This week we are updating information for the total 3 weeks that we’ve been here. Which is surprising because I really haven’t been updating this blog (it’s nice to have a younger sister for these things) H has been keeping us busy, as her previous post mentioned, and we have officially explored the southwest coast of Costa Rica.
After Pavones and Punto Banco we left to go explore Corcovado National Park on the other side of the Osa Peninsula. We took a little boat from Golfito, and even though our captain seemed a little green we made it one piece to the other side of the Golfo Dulce to Puerto Jimenez with only one slight detour and some soaked luggage.
PJ is a cute little town on the gulf with a lot to offer as far as accommodations. The town’s proximity to Corcovado keeps a lot of the hotels full during holidays (we were there before Semana Santa). We stayed a night at a cute little local-run inn by the Mango Tree (yes, I’m not kidding, this is literately a commonly referred to landmark in town; if you saw the size of this tree you would understand why) which also happens to be the local bus stop to go to Corcovado. The rooms were of the rickety-not-so-sure-this-can-handle-my-weight variety, but the beds were surprisingly comfortable and the adorable landlord provides clean sheets, a towel and soap, and a fan for the room (and let me tell you, there is no way to sleep comfortably without one of those!).
The other nights in PJ were spent at the Jungle Hostel, which is about 3 km from the previously mentioned Mango Tree along this same road to the park. This meant that we were 3 km from town (meaning grocery store and the all important Trits ice cream) but also could get up a little later to catch the collectivo (huge human-transporting truck that powers over the rock strewn dirt road and across steams), which is a nice plus at 5 am. The Jungle Hostel is newer to the business of hostel-ing, and are working out some kinks, but their rooms are adorable bamboo huts set out in the jungle with mosquito nets, and their common room has epic vistas across the jungle to the Gulfo Dulce. We camped at a great spot next to the free-range chickens and also had access to the showers and communal kitchen. Plus free pancakes, how could you go wrong?!?
Corcovado has been playing host to the BBC’s film crew for a few months, so getting tickets was a bit of a challenge. I hear it’s always a good idea to book in advance for this popular and remote park, but we are not what one would consider good at planning in advance. So we decided that instead of waiting a week to stay the night in the campsite in the center of the park and being able to do hikes from there, that we would take the next available campsite at the borders of the park and hike in and out in one day. That would be us making the decision to hike 40 km in one day, carrying only water and a little food. Our new friend Dan Ramon came along for the madness, and kept us laughing through the adventure.
We took a nap at our campsite at sunset, then headed out to ford some rivers and cross ocean cliffs at low tide at 10:30 pm. The night hike was lit by our fancy headlamps, and we saw so many crazy creatures and beautiful night landscapes (ocean and jungle backlit by bright stars… breath taking!). The crazy crabs alone (there were hundreds out in the paths at night) were enough to make the hike worth it! There were strange glowing bugs, shiny huge spiders, and a ridiculously long snake that surprised Don Ramon so much that he had to jump behind H. It was a bit of a crazy mission.
The only small hiccup came when we reached a seriously wide river where it connects to the ocean. At low tide there are known to be crocodiles and at high tide bull sharks hunt for fish. We stumbled up at about 3:00 am, and even with my wonderful headlamp there was no way to see across to the other side. We decided to risk the crocs and just headed blindly into the river. Turns out no one got attacked, but I was a bit of a hot mess of worry (I was carrying a stick that I was pretty sure would keep the crocs away as long as I hit them across the nose, and clutching my hiking partners’ hands) the entire way across. Only Don Ramon was the calm one of the bunch, probably because he was barefooted.
We watched sunrise at the La Serena campsite, and hearing the jungle wake up in the morning is the most amazing experience… The howler monkeys bellow for hours, which is a little disconcerting when in the jungle itself, but from a long wrap-around porch at camp it is great! Birds are crazy up there and all the insects buzzing awake make a whole symphony that is impossible to miss at 4:30 in the morning. We may even be on the BBC cameras as night-life in the jungle, an unplanned little mistake on our part since we found a sign at La Serena that specifically states that night hikes are prohibited… Whoops!
On to a different part of the country now, more fun to follow! 🙂
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Rule #2: Don't Die. 