Chicago to UK - the end of the trip!

08 Mar

As we were in no hurry today, we didn't rush up but when we did go down for breakfast it was a bit of a scrummage as the breakfast room was very busy.  On the plus side, the cinnamon buns were very good!  After breakfast, I looked out of the window and saw that it was snowing.



Clearly Chicago had had a lot of snow because every carpark had huge mounts of snow heaped up by the snowploughs, we could also see that the lake was still mainly frozen.  Apparently, it is very unusual for the lake to be like this so late in the year.

After breakfast we investigated the transport options for visiting the Rosemont Fashion Outlet Center.  We could have caught a free shuttle back to the airport and then taken the train, but it would have cost $10 to get there and taken about 30 minutes.  We opted for to take a taxi which cost us $15 (including tip) each way.

The shopping centre (previous spelling deliberate) is fairly newly opened and has many fashion shops with discounted clothes.  More importantly, it was warm inside whilst it was cold and snowy outside.  We wandered around and bought a few bits and pieces, two pairs of jeans for me.  After that, we had lunch in the food court and caught a taxi back to the hotel.

We'd arranged a late check-out from the hotel, so we returned to the room and repacked our bags and had a quick refresh before checking out of the room.

We caught the free shuttle back to O'Hare Airport and checked our bags in.  We both had 'TSA approved' boarding passes so we didn't have to remove shoes or belts to get through security.

O'Hare Airport is huge!.  We had a wander around and then headed out for the area where our flight was due to depart from and found somewhere to sit whilst we waited to board.  The flight boarded on time and was pretty much full, but we had already got seats assigned toward the rear of the aircraft.  The airport was busy and we taxied for a while and  took off a few minutes late.

The flight took us up towards Toronto, which we could clearly see, and on to Montreal before heading up the St Lawrence Seaway, across Nova Scotia and finally across Newfoundland.  Our flight time was just over 7 hours, but we got stuck in a queue waiting to land at Heathrow.

We arrived at Heathrow at around 07.30 and had collected the car by 08.30 and headed back to Lincoln where we arrived at around 11.15.

Costa Rica to Chicago

07 Mar  Tambor - Liberia - Chicago

Up by 06.00 and did our final packing. Breakfast was on the table before 07.00 courtesy of Xavier.  We packed the car before breakfast and left the hotel at 07.10 after saying our farewells to Judy and Xavier.

We drove the 21 km across to Paquera and then turned north in the middle of the town and headed up the dirt road to Playa Naranjo.  The road was 25km of sometimes quite good and sometimes quite appalling road.  There were quite a few big trucks on the road and we were thankful that we didn't meet any fuel-tankers on the narrow mountainous sections.  We tried to keep going at a steady 30-40kph and made it to Naranjo in just over 45 minutes and finally got back onto proper roads, well what passes for roads anyway! This road is labeled the route 21 on the maps.

The further north we went the better the roads got although the speed limit remained at 60kph until we joined the a more main east-west road.  The road was wider from here and the speed limit increased to 80kph, the maximum speed limit in Costa Rica.

Our route up the Nicoya peninsular took us through Lepanto, Jicaral, San Pablo, Nicoya, Santa Cruz, and Filadelfia before we passed the Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport at Liberia.

We drove into Liberia and refueled the car and stopped for a drink for ourselves too.  Back down the road toward the airport we returned to the car rental depot where we checked the Jimny back in again.  All was well and they inspected the car and found no damage and we got our deposit back.

The car rental company gave us a lift back to the airport where we managed to check in easily. We'd forgotten that there is a departure tax of $29 each, but found we could pay by credit card.  Next stop was bag check and then to security.  We were rather surprised that the security staff got very interested in Lynn's carry on bag, but when they checked inside they found a knife!  For reasons beyond explanation, Lynn had put a bag with two plastic plates and a dining knife which we had bought into her bag and forgotten it was there.....

The airport was bedlam with lots of flights leaving for the USA, but our flight, which was one of the last for the day was half-empty which was rather pleasant.  The flight was about 5 hours and took us back over central America, Mexico, the Gulf of Mexico, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee and on up to Chicago, Illinois.

After the delights of US Immigration again, and some minor problem with our passports we collected our bags and headed for the shuttle bus area.  We found that we needed to phone the hotel to get the shuttle bus to come to International Arrivals, but the automated telephone system failed to work.  Luckily, one of Illinois's finest, a police-lady, phoned the hotel for us.

The journey only took 10 minutes, but it was amazing to see just how much snow is still lying on the ground and huge heaps of snow were everywhere from the snowploughs.
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We checked in and went straight out to a Sports Bar just around the corner, 'Barefoot Joes'.  Here we had a burger each and a large beer - I reckon we earned it today!

Farewell to Tambor

06 Mar - Tambor

As it was our last day, we got up rather late at around 08.00.  We found that the water supply was off again as they were still working on the pump, so we went out a little grubby! We had breakfast and then headed out for our last chance of exploration.

