 | | Spirits are high, we just arrive and negotiated our first foreign navigation issue! (the airport : )
Juan Santamaria International Airport, San Jose, Costa Rica
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 | | One of the inlets on the pacific side near corcavado
Costa Rica
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 | | We didn't know this at the time but this isn't our stop.... welcome to central america... and Golfito.
Short final to Golfito, Costa Rica
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 | | Ah, back on track for our trip. Final to Puerto Jimenez, at least the kids know to get off the runway.
Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica
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 | | Yeah... i'm sure the corporate safety guy at J&J never saw this. That night i'd get a shock turning the damm thing on....
Cabinas Bosque Mar, Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
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 | | $4/night for a double room! With air and TV!
Cabinas Bosque Mar, Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
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 | | The local taxi service
Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
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 | | Sweet, big ass trees. This is what we came here for!
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Real parrots! Not some caged up and clipped twitters...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Wow... there's some cool stuff to see and experience here. Totally unlike anything i've ever done.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | um... ok. This sucks. Beach walking blows. Throw on a pack and it gets worse. Do that for several hours... yeah... ouchie.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | We got lucky. The rocky area ahead is not passable during high tide and 1/2 the time hikers have to wait several hours in order to keep going.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | I'm not sure what these cute little things are but we cam across a hundred or so crossing the path in front of us. They're kind of a cross between... kitten/racoon...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Tom's about to hit a deeper section, and this is high tide. I got my sleeping bag wet here : (
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Oh hell yeah this is camp! I was totally beat getting here. 80-90F, 100 humidity... that tells you you're living!
Sirena, Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | As we lay there licking our wounds some rich chick flew in for lunch, then flew out. Dammit... places like this you need to work to appreciate!!!
Sirena, Corcavdo, Costa Rica
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 | | Landing on grass you need as much runway you can get. So if you come in low....
8.480076,-83.58937 (go google maps)
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 | | Around camp there were lots of spider and howler monkeys. Way cool. Until you tried to go to sleep. Those buggers are noisy!!!
Sirena, Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Only gringos sleep in tents. All the euros slept in the bunks and sheltered area in the building. They didn't keep going though : )
Estacion Biologica Sirena, Costa Rica
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 | | We spent 2 nights at Sirena but now it's time to move on.
Sirena, Costa Rica
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 | | A trail on the Osa Penninsula. Hmmm... not too many people come this way. The american in front of us were in for a bigger adventure, no boots and only a duffle bag to carry their stuff! Dad wanted to show his boy the world and some adventure... great story i'm sure!
Sirena, Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | One of our first crossings, no big deal.
Rio Pavo, Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | These f*ckers hurt!!! Left cutter ants, they hurt like no other ant i've been bitten by. Ouch!!!
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Jungle trekking...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Me at a water stop.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Tom filtering water. I show this picture to highlight Tom's boots. Yeah... he'd never hike in those overboots again. Solid rubber. So kids, try out gear before you go on an expedition! (like i'll learn that lesson : )
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Damm signs around here lie...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Tom checking to see i'm ok. I'm running out of steam...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | WTF, this place is supposed to be flat. Shit... these little 5m-10m hills are killing me. Oh... dammit... it just stared to dump! Raindrops so big they hurt.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | We made it. My camera is about to short out but who cares (new slr), i have a backup. And i can sit down!
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Sunset
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Some rank Germans took the prime locations so we had to make do. Tom took the picnic bench....
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Me with my laundry haning out. It'll sit there the entire day and not dry out. Damm humidity.
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | And there nice wooden blocks here to walk oN!
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | I like the sun. Beat hiking in the rain most any day...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Hiking downhill, no one else for miles around....sweet...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | Another little crossing. We though we figured out river crossings before we got here. Nope. And this river cost me something else... read on...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
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 | | The last crossing!
Osa Penninsula, Costa Rica
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 | | Hiking out to civilization.. hiking out anyways...
Osa Penninsula, Costa Rica
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 | | Taxi we thumbed down on the road.
Osa Penninsula, Costa Rica
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 | | Pulling into Puerto Jimenez again. This is the happening place on weekends. Not exacly club 54 but they need someplace too.
Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
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 | | Shit, for $4/night we got 2 room! We could wash up, do laundry, and get damp clothes!!!
Cabinas Bosque Mar, Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
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 | | Little geckos on the wall
Cabinas Bosque Mar, Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
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 | | Airport parking, departure and arrival gate, security, check-in, tarmac- everything rolled into one! Too bad the airline wasn't as efficient. Next time, take Nature Air!
Puerto Jimenex Airstrip, Costa Rica
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 | | I like planes : )
Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica
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 | | So after the flight and 7 hr bus ride ($2) where i almost got pickpocketed we ended up at Arenal. We met some other gringos on the bus and hung out togeather for the next few days. Here we are following one of the hotel hucksters that congregate at the bus station when the white folks arrive.
Arenal, Costa Rica
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 | | PAIN!!! Hiking in the river with the agriculture runoff gave me some nasty rashes on my pants covered portion. 106F water made it hurt even more. But it felt good!
Arenal, Costa Rica
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 | | Peace corp guy, me, peace corp gal, intel engineer, and tom.
Arenal, Costa Rica
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 | | The next day we decided to go 'white water' rafting.. this is a stop on the way...
?, Costa Rica
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 | | The scary river. Gee...seems a bit low.
Rio ?, Costa Rica
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 | | Rafting operation
Rio ?, Costa Rica
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 | | The next day we went to go see Arenal... i'm not sure what tom's doing...
Arenal-ish, Costa Rica
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 | | That'd be the volcano in the background. They sucker a lot of tourists to come here to see it. But 99% of the time it's covered in clouds. Around 1am the clouds shift and that's the best time to see it. We heard it and saw a few lava bombs fall out...
Arenal-ish, Costa Rica
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 | | Breakfast before going our spearate ways.
Arenal, Costa Rica
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 | | So we had to do the ziplines in Monteverde....
Monteverde, Costa Rica
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 | | View of the towers and the cloud forest...the tour is way over rated but the zip lines are neat!!!
Monteverde, Costa Rica
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 | | Sweeeeet!!!
Monteverde, Costa Rica
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 | | Me and Tom on the highest tower
Monteverde, Costa Rica
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 | | Another view of the towers
Monteverde, Costa Rica
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 | | Some Quaker types came down here and bought up the place to start anew and practically own the regional cheese market.
Monteverde, Costa Rica
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 | | My facination with coppers.
Monteverde, Costa Rica
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 | | Heading back to San Jose... we're going to get in a dispute with this cabbie when we arrive : )
The national highway, Costa Rica
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 | | Mark the peace corp guy trying to get a photo op but this kid and dog keep getting in the way
Arenal, Costa Rica
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 | | She runs the little food shack on the corner (you'll see)
Santa Elena, Costa Rica
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 | | White man crashed out in a pension
Santa Elena, Costa Rica
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 | | Old fort with lots of bullet holes. Probably from the last revolution, which was some time ago...
San Jose, Costa Rica
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 | | Downtown shopping scene
San Jose, Costa Rica
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 | | Where the Tica's and Tico's shop for everyday items
San Jose, Costa Rica
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 | | Inside the mercado
San Jose, Costa Rica
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 | | More local scenes from the city. Costa Rica is generally a safe place but San Jose is a bit more crime ridden.
San Jose, Costa Rica
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 | | The hostel where we stayed. Nice place on the inside, built like a fort and you have to be buzzed in.
San Jose, Costa Rica
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 | | Didn't i say this hostel was nice? Free internet and a pool!
San Jose, Costa Rica
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