Corcovado National Park - finally!
Trip Start
Dec 07, 2004
1
76
107
Trip End
Ongoing
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What I did
Corcovado National Park
Drake Bay, Province of Puntarenas, Costa Rica
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Corcovado is one of Costa Rica's most beautiful regions but also one of its least accessible. Much of it is virgin rainforest. There are no roads in the park and if you choose to hike on your own, you have to plan your hiking around the low tides so that
a) you have a beach to walk on in the places where that is the trail
b) you can avoid the rivers that have bull sharks !
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This is one of the only places in Costa Rica where all 4 monkeys live - so far we have seen howlers, white-faced and spider monkeys. We haven't spotted any of the big cats yet - the jaguars, ocelots, margay, jaguarundi and pumas.
Our day started with breakfast at 5:45 am, so that we could get to the park while the birds and animals were active. We hopped onto the boat and immediately spent some time while spotted dolphins swam beside us. Our hotel provided us with the guide, and there was only her and our family. She began by asking us which wildlife we most wanted to see. We crossed rivers, swam in a waterfall, hiked along the beach for part of the time and on trails in the jungle. An agouti crossed the path in front of us and we a troop of 20 coatis entertained us as they dug for food.
Part of what makes the Southern Zone unique is the large number of trained naturalist guides. Our eco-lodge has birds and wildlife, but even the bartender comes out from the restaurant to point out scarlet macaws or sloths. Monkeys are unavoidable. You hear them approach because they are noisy travellers, breaking branches as they swing and run, chattering too.
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Shopping here? ha ha ha ha
Comments
Hi Corinne! Wow what an amazing documentation of your trip. I wasn't even aware of some of the species you mention. Did you swim with the bull sharks?
hello! Nope, we only crossed the rivers when it was low tide, and where we could see to the bottom! We saw white-tipped reef sharks when we went diving and that was exciting enough.
At a different island, farther out in the ocean, are giant schools of hammerhead sharks. You have to take a live-aboard boat and spend about 10 days to go to Coco Island. Someday ...
We saw spider monkeys, capuchin monkeys and howler monkeys, and there is also a 4th species in Costa Rica called squirrel monkey. They are in danger of disappearing too. The monkeys I can tell apart, but I'm still working on the other wildlife, so when you get there, I'll be a better guide!