We had decided that we liked Santa Theresa, so we headed for the town of Cobano again and from there got onto the dirt roads again.  At the point we had previously turned off to Santa Theresa, we continued straight on heading toward Rio Negro.  After several kilometres of bumping and shaking around, we found the sleepy village of Rio Negro and the the river Negro!  The signposts ran out that this point, but we decided to carry on as we were aware that there are really no roads heading up the west coast of the Nicoya Peninsula and thought we would eventually find the coast again.

After winding around in the hills, we started to descend and suddenly we could see the Pacific again.  The road dropped down to the coast and a deserted beach at the village of Manzanillo.  There was a bar overlooking the beach, so we sat there and had a drink.  The students of the school appeared to be having a lesson outside on the road just below us.

The road to the north of Manzanillo runs on the beach fora while, but we decided that we would not risk ending up in soft sand.

Eventually, we moved on south and followed the road, sometimes near the beach and other times up in the hills until we reached the northern edge of Santa Theresa.  We continued on to the cross-roads at Playa del Carmen and parked to look at the 'shopping mall'.  This proved to be full of surf shops, so didn't keep us long.  Looking across the road we spotted an ice-cream shop and felt obliged to try it out!  We sat outside and watched the world go past as we ate our treats.

We headed back to the car and drove a little further to the end of the road at Mal Pais, but the beaches there were very rocky and there was lots of surf.  Wanting a last swim in the Pacific, we drove back to Santa Theresa and the beach we had found previously down a track next to Cafe Zack and Casa Zen hotel.  The beach was deserted so we sat under some palm trees and read and swam for an hour or so.

Feeling hungry, we got back in the car and went back to the Bakery at Playa de Carmen again where we had an excellent lunch and watched the Hoffman's Woodpeckers nesting in a palm tree.

Full of salad and ciabata bread we headed back to the hotel.  We were a little later returning to the hotel than we had been on other days.  We were greeted by Judy saying, "We wondered where the kids had got to - you're late"!  I think we have become part of the furniture at Vista Hermosa!

Having had a cooling swim in the swimming pool, we settled down and then the power went off.  This had a knock-on effect as no power meant no hot-water and in fact, since the power to the pump at the well had gone too, there was no water again!

Eventually, the power and water came back on in time for dinner and we were able to have a shower.

Our kind hosts, Judy and Xavier, said that dinner was on them this evening to make up for the issues with water which was extremely kind of them.  I had home-made Spaghetti Bolognaise which Lynn had ribs again, both were delicious.  We also enjoyed a beer or two and a glass of wine.  All-in-all a very pleasant last evening.

We managed to do our packing during the evening too as we intended to leave before 07.30 in the morning.

Our stay at Vista Hermosa was really fantastic, we were made to feel at home throughout our stay and felt we were house guests rather than hotel guest.  Thanks Judy and Xavier!

Beach Exploration

05 Mar

We had a slower start to the day and didn't leave the hotel until 09.00.  We drove just up the road to a waterfall which flows over a cliff directly into the sea.

We bumped down the track and found a small car park and took the track that led from it.  The track led through some trees and was a bit uneven but we managed to get down to the falls.  As it is dry season, it was not flowing very much but still rather pretty.  I scrambled down the edge of the falls so I could take some pictures from below.  From here, I could see an inaccessible, completely deserted beach below and beyond that another deserted beach - it all looked really beautiful.

We went back to the car and decided to turn right when we got back to the main road!  We drove slowly back to Paquera and then carried on towards the ferry terminal as we could see a sign to Playa Organos.  A track left the main road not far from the ferry terminal and we bumped down it for about 2km and found an almost deserted beach.  It was very beautiful and the sea very calm, but as usual, shade was in short supply.  We took a couple of photographs and turned back to Paquera.

In town, we returned to Gelateria and had a couple of milkshakes as we were thirsty.  Having slaked our thirst, our attention turned to the Jimny, and we went to the petrol station to fill up the car.

We looked at the map and could see another beach marked on our map just north of Paquera on the Gulf coast.  We headed north up the 'main' road which of course was just a gravel road.At one stage a bridge was being repaired and we had to drive down through the dry river bed!

Once again, we left the gravel main road and headed down a side road which was pretty bumpy and found another beach - the sea was very calm, but there seemed to be a lot of 'rubbish' floating in the water which was a great shame.

Back on the road again, we returned to Paquera and bought some pastries from the bakery and drove back to Tambor beach where we ate the pastries and watched the Brown Pelicans and Royal Terns carrying out formation dive-bombing in the bay.  Apparently, there are shoals of sardines in the shallow water at the moment.

Finally, we returned to the hotel for a swim and cool down.




We had dinner at the hotel and I enjoyed a sea-food casserole!  We were visited by a party of French who came in for dinner.  There was much amusement at the mixture of languages, English, French and Spanish!

Roads and driving

Roads

You may not consider this a very interesting subject in a blog, so feel free to skip over it!

Since arriving in Costa Rica, we have encountered a variety of roads in varying conditions and I felt it was worth, briefly, describing the roads and driving in Costa Rica.

Firstly, a note about cars.  We had read on various websites and blogs that it was important to hire/rent a 4x4 vehicle and as a consequence we ended up with the Suzuki Jimny.  From our very brief experience we would probably endorse the recommendation but not for the 4-wheel drive capability, but for the ground clearance.  That said, we have been traveling during the dry (and hot) season, I'm told that the 4-wheel drive capability is more useful in the wet season!  I think I that a more 'rugged' vehicle is a bonus to on the some of the rougher roads.

