My Central American Adventures

My Central American Adventure - Costa Rica and Panama...

San Jose, C.R: Costa Rica is a place of one of the greatest natural biodiversity, having both Coastal forest as well as equatorial rainforest and active volcanoes.
San Jose the capital is a small city, heavily infested with American travellers and adventure tourist. I was here to see some of the endangered animals and insects that I had only seen in books and magazines and to hike through the forest (to survive in the wild). Close to Volcan Poas, Jaco Beach Lankaster Gardens, the La Paz Waterfal, San Jose is a good place to start the adventure from.
Volcan Poas, Volcan Arenal and Volcan Irazu: Active volcanoes that I hiked during my trip. Its a strange feeling climbing a volcano. The pungent smell of sulphur, the occational smoke coming out of the cracks and the black lifeless soil often give the feeling that one is walking on the surface of a completely different planet. My guide said that Armstrong during his trip here had remarked that the surface reminded him of the Moon. Hard to do but an experience in itself a active volcano is a remarkable wonder of nature signifing the power and strength latent in mother earth.
Caribbean Side, Puerto Viejo and Cahuita: Very interesting about Costa Rica is clear distinction between the two coasts just about 200 miles apart, the west side is mostly forest and indegenous people while the east side has significant Caribbean touch with mostly dark skinned people. Cahuita and Puerto Viejo, popular tourist destination for their beautiful beaches and chilled out rasta lifestyle is a wonderful destination for relaxation and the starting point for the hike to the Manzanillo National Forest.
Manzanillo National Forest: A day long 8 mile hike into the Coastal Forest, a perfect way to spend a hot and humid day. But the number of animals and trees that I saw made up for the salt and water that I lost. Navigated by my long haired rasta guide I saw two toed sloths, the slowest creature I have ever seen; the russell viper (fur de lance), a deadly snake that can kill a person in 3 minutes; a number of colourful endangered but poisonous frogs and an unbelieveable number of birds and plants. I also ate termites, which are high in protein content and tasted raw forest crabs, very crunchy but a little slimy.
Monteverde Cloud Forest: Zipping over the dense forest cover on ropes and in the rain is an adventure experience of a lifetime. It seemed like flying, tied only by a rope and about 400 feet above the ground, I felt free and completely at peace with nature.
The cloud forest has innumerable flora and fauna, colorful insects, butterflies and hummingbirds can often take ones breath away. This is also the forest where I first touched and played with a baby anaconda, cold and rubbery to touch this creature can choke me to death when an adult.
Nicoya Peninsula, Montezuma: After rafting and floating on the Tican rivers, I made my way to Montezuma. My ATV (picture above) adventures started from here when I drove around the Nicoya peninsula for two days (along the beaches of Santa Teresa and forest of Nicoya) witnessing animals, villagers, tribals and waterfalls.
Tortugero: Known for the beaches where the sea turtles nest, I was fortunate enough to witness a nesting mother turtle. A turtle lays about 60-80, some large and fertilized while some small an unfertilized on which the babies feed on. An awesome spectacle, eight foot long and four feet wide reptile totally in a trance by the moonlight.
Osa Peninsula & Panama: The best part of my trip, three days into the deep and dense Corcovado forest of Osa Peninsula and crossing the border to Bocas del toro. A high adrenalin trip from the start, I have never had a more exciting solitary adventure.
I boarded a plane with a bunch of naturalist to the grass airstrip in the middle of the forest. Having no reservation and no place to stay, I asked around the people at the airstrip (there were a total of three people at the airstrip, a driver for the naturalist, a person with cola for the pilot and a airstip agent for maintainence. They informed me that Mirador was a house where I could get a place to stay and eat. I hitched a ride with the naturalist only to be dropped off at the shore opposite Mirador. Thigh deep in water with my heavy hiking bag walking up to the shore without a person in sight, I was sure that it was the craziest thing that I had ever done in my life. For once in my life, I experienced a rush like no other. Solitary and completely at natures mercy, I felt more connected and at peace with  the surroundings than I had ever felt before. Perhaps a spiritual experience like no other. Luckily of getting to the rocky shore, I managed to find a trail which lead me up to the hill to Mirador's cabina. I spent the nights at the wooden shack with reptiles of different forms and shapes for company and starlight streaming through the window of the otherwise dense darkness.

I took two hikes into the Corcovado forest, one in the daytime and one at night. The day hike was long and tiring but my wonderful guide explained every element of the dense forest. Four species of monkeys.. Squirrel, Spider, Howler and the white face cappuchin, iguanas and toucans were spread all over in this one of the most dense coastal forests in the world.
But the most amazing experience was the night hike into the jungle (I was accompanied with 'the bug lady', an amazing entymologist dedicated to studying medical value of insects).
Crossing the bay at night on a small canoe, I had the most scary moment of my whole trip when looking around while shinning my light I saw about six alligators stare back at me. Their golden eyes are enough to give a chill up anyone's spine. I bug lady showed me a new world, sleeping sloths, feeding iguanas, frogs of every size and shape even colorful coral snakes. But best of all, amazing bugs and spiders .. of all kinds, some poisonous while some harmless enough for us to play with.

I celebrated the New Year (2007) on the beach with three other people, lighting a fire and eating fish, a contrast from the usual new year parties but a wonderful way to welcome the new year staring at the beauty that nature has gifted us.