Peninsula de Osa, Costa Rica
What an extraordinary day!!! Our second day of the journey is going to be one of the toughest acts to follow!!!
Today found us anchored just outside Drake Bay, the easternmost side of the Osa Peninsula. This peninsula is one of Costa Rica’s richest wildlife spots. For awhile, gold panners took over the area, as its inaccessibility isolated it from the rest of the country and gold could be found in its rivers and creeks; but once the country realized how incredibly diverse the area was, it was turned into one of the most beloved National Parks.
Corcovado National Park is one of the most interesting in the system. The tropical wet forests contained within its boundaries are widely considered to be the most species rich in Central America. More than 500 species of trees are found here, some 6000 species of insects and about 140 species of mammals.
Early this morning, we disembarked onto Punta Caletas, a privately owned wildlife refuge. The owner of the place allowed us to walk the trails there and we all took advantage of that. Some of us decided to take the long strenuous walk that goes behind his home. For about one and a half hours we communed with giant lianas (woody vines), leaf-cutter ants, army ants, termites, trogons and spider monkeys. Others chose to take the “path less tough” and took a shorter walk near the premises in order to take a shot at good bird watching. Scarlet macaws, slaty-tailed trogons, green honey creepers, chestnut mandibled toucans, spider monkeys and many blue morpho butterflies were feasting on the Malayan apple fruits. Either those on the tree or the fallen ones were taken advantage of. Inside this type of forest, nothing goes to waste! Not rotting fruit nor even dung!!!
Others, a bit more adventuresome, took their chance at horseback riding. For some, this was their first time on a horse! But whatever choice our guests made for this morning, everyone came back with smiles on their faces and were very deserving of the colossal lunch we had on board.
But the day had so much more to offer! As we repositioned our ship for our afternoon destination, we spotted a pod of three humpback whales. Two adults and a young one made our day an unforgettable one. They spy hopped, flapped, fluked and were exceptionally friendly. We debated between staying with them or move on to our next spot. The whales finally decided for us as they disappeared in the deep blue sea.
We finally made it to our afternoon spot. Sirena park ranger’s station is a dream come true for any naturalist. Just by walking 40 minutes, we were surprised by two species of monkeys, lots of species of birds, and a lush old forest that we seldom ever get to visit.
What an extraordinary day!!! Our second day of the journey is going to be one of the toughest acts to follow!!!
Today found us anchored just outside Drake Bay, the easternmost side of the Osa Peninsula. This peninsula is one of Costa Rica’s richest wildlife spots. For awhile, gold panners took over the area, as its inaccessibility isolated it from the rest of the country and gold could be found in its rivers and creeks; but once the country realized how incredibly diverse the area was, it was turned into one of the most beloved National Parks.
Corcovado National Park is one of the most interesting in the system. The tropical wet forests contained within its boundaries are widely considered to be the most species rich in Central America. More than 500 species of trees are found here, some 6000 species of insects and about 140 species of mammals.
Early this morning, we disembarked onto Punta Caletas, a privately owned wildlife refuge. The owner of the place allowed us to walk the trails there and we all took advantage of that. Some of us decided to take the long strenuous walk that goes behind his home. For about one and a half hours we communed with giant lianas (woody vines), leaf-cutter ants, army ants, termites, trogons and spider monkeys. Others chose to take the “path less tough” and took a shorter walk near the premises in order to take a shot at good bird watching. Scarlet macaws, slaty-tailed trogons, green honey creepers, chestnut mandibled toucans, spider monkeys and many blue morpho butterflies were feasting on the Malayan apple fruits. Either those on the tree or the fallen ones were taken advantage of. Inside this type of forest, nothing goes to waste! Not rotting fruit nor even dung!!!
Others, a bit more adventuresome, took their chance at horseback riding. For some, this was their first time on a horse! But whatever choice our guests made for this morning, everyone came back with smiles on their faces and were very deserving of the colossal lunch we had on board.
But the day had so much more to offer! As we repositioned our ship for our afternoon destination, we spotted a pod of three humpback whales. Two adults and a young one made our day an unforgettable one. They spy hopped, flapped, fluked and were exceptionally friendly. We debated between staying with them or move on to our next spot. The whales finally decided for us as they disappeared in the deep blue sea.
We finally made it to our afternoon spot. Sirena park ranger’s station is a dream come true for any naturalist. Just by walking 40 minutes, we were surprised by two species of monkeys, lots of species of birds, and a lush old forest that we seldom ever get to visit.
