Friday, February 20: Leaving Corcovado

This morning we woke up, packed up camp, and left in boats after breakfast.  We were all sad to leave, but excited for what was yet to come.  I was really happy because I heard the howler monkeys this morning before we leave.  They were really weird sounding.  The boat ride was really nice actually, it was another beautiful day.  We went back through the mangroves to the hotel we stayed at in Sierpe.  We loaded up our stuff on the bus, grabbed some snacks at the supermarket, and hit the road.

Shortly after leaving, we stopped at a banana plantation, to do a species report of course.  It wasn't too exciting, just rows and rows of banana plants.  After a few hours of driving we stopped in Dominical, a surf town, for lunch.  It was kind of weird being back in civilization.  We got to use the phone and internet for the first time since San Jose.  We got to walk down to the beach, but it wasn't nearly as pretty as Corcovado.  There were also a ton a little shops we stopped at.

After a few more hours of driving we reached our hotel.  It was so nice! Right on a black sand beach.  It even had a pool with a swim up bar, but unfortunately it was closed.  Fortunately the other bar was open.  We had two people to a room, which meant we each got our own full bed!  And a real shower (but not a warm shower).  We all went out to the beach to watch the sun set.  I've never been to a black sand beach before.  Brad even got to surf.  

We went to a seafood restaurant for dinner.  We sat 6 people to a table, and each table shared a big seafood platter with fish, lobster, shrimp, clams and lots of other things.  Upon returning to the hotel we headed straight to the bar.  Roy was our bartender.  He didn't speak English, but since we knew how to say "mas tequila," everything was ok.  This is when we discovered the deliciousness that is guaro.  Possibly the best mixed drink I've ever had, we are still looking for it in other places, but haven't had any luck.  Guaro is really common, but we don't know what Roy mixed it with.  Pablo and Moncho even joined us at the bar to have "one beer," which turned out to be a 40.  We weren't out too late since we were so used to going to bed early in Corcovado.  

Thursday, February 19: Corcovado

Today was another day filled with learning.  We started off the morning with some beach biology, mostly learning about plants that live right up to the sand.  I got to present my species report on Cocos nucifera, the coconut palm.  We also learned about the scarlet macaw.  After lecture we broke up into groups to do posters on common plant families.  I was in the Bromiliaceae group, which is the pineapple family.  Lunch was the best meal so far, fried whole red snapper.  it was so good.  After lunch we finished up our poster and went for a swim.  It's so hot here, at 10:30 in the morning the grass is too hot to walk on with bear feet.  

They took us into the forest to present our posters because it was so hot.  It was actually really cool having a class in the forest.  We all just sat on logs and the ground.  It felt really nice to be out of the sun.  We even got interrupted by a howler monkey!  I was so happy to finally see one, I haven't even heard any calling yet.  

After presentations we had more free time.  Luke and I went to check out this other path at the end of the beach.  The forest was so different, you could tell the area was recently disturbed and was in a very early stage of recovery.  The short path led to another beach.  We climbed out on the rocks and saw a crocodile! It was so cool! We heard they were in the ocean but hadn't seen any yet.  

After dinner we had a night hike.  We didn't really know what to expect, but we knew that all poisonous snakes are nocturnal.  We all wore long-sleeve shirts and tucked our pants into our socks.  We looked pretty cool.  The hike was ok, we didn't really see much.  Pablo and Moncho led us up the river, so we all got soaked.  

Wednesay, February 18: Isla del Cano

Today we went to Isla del Cano, just off the coast of our campsite in Corcovado.  We stopped off shore of the island to snorkel, and it was so cool.  It's a national park rule that we had to wear life jackets, which was actually really nice because we didn't have fins.  We just got to float around and look at the reef.  There were so many beautiful fish.  I even saw a nurse shark that was 5 or 6 feet long! It was about 10 feet below me, so cool.

After about an hour of snorkeling we headed to shore.  Alan gave us a short lecture on island biodiversity, having us throw rocks on to circles in the sand to show how species become distributed.  After the lecture we went for a short walk on the island to see how it differed from the mainland.  

