus and gigantic palm trees. And if you're not a plant lover, the availability of fruit trees and flowers here is the best excellent attraction for birds. Luckily enough we got to see very closely the quintessential tropical birds: a triplet sighting of Scarlet Macaws and two species of toucans, the large Chestnut-mandibled Toucan and the Fiery-billed Aracari, among long-tailed hummingbirds, summer tanagers and an impressive King Vulture.
The sun was striking quite forcefully, so to cool off after our garden walks we jumped into the calm waters of the Golfo Dulce. After that we repositioned the ship to the mouth of the Esquinas River, were we all explored the area by kayaks and by Zodiacs. The first few minutes were quite tranquil, but as we were leaving the mangroves behind we had incredible wildlife sightings: two boas constrictors, white-faced monkeys, squirrel monkeys, parrots, iguanas, and more. The amount and variation of sightings made it seem like we were in a zoo, but it was so much better because the experience was very real!
The day ended with that traditional tropical shower, strong but quick, one that cleans every leaf from a forest and looks like a curtain that pulls down from the sky, giving real meaning to the Tropical Rain Forest.