We have found a real variety of road surfaces as we have been driving around the country.  Some roads that appear to be the 'main' road between two communities and perhaps the only connection may well turn out to be a gravel road.  This has a consequence when calculating traveling time as most of the time 25-30kph is the maximum speed possible, although the locals may well travel a lot faster.  You may find that you think your fillings will be rattled out of your teeth on some roads!

The Pan American Highway (routes 1 and 2) is apparently paved all the way through the country, north to south.  We have only travelled on the part between Liberia and just north of San Jose and a short stretch in the south of the country.  The Costanera Sur, or route 34, is paved all the way down the coast.  The highway between Puntarenas and San Jose seems to be a 4-lane highway and a toll is payable for using it.  The road across the southern Nicoya Peninsula is also paved from the ferry terminal at Paquera to Cobano. Other than that there are no paved roads in the south of the peninsular.  At the time of writing, March 2014, the Pan American Highway (route 1) south of Liberia is undergoing major road improvements and for nearly 50km it is very slow going.

Despite the fact that Monteverde is a major tourist destination, there is no paved road up to Santa Elena and Monteverde although the roads in both towns are surfaced.  The shortest section of unpaved road up to the mountains is the southern approach from near Puntarenas.

Most of the roads down to beaches are gravel and any roads to hotels and properties are also likely to be gravel. When I say gravel, it is a bit of a misnomer as mostly it is largish stones embedded in the sand/mud and makes for an extremely bumpy ride.  Frequently, particularly on corners on hills a 'washboard' effect makes the surface particularly unpleasant.

We had been warned about driving standards, but overall, we haven't found it too frightening!  True, drivers do overtake with low speed limits in villages and also on double-white or yellow lines and rarely stick to the speed limit, but if you drive defensively and let other traffic pass you, it isn't too bad.  I have to say that I would not recommend driving at night as the roads are poorly marked and it is difficult to see the centre-line or the edges of the roads.  Also, the lorry drivers seem to rule the road at night and drive quite aggresively.  I suspect wildlife might be an issue at night on poorly lit roads.

You will encounter a lot of bicycle traffic, many with more than one rider on board, give them a wide berth.  Compared with UK, there isn't much traffic on the roads.  Other things you may encounter are dogs and cattle loose on the road.  We have also had to avoid Iguanas, some of which are quite large.

Finally, the ferries between Puntarenas and Paquera.  The first ferry is at 05.30 in the morning and the last at 20.30.  I think the rest of the ferries run at 08.00, 11.00, 14.00 and 17.00.  I'm told that it is worth turning up at least 45 minutes before departure as you can only buy tickets at the ferry terminal.  That said, we turned up 5 minutes after departure, but still managed to buy tickets and get on the ferry.  The procedure at the port is odd, only the driver is allowed in the vehicle when you embark and disembark.  Other passengers have to show their ticket and walk onto the ferry.  It is a bit of a scramble for your passengers to rejoin you on the Paquera side as there isn't much parking!

Apparently, petrol prices are set by the Government, so it is no use looking for cheap fuel.  Fuel prices, by UK standards at least, are cheap and most petrol (gas) stations have diesel, normal and premium petrol (gas) and pumps are always attended.

We have secured the vehicle every time we have stopped with the fitted transmission lock and left nothing of value in the vehicle.  Some people say they leave cars unlocked too so that no damage is done.  So far, we have locked the vehicle and suffered no damage.

We had read that the Costa Rica Police were very hot on traffic offences.  The truth is that we haven't often see the Police and those we have seen were just driving at the ambient speed limit rather than the posted limit!  They do set up check points radomly, but in our experience if you just drive slowly past and give a cheery wave, they don't seem interested in tourists.

On a courtesy point, on smaller and gravel roads, all road-users seem to acknowledge other road-users with a wave, especially if you have made way for them or let them go past you.

Overall, driving in Costa Rica isn't as scary as some internet sites and blogs would have you believe.  Drive defensively and you will have a good trip!

Snorkel trip to Islas Tortuga

04 Mar - Tambor

We got up and had breakfast early as usual and left the hotel by 08.15. Today we wanted to go snorkeling at Islas Tortuga.

We drove back to Curu National Park and paid our $10 entrance fee and drove down to the beach.  There, we found the person that organised the snorkel tour and paid $25 each and joined a group of mainly French people on the edge of the beach.

Not long afterwards, a boat came in to the beach and we waded out and climbed in!  The trip out to the islands, there are several islands in the group, only took about 10 minutes and included taking the boat through a natural rock archway.  We went to an island and dropped off a few people that didn't want to snorkel and then headed out to a small rock outcrop sticking out of the sea.  The boat moored up to a pontoon and we all got off and got our snorkeling gear ready.  After a brief lecture about what was to be seen, we jumped into the water.  For Lynn, this wasn't without incident as her mask slipped and filled with water.  Whilst adjusting it in the water, she grazed her foot on a rock, luckily there are no sharks in the area!