After lunch we had the rest of the afternoon free.  It was really hot, so I tried to stay out of the sun since I was already burned.  I did go snorkeling again though, but it was just so amazing.  Didn't see anything new, but it was still really cool.  On the boat ride back to the mainland I saw a really big sea turtle, which was also exciting.  We had more free time when we got back, which was mostly used to pick off ticks from the hike to Playa Llorna.   They were everywhere, and I mean everywhere.  That night we had a discussion about what we saw on the island.  

Tuesday, Feb 17: Hike to Playa Llorona

Today was a “free day.” “Free Day” means we aren’t doing anything academic, but they usually plan some sort of vigorous activity for us. Today was a 14K hike round trip to Playa Llorona. Playa Llorona can only be accessed by this single path from San Pedrillo, so even less people go there. They wanted the hike to be the destination and really enjoy the forest. Corcovado is a very healthy forest, and there’s not many places like it. Luke and I hiked together. At the beginning of the path we saw monkeys and coatis. We couldn’t see the monkeys very well though, so I was highly disappointed. We were able to get fairly close to the coatis. They’re so cute, I just want to cuddle with them. I don’t think they’d like that very much though.

The forest was so beautiful. The trees are huge, and you can hear lots of birds. We didn’t really see much after the monkeys and coatis. The path was quite the hike, very hilly and steep. I definitely enjoyed it none the less. It took us two and a half hours to reach Playa Llorona. It was so beautiful. The beach was huge! There were so many shells. Since it was low tide we were able to hike to a waterfall at the end of the beach. It can only be accessed during low tide because you have to walk through the tide pools, it sucked. So rocky and difficult. Sarah fell and dropped her camera in the water. We saw a bright yellow puffer fish stranded in one of the tide pools, natural selection at its finest. The waterfall was pretty cool, but we didn’t stay long because we wanted to leave plenty of time to hike back before it got dark. It was funny to watch Pablo hide from the sun in his rain boots and a sarong. Such a funny guy. Whitest Costa Rican ever.

The hike back was rough. My legs felt like jello. Sarah and I were dragging, but Luke was kicking our asses. My hands were so swollen. Toward the end of the hike we saw some white-faced capuchins, so that made me really happy. I finally saw monkeys! Finally made it back around 4. I was so dehydrated, even after drinking 4 liters of water. Since most people weren’t back I took a really long shower, it was amazing. My whole body got burned, even after several applications of spf 50. My feet got burned badly also. Those tan lines are going to stick with me for a while. We didn’t have a night lecture, so everyone went to bed right after dinner, around 6:30.

Monday, Feb 16: Corcovado

Hot, hot, hot. It’s so freaking hot. I woke up at 5:30 this morning. Not on purpose, that’s just when I woke up. Luke and I tried to snorkel, but we couldn’t see anything. We gave up on snorkeling and just walked on the beach. I LOVE mornings in Corcovado. It’s so peaceful and the perfect temperature. Down the beach were some tapir and jaguar tracks, which was really cool. They were huge! We also saw hermit crabs eating a lizard. There are hermit crabs everywhere, especially at night when they all come out. Breakfast was so good, French toast and fried plantanes. Fried plantanes are quite possibly the best food every.

After breakfast we divided into 6 groups to do field projects. Luke, Brenna, Scott, Sarah S and I went with Moncho to catch norops (little lizards). We wanted to see if males have more tail regeneration than females. They were kind of hard to catch at first, they’re really small and camoflague with the surroundings really well. Then when you find one they jump away. After some practice it wasn’t too hard. We caught about 50 total. We had a ton of fun. We sang Alanis Morsette and the Backstreet Boys, and were laughing the entire time. It definitely lured in the norops.

After lunch we had to make a poster of our findings. It’s ridiculously hot today. You can’t even walk on the grass barefoot it’s so hot. I definitely burned the bottom of my feet. Before the poster session started we had a little time to swim, which felt so good and much needed. The poster was full of laughs. Our poster was not serious at all. We drew of picture of Scott trying to lure in the norops but putting army ants on his tongue. Our conclusion was that further research needs to be done on the ability of Alanis to mesmorize and lure the norops.

After the posters almost everyone went swimming again. How can you resist, really? We were in the water for almost 2 hours probably. Luke and Danny even threw me up in the air. It was fun. After dinner each group presented their poster. Anjali and Alan tore our group apart because some of my group members commented on our study was poorly designed, which it wasn’t. I went to bed after posters. I go to bed really early (at like 8) but there’s not much to do here at night and I’m usually completely worn out by then anyways.

