Tamarindo Beach and Bahia Zapotal, Costa Rica
One of the most famous beaches for surfing in Costa Rica, and here we were for the morning. Much earlier, Costa Rican immigration authorities had been on board to stamp us once again into the country, after our visit to Nicaragua yesterday, and now it was time to set foot on land (or water) once again. Boogie boards were the name of the game in the crashing surf, as others rode horses along a broad swath of fine sand. Before becoming beach bums, however, we went by Zodiac and kayak into the mangrove estuary nearby searching for the American crocodile (which was found).
With the rising tide, the beach became narrower, until by the time we decided to leave, a few drops of rain encouraged us to head home for lunch. A short sail north took us into a quiet bay by the name of Bahia Zapotal, which fifty years ago had been a manganese mining area. Today, however, it was calm in the afternoon light, with a few head of cattle at one end practicing the art of becoming beach bums themselves, while at our end we snorkeled (excellent: nurse shark, giant sting ray, garden eels), played in the surf (smaller waves than the famed Tamarindo Beach of the morning), rode the Torpedo Blaster full tilt (great wipe-outs), and kayaked (into a cave with chittering bats overhead).
How wonderful life is…