There were certainly plenty of fish to be seen even though the visibility wasn't wonderful.  Perhaps most spectacular were several very large colourful starfish.  There were lots of familiar tropical fish to be seen, some quite large.  The Bumphead Parrot fish perhaps was the largest.

After 45 minutes, we were dragged out of the water and back onto the boat.  We then headed back to the island where we had left the other people.  Here cold drinks and fresh fruit was on offer - very refreshing.

Islas Tortuga are not named for turtles that may or may not arrive on the beach, but for the shape of the main island which sort of looks like a turtle!  Of note is the fact that our trip from Curu used a secluded beach which was deserted.  Most of the tours in far bigger boats, mostly from the mainland, use a more commercial beach with restaurant and shops. Many of the visitors on these boats seemed to be there for partying rather than the wildlife.  Subsequently, I also found out that the boat operators have to pay to land at the big beach for the use of a BBQ etc!

After and an hour or so on the island (there really wasn't much to do or see there) we headed back to Curu.  Here, we decided to sit and dry off before we moved on.  I went for a wander and saw a Howler Monkey whilst Lynn watched birds.

After we'd dried off, we drove into Paquera and had a snack lunch with a delicious milkshake!

Back at the hotel, we had our usual afternoon swim in the pool and then relaxed before dinner.

As has become customary, we sat around after dinner nattering to Judy and Xavier and Chris and Chelsea, two other guests.

Becoming a surfing dude!

03 Mar - Tambor

Sometime overnight, the water went off to the hotel, so this morning, no showers and no loos!  We did manage breakfast and then headed out hoping the water would be back later.

First we headed to Cobano and the post-office. We've been looking for one for the last week.  We thought we'd found one in Cobano the other day, but it was closed and looked somewhat neglected!  Today, we found the new post-office and posted some cards!

From here, we headed out on yet another dirt road to the surfing villages of Santa Theresa and Mal Pais.  After another bone-shaking 12km, we dropped down from the hills into the village of Santa Theresa.

The village consists of lots of small hotels and B&Bs and cabins mainly catering for the surfing crowd.  Considering how far we were off the beaten track we were surprised how busy it was there.  Having driven all through the village, we chose a track to drive down to the beach and chanced on one with a good parking place right on the beach.  Better than that, the beach was partially protected by rocks from the big breakers so we could see it was possible to swim.

We found a spot shaded by coconut palms and sat on the beach and watched the world go by.  Some people were just strolling on the beach, others were fishing in the surface, and some, like us just relaxing on the beach.  We went for a swim and it certainly cooled us down.  I am try to think what land we would have reached if we had left the coast and headed straight out - somewhere a very long way away I suspect!  At one stage some horses appeared on the beach completely untended!

By 13.00, we were feeling peckish so we packed up and headed back into the village where we found a bakery that served delicious sandwiches.  Whilst there, we watched Woodpeckers and Trogons in the trees opposite.

After a slow lunch we headed back up the track to Cobano where we stopped long enough to raid the bank!

Back at the hotel, we had the place to ourselves again and jumped straight into the swimming pool.  Not long after that we heard someone in the property next door say, 'The water is back' and sure enough we have water again here!

We will doubtless have dinner here again tonight, it is rather nice sitting on the terrace and not having to drive anywhere.

Curu National Park

02 Mar - Tambor

Up fairly early as usual now.  First thing in the morning it is a bit cooler and the birds are all on the move!

We left the hotel at around 08.00 and headed for Curu, this time armed with all the correct beach equipment!.  It is only about 16km, but the roads have a maximum speed limit here of 60kph.  To be honest, you'd struggle to drive this fast most of the time even though the roads are metaled.  They are still pretty bumpy and narrow, and some parts wind up through the hills and the road edges are a bit dodgy.  Some of the bridges are a bit worrying too.  One, near Tambor, is made of metal plates, one of which appears to be adrift.  Another further down the road is very narrow and the road surface appears to have disappeared and there is just enough room to get the Jimny over - the buses must just bump through it.

When we arrived at Curu National Park, we had to pay $10 each or 5,500 Colones to get in.  We had to sign the visitors book, I looked back through it and couldn't find any British visitors recently.

Once through the gate it is a 2km drive through a cattle ranch to the car park next to the beach. We parked up in a shady spot and headed through the palms to the beach.  It was low tide and the sea was a long way out - shades of Western-super-mare, but it we are at spring tides.

We found some picnic benches set up in the palms in the shade and set up shop.  I went for a wander along the beach and came across a Mangrove Hawk eating small crabs on the beach.  It had plenty of choice as there are thousands of small crabs darting around on the beach.  I then continued on round one of the trails in the park and found several large iguanas.  The walk through the edge of the mangrove swamp into the jungle was rather pleasant, but because of the thick vegetation it was difficult to see any wildlife although I could hear lots of birds.

Back at the beach, we splashed out for lunch and had two bags of chips, one was the usual maize/cheese and the other yucca chips.  We could have had lunch but didn't fancy a full meal.

