costa rica is probably the richest country i have ever visited in terms of topography. its a wonderland for nature and wildlife enthusiasts because everything teams with life. everything has a place in the diverse eco system, from the small fungus's growing on the trees, to the fire ants trailing one another on the jungle floor all the way to the top of the food chain, where jaguars prowl the beach at night looking for turtles.
we are here at tortuguero national parque, which is aptly known as the costa rican amazon. we are staying in tortuguero village, where on one side the ocean pounds the sand and on the other, the vast pacuare gorge river flows. the unfortunate thing for us is that its not safe to swim in either. why? because strong rip tides along with sharks, waiting the arrival of baby turtles, haunt the sea and crocodiles and caiman own the river. swimmers have be taken by crocodiles in the past - so heed the warnings.
today we headed out on an early morning river expedition to see what we could spot. we were incredibly lucky to see the following: caiman, mantled howler monkeys, spider monkeys, keel-billed toucans, green iguanas, various bird varieties and black river turtles. while we didn't see the mighty green macaws or the infamous poisonous strawberry dart frog, we certainly heard them. we were on the hunt for sloths but didn't mange to track any down.
after our morning boat tour, we headed into the nature reserve on foot. here we saw monkeys, snakes, fire ants, birds and turtle nests on the beach. the scary thing for me was that we spotted three snakes on our own, no guide - which made me ponder, how many were we passing that were undetectable… sitting just watching us. i think my dreams will be snaky tonight. we have very much enjoyed our time in the jungle and are headed back to the caribbean tomorrow to get check out the surf. happy valentines day peeps - i hope you spent it with your amore.
after our morning boat tour, we headed into the nature reserve on foot. here we saw monkeys, snakes, fire ants, birds and turtle nests on the beach. the scary thing for me was that we spotted three snakes on our own, no guide - which made me ponder, how many were we passing that were undetectable… sitting just watching us. i think my dreams will be snaky tonight. we have very much enjoyed our time in the jungle and are headed back to the caribbean tomorrow to get check out the surf. happy valentines day peeps - i hope you spent it with your amore.
update. we saw a sloth when we were leaving tortuguero up close and personal, it was so special. pic to prove it. we also saw a lot of monkeys, a mother and baby crocodile and some caiman.
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