They say that the journey is better than the destination, and that’s certainly true when it comes to travelling within Costa Rica to Tortuguero National Park. Accessible only by plane or boat, I couldn’t wait to take to the network of waterways required to access these sprawling protected Caribbean wetlands.
The journey to the village of Tortuguero, where most people stay to visit the National Park, takes several hours on a boat, speeding through dense rainforests and mangroves. Throughout the journey, the murky waters revealed caimans and, on the banks, crocodiles languished in the sun.
Nestled on a small strip of land between the strength of the ocean and a maze of mangrove forests, swamps and lagoons, Tortuguero felt like a world away from my everyday reality.
In the morning, keen to make the most of what Tortuguero had to offer, we woke up early and kayaked the network of canals near the village. In the quiet of the morning, with no sounds other than the water lapping at the edge of our kayaks, we were fortunate to glimpse an incredible amount of biodiversity. Spider monkeys, with their long limbs grasping to the pathways formed by the branches of the rainforest, moved overhead, and the echoes of distant Howler monkeys welcomed us to the day. My binoculars were tightly glued to my hands as I continuously looked up to the canopy, constantly greeted by new surprises at each turn. There was also an abundant amount of bird life, and after spending a few hours on the water, we were warmly greeted upon return to the shore by a Tiger heron making the most of the morning sun.
This early morning was not the only one we experienced as we continued to journey through Costa Rica but was certainly one of the most memorable – perhaps only topped by two others.
The first, a very early morning in Monteverde, way up in the cloud forests of the country. Abundant with bird life, I was privileged to sit with the dawn and listen to the vocalising of what must have been over a hundred species welcome the day. A personal favourite was a motmot, that inquisitively landed in front of me, perching just out of reach to examine a stranger in its home.
The second, was our extremely early wake-up call necessary to visit Manuel Antonio Park. Well known for its white-sand beaches and tropical forests that reach right to the shore, it is the most visited National Park in Costa Rica for a reason. It’s abundant wildlife, ease of access (only a few hours drive from the country’s capital), and stunning scenery, make visiting the park a truly magical experience.
The park has strict biosecurity measures, and upon entering, bags are explicitly searched to prevent the local wildlife from being fed – although that did little to dissuade a capuchin from hanging from an entrance gateway, carefully examining everyone beneath him to see if any snacks had slipped through the cracks. It only takes a few minutes after entering Manuel Antionio to see the wildlife that the area is famous for. First, a resting nightjar nestled in the thick foliage just off the path and then, quietly in the trees above, a sloth, sleeping despite the startled exclaims of visitors below. The beaches are no different, with iguanas making their way through the thick sand.
The whole area is positively vibrating with life, and the day we spent there perfectly (yet sadly) ended the trip – the first of the many adventures that I had planned for my sabbatical.
Visiting Costa Rica was a dream come true. With its abundant biodiversity, visiting brought me closer to nature than I had been in years, and I was incredibly grateful and privileged to have experienced even a sliver of what the country can offer.