We went swimming a couple of times in the early afternoon and could hear Howler Monkeys quite close.  We sat on the beach and watched the tide come in until it was almost touching our feet.  This was the signal to move and we decided to walk along a trail behind the beach and almost immediately came across a troop of Howler Monkeys which we could clearly see, but proved to be very difficult to photograph.

Whilst we were watching these monkeys, we realised there was something else in the jungle canopy.  On close inspection they proved to be a family of White-face Coati.  This is a tree-living animal that has a face something between a fox and a badger with a big, long, bushy tail.  Whilst we watched, around eight of them scurried down one tree and perhaps went for a drink in the mangrove swamp.

We went back to the car and found one last mammal, a large family of White-faced Monkeys.  We watched them for a while before heading out of the park.  On the way out, we found a group of three White-tailed Deer!

We stopped at Tambor for an icecream before returning to the hotel and the nice cool swimming pool.

It seemed rather decadent this evening eating baby back ribs by the swimming pool sipping cold white wine!

Exploring the Southern Nicoya Peninsula

01 Mar - Tambor

We had a good nights sleep and woke to the sound of jays and howler monkeys!  Breakfast was on the terrace and consisted of fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, rice and local sausage.

We asked for some advice about beaches and discovered that Curu National Park is a good place, but by the time we got there half the morning had gone and we'd forgotten the snorkeling gear!  We stopped and got a leaflet about the park and found out what time it opened and how much it was.  We plan to go back tomorrow.

We also briefly stopped at another beach, Playa Pochota, but we couldn't see how to get onto the beach from the village. 

We carried on to Paquera (the ferry port) and carried out a quick recce of the road north towards Nicoya which we will be using at the end of the week.  After that, we stopped for some supplies at as supermarket before heading back to Tambor beach.  Here, we sat in the shade for quite a while reading.  We were also watching the frenetic aerial display of Magnificent Frigate Birds, hundreds of Brown Pelicans and lots of Royal Terns.  There must have been a lot of fish in the water as they were all diving in to catch fish, except the Frigate birds who were trying to steal fish.

Also in the water were local fishermen.  They were in the water up to their chest with a small fishing line which they whirled over their head and then flung the hook end into the water.  Most times they caught a fish and quickly put it into a plastic bag tied to their belts!We had lunch in Tambor at an empty restaurant and ate local food, rice and chicken and prawns.

From here, we decided to investigate the town of Montezuma.  The journey down to the village was on a gravel road about 7 km long.  The town is a bit of a 'hippy' retreat and full of eateries, tour shops and yoga centres.  We stopped long enough to look at the beach and eat an ice-cream before returning to the hotel for a swim.

We spent the evening chatting to one of the other guests, Stephen.  He was Canadian and came from Toronto!  We ended up having dinner with him and then spent the remainder of the evening putting the world to rights!

A journey from Ojochal to the Nicoya Peninsula

28 Feb Ojochal - Tambor

We got up early and finished packing and headed for breakfast at around 06.45.  I had been aware of a thudding noise sometime overnight and discovered this morning that an all-night party was in progress on the beach not far from the hotel.  The hotel is hosting a wedding tomorrow on the beach and are furious with this 'illegal' party.  Apparently, the bride and groom didn't get any sleep last night.  They are staying at El Castillo, the sister hotel of the Alma, which is closer to the beach than us.

We managed to escape the hotel not long after 07.30 and headed back north up the Costanera Sur or route 34.  The road was empty as far as Quepo and then the traffic started picking up.  As we passed through Parrita, we realised that they were setting up for the end of a cycle race.  The further north we went, the busier it got, but we were still making good time.  We finally met the cycle pelaton heading south just north of Jaco on a very hilly part of the route.  I'm glad we weren't going south as the traffic was well jammed up.

We knew the ferry times and had faintly been hoping to catch the 11.00 boat with the fall-back option of the 14.00 one. As we arrived in the edge of Puntarena, we realised that we wouldn't make the 11.00 boat.  Puntarena is built on a long spit of land pointing out into the Gulf of Nicoya.  The remains of a railway line follows the road here.  Because is was a long narrow spit of land, the town of Puntarenas seems to go on for ever and we finally reached the ferry terminus just after 11.00.  Amazingly, the ferry was still there and we were told to just abandon the car by the side of the road and go and buy a ticket.  Two passengers and one car cost 14,000 Colones for the 1 hour and 20 minute crossing.  Back in the car we were ushered through to the loading ramp and then told that only the driver could drive on, the passenger would have to walk!

I drove on to a ferry that looked like the Isle of Wight ferry whilst Lynn had to walk on.  Once parked, I headed upstairs and found Lynn.  The crossing was very smooth and we found a shady seat in the breeze.  We didn't see any dolphins or whales, which are regularly seen in these parts but did see lots of pelicans.

On arrival at Paquera Port, we had to go throught the same procedure.  I had to drive off and park whilst Lynn had to walk and find me in the car park.  We headed off up the only metaled road on the southern Nicolya Peninsular to the town of Paquera.  Since this is the only road, it was just a long prosession of cars with the big lorries following us.  Traffic in Paquera was chaotic and we stopped long enough to raid the bank and continued on towards Tambor.

