Jungle Fever!

June 13

Today we boarded the bus and headed to the Central Pacific region of Costa Rica. The place we went to, Jacó, is only ten kilometers away from Santa Elena, but because we have to go through and around mountains the trip is actually 40 kilometers and takes two and a half hours.

Our first activity here was a jungle safari boat ride on the Tárcoles River. Five minutes into the tour we saw our first crocodile, nicknamed Osama bin Laden, and his mate, who were stunning themselves on the river bank. According to our riverboat guide the biggest crocodile on this area is 19 feet long and nicknamed Mike Tyson. Gustavo tells us there are about fifty crocodiles per mile in this area. The second croc we saw was nicknamed Fidel Castro. We go practically over the top of this crocodile and drift there for a while. We also see a number of indigenous birds on the tour. One of the birds we see, the bare throated heron, is a predator who feeds on baby crocodiles. All told I saw seven crocodiles, including one as we were coming into the dock that was drifting right in front of us.

                                 

After lunch we went to Rainforest Adventures on an aerial tram tour. Our guide, Eric, explains to us that this is a transitional forest. The forest here transitions from dry forest to rain forest. He then led us on a nature hike that included a herpetarium and a butterfly garden. However by this time it was raining so hard that no butterflies were out.

Jacó is a beach town and a large city by Costa Rican standards, with all of the activities, benefits, and problems one would expect from living in a big city. The streets are extremely busy. And some of the activities aren’t exactly legal. The beach itself is nice, with black volcanic sand and stunning sunset views.

The black sand beaches of Jaco.