Sunday, Feb 15: Corcovado

Today was our first full day in Corcovado. I woke up around 6, which is when the sun comes up. I thought it was too early, since breakfast isn’t till 7, but mornings are very beautiful. We faced west, so there was no sunrise, but it’s so peaceful in the morning. It’s great to just walk on the beach. A lot of other people were up too. Nights are really hot and humid, and half the time I wake up in the middle of the night thinking I went the bed because I’m sweating so much. There’s so much dew we all thought it had rained.

After breakfast we set up a makeshift classroom in the shade so Alan could lecture us on plant leaves. It’s really cool to have to stop lecture to watch the scarlet macaques fly overhead, or because there’s a coati (really cute mammal) walking behind us. After lecture we split into three groups to go on hikes in the forest. First I went with Alan and Yemen. We saw some 800 year old trees and boat billed herons. Next was with Anjali and Pablo. We saw a small lizard, a golden orb weaving spider, leaf cutter ants, and termites. After lunch we had a group lecture before the third round of hikes. We learned about some trees, including the mango and wild cashew. Apparently both those plants are toxic, especially if you are allergic to poison ivy, which of course I am. The only reason humans can eat mango is because the poison goes away as the fruit ripens. Lecture was interrupted by a tiger heron this time. Very pretty. After lecture was a hike with Tania and Moncho. Tania kicked our asses up the steps on the path, holy crap. I had trouble keeping up. There were huge ant hills along the path. At the top was this dead, hollow tree. It was really big. Moncho went inside and caught and bat. It had really sharp teeth and tried to bite him. It was really cool though, we even got to pet it.

After the hikes were done we had to the rest of the afternoon free. Almost everyone hiked the the waterfall in one of the path loops. It was kind of a rough hike, but the waterfall was really cool. We could climb up the rocks to the top part and sit under the falls. After the waterfall I ran back to beat everyone to the showers. There were enclosed showers, but they were super sketchy so everyone used the outside ones. The water was cold, but since Corcovado is so hot and humid it felt really good. After dinner we had a really boring reading assignment, then Luke and I went to the lagoon to see the caymens. We shined our flashlights so we could see the eyes reflect back. We were really lucky to see them, but I wish we could see more than two red dots moving in the water. It was still pretty cool though. After that I started making flash cards for all the species I need to memorize. I hate latin nomenclature.

Saturday, Feb 14: Sierpe Mangroves and Corcovado

Today after breakfast we got on to boats and headed out into the mangroves. It was a beautiful, hot, sunny day. The group was split amongst three boats. The mangroves were pretty cool, we saw birds, bats, raccoons, crabs, and two boas. After a couple hours of looking at plants and animals, we got to climb on the mangrove roots, which was pretty cool. They are so strong, just like branches and trunks. We basically went from the roots into the water swimming, which was really fun. The silt at the bottom was really fine, and was kind of like quick sand. If you tried to walk along the bank your leg sank up to your knee. We had some major mud fights. Then some how swimming led to climbing up the trees and jumping into the water. I was too scared, and it wasn’t even that high.
After some jumping we headed back to the hotel for lunch, then loaded up the boats with all our stuff to Corcovado. Corcovado National Park is in the southwest corner of the country, in the Osa Penninsula. It can only be accessed by boat, and getting there is expensive, so most tourists don’t go there. We had about an hour boat ride in the same tiny fiberglass boats down the river and out into the pacific. It was a beautiful afternoon. When we arrived at the beach, it looked like paradise. It was like vacation. The part of park we’re staying in is called San Pedrillo, the northernmost part of the park. Behind the beach was a small grassy clearing where the ranger station is, and that’s where we set up camp. After basically throwing our stuff on the grass we went right into the water. It was so warm and wonderful. Very rocky. We swam for a few hours before dinner. We hired cook staff to come with us and cook every meal for us while in Corcovado, which was awesome. After dinner we had a snake lecture. Basically Moncho (one of the TA’s) showed us pictures of everything we shouldn’t go near, which is pretty much any snake. And yes students have been bitten before, right in the camping area actually. He was in the hospital for 10 days. Everyone was so paranoid after that. And Pablo (another TA) was actually bitten on the last program.