We were then treated to a 5 minute long torrential downpour, the first rain we have had during daylight hours.  As we were getting low on fuel we continued to the town of Cobano where we filled up the car and had a bite of lunch, half a mini-pizza and half a croque monsieur each - very classy.

We then tried to find the hotel.  This proved to be far more difficult that imagined.  We found a signpost which took us down a gravel track for a couple of kilometres and then we couldn't find any further signs.  We drove right down to the coast and came to a dead end, then decided we'd try at another hotel we'd noticed on the track - they didn't initially know where our hotel was, but eventually gave us directions.

We followed there instructions and ended up on another gravel track and after a few more twists and turns found ourselves in a housing development and eventually found the Vista Hermosa B&B.

We feel like house guests here in a modern house with a swimming pool with the dining room and bar outside on the terrace.  It is surrounded by neat gardens and flowering shrubs.  Our room is smaller than we've had before, but it is very nice.  The owner, Judy, is Canadian and a keen cook!

We had a swim in the pool and I went for a walk down a track to the sea.  Later, we sat on the terrace and read and chatted to other guests before having a pre-dinner drink.  The dinner menu looked very good and I was especially tempted by the lobster bisque as I had seen Judy cooking the fresh lobster earlier. I can report that it was the best lobster bisque I've ever had and Judy claimed it was the first time she had ever cooked it!  Unlike normal lobster bisque, this had huge lumps of lobster meat in it.  Our main course was Chicken in sweet chili sauce. The chicken was cooked on the BBQ in the garden.  We think we might like the food here.

Beach, Monkeys and Toads

27 Feb - Ojochal

The usual 6-o-clock start to the day and we were at breakfast for 07.00.  As usual, it was a bird-watching breakfast accompanied by stuffed french toast with cream-cheese and berries - yummy!

After breakfast, we quickly threw some things in our bags and headed down to Playa Pinuela.  We paid our entrance fee to the Ballena National Park (3250 Colones or $6 each) and parked up in the shade of some coconut trees.  Once on the beach we realised we were the only people there, mind you it was only 08.00 in the morning.

We had realised when we got to the car earlier that it had rained overnight, our first since we've been here.  The only marks on the beach were from the rain, no footprints just splash marks from the rain.  We walked to the very far end of the beach and found some deep shade where it was really cool and set up camp.

We spent the morning in and out of water, sitting reading and watching wildlife.  Not too long after we arrived, we saw signs of movement in the trees behind the beach and realised that there was a troup of Capuchin Monkeys swinging through the trees, we watched them for ages.  We were also lucky enough to spot two kingfishers on the branches close to the sea. 

We had no idea that Kingfishers feed in sea-water as well as rivers!  Later, in the background, we could hear Howler Monkeys calling, we didn't see them, but there distinctive barking can be heard from several kilometres away.

At lunchtime, we headed back to the hotel, got changed and drove down to Ojochal 'village'.  We found a bakery where they served lunch and discovered it was run by a French couple.  Whilst we were eating lunch we saw a tiny hummingbird which reminded me of the Bee Hummingbirds we had seen in Ecuador.  Our bird book says that they don't live in Costa Rica!

After lunch we decided to go back to Playa Pinuela for another swim.  Again there was virtually no-one there.  We took the snorkelling gear with us and found some tropical fish by the rocks on the southern side of the bay.

Back at the hotel, we did a bit of packing ready for tomorrow and made plans to go to the Boca Coronado for dinner one last time.

We drove back down to Boca Coronado shortly after sunset and enjoyed a fish dinner!  We also treated ourselves to a sweet - the Chef's special.  It was a sort of chocolate filled Ciabata pastry served with chocolate sauce and strawberry ice-cream.  It tasted better than it sounds from this description.

On arrival at our room, there was a large dark shape by the door.  Shining a torch on it revealed it as a Cane Toad.  This large toad is toxic and one of the hotel owners dogs had died after biting one of these toads.  The hotel owner was really surprised to see one at this time of year.

Waterfalls and beaches

26 Feb - Ojochal

This morning we got up early as usual and sat on the terrace watching birds before having a shower. We found we had a large spider to keep us company.For breakfast we had a delicious omlette with cheese, peppers and fried potatoes. 

Whilst eating breakfast it was birdwatching as usual - it is a very good spot to see the bird heading out for the day.  At the very least, we see Black Vultures, Magnificent Frigate Birds, Orange-chinned Parakeets and parrots.  We always see the Cheries Tanager too, oddly,  there is always one male with two females.

After breakfast we sat around some more on the terrace birdwatching and tried to use the internet and failed. For whatever reason, nothing would come up on the computer, it was very frustrating.

We decided to set off for some waterfalls at Vergel which is only about 5 km away.  We turned off the main road and headed up the usual gravel track which was in surprisingly good condition.  We stopped at the first restaurant and found some falls but not the big ones!  We had a drink, looked around the pretty gardens and at a 500 year old tree!  The restaurant here was notable for a menu with no prices on it.

We drove another kilometre to the correct falls and parked at the restaurant La Pavon.  Lynn stayed there whilst I hiked down to the fairly spectacular, but not very large, falls.  There were lots of people there and some rather unfriendly dogs.  Access to the pool at the bottom of the falls was rather steep, but the water looked very inviting.  The falls force their way between two large rock and there is a third large bolder jammed between them.

