Tortuguero National Park

When we arrived in the capitol of Costa Rica, it was about an hour before sunset. Knowing that we would be renting a car in a foreign country, with roads similar to Jamaica, we planned to stay in the city and venture out early in the morning. It turned out to be a good call. We were up at 2:45 am to catch our early flight. By the time we reached our hotel around 5:30 pm, we were spent. A swimming pool and pizza served through room service never felt so good!

With a solid nights sleep, we ventured northeast, along winding roads, over mountains, until we found ourselves passing through small, sparsely populated towns. Three plus hours later, we made it to the docks in La Pavona. There we left our care in a secured parking lot, grabbed a snack and caught a motor boat for the hour ride to the village of Tortugero, which sat next to the national park of the same name. 

I had been looking forward, with great anticipation, to spending time what may be the most isolated part of the country.  The draw was the rain forest, rich in it's biodiversity. There are no roads. All access is by boats. In years gone by, the village was settled by loggers. Now, with the country more focused on preserving the national world instead of clear cutting, Tortugero is a tourist destination served by mostly immigrants of Nicaraguans who came to find work and ended up settling along the banks of the river and making it home. 

We had two days and nights in the village and we made the most of it. The girls were initially taken back by our backpacker hostel room. That room was booked with a purpose. I wanted the girls to continue building a thick skin for travel, which means that fancy rooms and swimming pools are not always available. Living as close to how those in this small village of 2000 did, it gave them the opportunity to understand how life was in this far removed place. The rooms were clean, the beds comfortable and the grounds lovely. No, there was no hot water for showers,  the lighting was dim in the rooms and the WiFi sparse. All things that make thicker skin for traveling. One thing that helped them to adjust to the more basic accommodations were the hammocks, very large crabs and the rooster that served an alarm clock!

This was the reception area of our lodging. After a long, hot day exploring the girls were happy to have a bit of screen time.

During our time in Tortuguero, we went on several excursions, all which allowed us see some of the vast wildlife of the region. Night hikes meant sightings of snakes, sloths and spiders. We got up close to the famous Costa Rican red eyed, green tree frog and marvel at the cutter ants, who work so preciously as teams.

the green tree snake

the Amara monkey

Our two hour river tour quickly taught us all why the rain forest is named such. It rained on and off throughout our time on the river but the rain brought relief from the hot, sticky heat. I personally love the heat but the humidity can be hard if not used to it. The girls, especially Havana, struggle with the type of temperatures we encountered in the rain forest. 

Our  river guide brought us a bit too close to Caimans (we seem to have a pattern of that; grizzly in Alaska, bison in Yellowstone and now these alligatorid crocodilian) but he also helped us to locate some of the most beautiful birds including my all time favorite, the toucan. I was delighted to see a different species for the first time. We saw blue herring wintering in the park along with spider monkeys and howlers who could be heard for miles before they were seen. To be in little channels along the river, were it was refreshingly devoid of humans (other than us!) was humbling and reassuring that Mother Earth truly is in charge. 

the toucan is my most favorite bird. unusual, unique, bright, colorful. maybe i see a kindred spirit in the toucan?! our guide taught us their song so we knew when they were nearby. that served me on the remainder of our trip. 

The last outing was a hike through the national park. We were staying at the part of town that was literally less than five minutes to the entrance. Because of frequent rain, we borrowed boots from out tour operator and then headed out. Once again, the land called the amazon of Central America, did not disappointment. The red poison dart frog's vibrant red could easily fool someone into getting maybe too close. The spider monkey's playing above our heads were silly and playful. The second growth trees and ferns provided shade as they were so bit and broad. Their deep greens soothing. But my favorite part of the hike was when we reached the end, for their in her rough glory was the Caribbean Sea.

The area was more than just wildlife and rain forest however. Every person we came into contact with was kind, genuine and warm. We had some great meals and I even had one of the best massages in years.  When we boarded our motor boat for the return passage, I wished we had had more time. We were not off the grid but it was pretty close. The simple pace of the land, water and people slowed us down and left us grounded, appreciative and grateful for all we had seen.