Corcovado National Park & Ballena Bay National Park, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
Faced with the grave decision of choosing between a birding hike, a waterfall/waterhole walk, or a longer walk which could offer more exercise, we welcomed our second day in Costa Rica. What should we do? Many people interrogated the naturalists as to which hike was better for what, and the general consensus was that any one of the walks would offer a good reward, when one is within the Corcovado National Park. This Park protects one of the most, if not the most, pristine piece of forest still remaining in Meso-America.
The long walkers left the ship first, and came back with wild stories of poison dart frogs, trogons, spider monkeys and beautiful tall trees. The bird-hiking group returned with a story that was the envy of many others: ten scarlet macaws on a tree preening, feeding and socializing. The people who chose the waterfall hike came back renewed: the forest was magnificent, the walk was invigorating, and the waterhole was a-dream-come-true. After a hot and steamy hike all we could think of was the clear, cool water of the pool. The small waterfall in the waterhole gave many of us a well-deserved massage and most of us the much needed cool off. Back on board for lunch, and cruising towards our afternoon destination, we encountered a cow/calf couple of humpback whales, which seemed to be on a mission and paid us no attention whatsoever. Brown boobies gave a wonderful spectacle of catching the little flying fish the bow of our boat stirred.
We reached Ballena Bay National Park at 3:30 p.m. Established in 1989 and the first marine park of Latin America, it protects about 5300 hectares of marine area and about 110 hectares of mainland. Our exploration party found a long black beach with quite a swell and a few birds we had not seen so far. Swimming from the stern of the ship and kayaking one last time were also at hand. Back on board for cocktails and a green flash, we were ready for our last day of adventure and sun in Costa Rica.
Faced with the grave decision of choosing between a birding hike, a waterfall/waterhole walk, or a longer walk which could offer more exercise, we welcomed our second day in Costa Rica. What should we do? Many people interrogated the naturalists as to which hike was better for what, and the general consensus was that any one of the walks would offer a good reward, when one is within the Corcovado National Park. This Park protects one of the most, if not the most, pristine piece of forest still remaining in Meso-America.
The long walkers left the ship first, and came back with wild stories of poison dart frogs, trogons, spider monkeys and beautiful tall trees. The bird-hiking group returned with a story that was the envy of many others: ten scarlet macaws on a tree preening, feeding and socializing. The people who chose the waterfall hike came back renewed: the forest was magnificent, the walk was invigorating, and the waterhole was a-dream-come-true. After a hot and steamy hike all we could think of was the clear, cool water of the pool. The small waterfall in the waterhole gave many of us a well-deserved massage and most of us the much needed cool off. Back on board for lunch, and cruising towards our afternoon destination, we encountered a cow/calf couple of humpback whales, which seemed to be on a mission and paid us no attention whatsoever. Brown boobies gave a wonderful spectacle of catching the little flying fish the bow of our boat stirred.
We reached Ballena Bay National Park at 3:30 p.m. Established in 1989 and the first marine park of Latin America, it protects about 5300 hectares of marine area and about 110 hectares of mainland. Our exploration party found a long black beach with quite a swell and a few birds we had not seen so far. Swimming from the stern of the ship and kayaking one last time were also at hand. Back on board for cocktails and a green flash, we were ready for our last day of adventure and sun in Costa Rica.