I climbed back up the hill for lunch at the restaurant which had no menu let alone prices!  We were told we could have fish or chicken served local style.  Since the place was a Tilapia farm, we opted for fish.  It was excellent and not expensive at all.  For some reason there were a bunch of French people there, one of whom was very loud!

After lunch we decided to recce the other beachs near Ojochal.  The beach at Playa Tortuga (turtle beach) was a bit littered and had no real shade, but was rather beautiful in a wild way. After looking at some very large Green Iguanas in some trees, we continued on to Playa Pinuela which is the southern access point for the Ballena National Park.  The lady ranger let have 5 minutes to look around for free.  We talked to her and decided that we'd return to tomorrow.

We then drove back to the hotel via a small supermarket at Ojochal village and once back went straight to the swimming pool to cool down.  We found that our spider from this morning had somehow got into the room.  After a brief chase which involved moving furniture and the use of magazines, we managed to get the spider back outside again.

In the evening, Lynn had a more successful session on the internet whilst I had a glass of cold white wine whilst chatting to the hotel owner.

A Mangrove and jungle boat trip

25 Feb - Ojochal

As usual, we were up not long after six, the only difference today was that we wanted an early breakfast so we could get out and on the road.  After another delicious local breakfast on the open-air terrace, we left the hotel at around 07.30.

Our aim for the day was to go on a wild-life tour on the Osa Peninsular.  This peninsular in the south-west of Costa Rica is home to the Corcovado National Park, one the only areas of pristine primary rain-forest left in the country.  (Primary in so much that it has never been cut down and regenerated).  The park is notoriously difficult to visit as there are no roads, so the only way to visit and stay at one of the jungle lodges is to fly or go by boat.  This makes it very expensive, so we decided to do the next best thing and go and visit the mangrove swamps on the northern edge of the Park.  This is possible to arrange by driving down to the river-front village of Sierpe and hiring a small boat and guide to show you the wildlife.

The journey south was easy with virtually no traffic on the road until we go to Palma Norde when the route 34 joins the route 2, which is the Pan American Highway.  To the north it goes back to San Jose and to the south the Panamanian border.  We managed to miss the turn-off for Sierpe here and drove about 15km down towards Panama.  We eventually realised we were wrong and turned around and returned to Palma Norde where we found the road to Sierpe.  This road wound around coconut plantations and small villages until we reached the rather touristy village of Sierpe.

The village is the jumping-off point not only for tours around the mangroves, but also for boats heading out the Drake Bay (Drake pronounced Drakay), the start point for visits to the jungle lodges.  Drake Bay is named after Sir Francis who landed there on one of his world tours!

The scene at the cafe which serves as the transport hub can only be described as chaotic.  We had arrived about 10 minutes late for our tour following our unintended detour.  We were rather worried the tour might have departed.  Our fears were entirely groundless as there tourist milling around everywhere.  Some had just arrived from Drake Bay, others were clearly waiting for buses to move them elsewhere, and a few, like us were waiting for a local tour!

Eventually after about an hour, a guide named David appeared and loaded us along with 6 Americans and 2 Dutch people onto a small boat and we headed out.  Under the jetty, trapped by the tide was a very large American Crocodile, we walked straight over the top of it!

Our first foray tooks us just slightly down river to look at different mangroves and have it explained to us just how important they are to the eco-system.  We next started to head up river.  For the next two-and-a-half hours we slowly puttered our way along a water-hyacinth choked waterway with mangrove and jungle lining the banks.  During the trip we say caiman, three types of monkey, Capuchin, Squirrel and Howler, squirrels a Two-toed Sloth and lots of birds.  There were at least three sorts of Heron, a couple of different Hawks, Scarlet Macaws and a variety of smaller birds too.

Needless to say, we took lots of photographs, some of which may contain recognisable images of animals or birds!

Once we arrive back at Sierpe, we decided not to eat at the touristy restaurants and drove back to Palma Norde where we found a delightful place on the mainroad and each had a plateful of local rice and chicken/seafood.  It was a bit noisy, partly from the trucks on the Pan American Highway, but more so from the unseen hoarde of Vultures in the trees across the road.

After a brief stop for some bread for dinner at a supermarket, we headed back to Ojochal for a shower and relax.  Later at around sunset, we headed for the pool and watched the sun set whilst floating around in the pool.  It was a most long drawn-out and spectacular sun set.

Lazing around at Playa Ventanas

24 Feb Ojochal

Again, we were awake not long after six and enjoying the birdlife before, after and indeed during a shower!  The bathroom window looks out over the jungle too!

Just after we arrived at breakfast, three Scarlet Macaws flew across, they were quite a sight!  Their colours are impressive enough, but they are quite a big bird and have very long tails too.

Breakfast this morning was quite American.  After fresh fruit and yogurt, we had pancakes and scrambled eggs.  Maple syrup for the pancakes and a spicy mole sauce for the eggs, very tasty!

Breakfast done, we headed down to a local beach on the recommendation of Scott the hotel owner.  We managed to find the track down to Playa Ventanas and bumped down it to a small parking area where we had been warned that there was a parking attendant.  He duly arrived and relieved us of 2000 Colones (the local currency) so that he could look after the car!

There was a small footpath down through some gardens and trees which led to the beach.  There were lots of birds flitting around again - a common theme in Costa Rica.  We even saw woodpeckers as we walked down to the beach.

The beach was in a smallish bay with rocky headlands at either end with a black sand and the sea gently rolling in.  We found a log in some shade at the far side of the beach and set up camp.  There were only a couple of other people on the beach when we arrived, although at least two clearly had been camping in a tent overnight!  We sat and watched the sea for a while and then overhead we saw a line of Brown Pelicans doing their formation flying routine, they are strange birds.  Not long afterwards, we were treated to the sight of a 'flock' of Magnificent Frigate Birds cruising overhead - they really are masters of the air. Socially, they are not nice birds as they rarely catch their own food, they are experts at intimidating other birds and forcing them, in mid-air,  to drop fish that they have just caught.  The Frigate birds them quickly catch the fish and fly off to frighten some other bird.

We went swimming too, the breaking waves were big enough for a bit of body-surfing and the water temperature was just short of a warm bath.  It was very pleasant to cool down in the sea.  After a swim, I explored the river that ran down through the jungle into the sea.  I found a large fresh-water pool and rinsed the salt water off in quite cool water.

After a couple of hours, the shade was getting thin so we went and sat in a coconut grove in the shade for a while.  Eventually, the heat finally got to us (and our bums were going numb) and we headed back to the hotel for a shower.

After freshening up, we headed for Uvita.  First job was to find the ATM and refill our pockets with Colones.  Colones is the local currency but US Dollars are also accepted everywhere.  One US Dollar currently buys about 530 Colones, so we have been wandering around with pockets full of 10,000 Colones notes and 100 Colones coins!  The first bank had a sign on it apologising for the fact that the ATM was not functioning. Luckily, there was a second bank where we were able to get more money.

All this activity had made us hungry so we went for Lunch in Uvita at Los Troncos a small road-side restaurant.  Lynn had Arroz y Pescado whilst I had Pescado a la Milanese - a bit of a mix of national dishes I suspect!  The food was good and the service very good and friendly, although the bar came complete with a drunk American offering his traveling advice to anyone who was daft enough to listen!

We made a swift visit to the Supermarket as we intend to just have a snack at the hotel this evening.

After a very lazy afternoon, we headed to the pool for a sunset swim.  The view from the pool looks out to the Pacific Ocean and the sunsets are beautiful from here.  We were offered a glass of wine whilst we were swimming and sat by the edge of the pool, feet in the water, sipping cold white wine and watching the sun disappear!



Back at the room a little later, we ate our bread, cheese and cold meat and had a beer whilst sitting on our terrace.  We seem to have an iguana on one of the palms just below the room, it doesn't seem to move much though!

Relaxing at Ojochal

23 Feb Ojochal

We seem to have settled into a routine of waking up when it gets light which is around06.00.  Shortly after this, the local birdlife really gets going and we get to see many birds flitting through the bushes near to us or flying overhead.  It is also relatively cool at this time of morning.

Near reception, there was a small stone planter half full of water, inside was a small poison-dart frog.  Scott, the owner of the hotel, said that it had appeared as a tadpole some while ago but was now breathing air and ready to move on.  Luckily, we took a picture because the day after it had gone!

We were at breakfast for 07.00 and were served fresh fruit and yoghurt followed by local food, a pancake with mole sauce on it topped with a fried egg with tomato salsa, accompanied by fried potatoes with hot sauce!

The sun-loungers by the pool were in shade, so we decided to stay there for the morning.  There was quite a pleasant breeze and several birds challenged us to identify them!  The area around the hotel abounds with Tanagers of one type or another, all fairly colourful.  Red-rumped, Golden-hooded and Palm Tanagers are just some of the things flitting around us.



After a really lazy morning, we decided to go back to the Boca Coronado for lunch, it was quite busy but we enjoyed a beer and a plate of pasta each.

We went for a short drive after lunch, but didn't find anywhere stunning, so we stopped for an ice-cream by the roadside.  From here, the only sensible option seemed to be to have a siesta at the hotel.

Later, we got back in the car, bumped back down the drive again and went back to Boca Coronado, the only place open on a Sunday Evening.  As we'd had a fairly substantial lunch, I opted for a Ceviche Mixto whilst Lynn had a salad.  Ceviche is a bit of a Central and South America speciality, I think.  Raw fish is marinaded in lime-juice which sort of pickles and preserves it.  It is then served cold (and still raw) with a sauce, salad and tortilla chips.  I can highly recommend it - well at least from Boca Coronado!



Back at the hotel, we sat in the open-air lobby and caught up with the blog.  The wildlife appearing out of the night into the lobby was slightly alarming.  One huge ciccada crashed onto the table right in front of us.  The geckos were everywhere snapping up any moths crazy enough to land anywhere near.  The sounds at night are somewhat different to the daytime cacophony of ciccadas, but it is still noisy.