September 25, 2015
Just south of the major port city of Limon, Costa Rica, and just north of the Panama border is the sleepy Caribbean village of Cahuita. All along this coast you can see, hear, and feel the Caribbean influence. The people here are more Jamaican than Hispanic. They tend to speak Spanish but otherwise the place feels more like the other side of the Caribbean. And of course there is Reggae music and Bob Marley posters everywhere.
The Cahuita National Park is a 2700 acre preserve on a peninsula. It is mostly dense jungle, with some wetlands and a couple of rivers. It also includes a 600 acre coral reef. It is also the only National Park in Costa Rica that does not charge an admission fee.
The beach inside Cahuita National Park. The jungle comes right down to the beach.
At one point you have to wade across this small river to continue up the trail. Caimans live here — somewhat smaller cousins of the alligator.
Despite the snake education I received a couple of days ago in El Castillo, I walked from the hostel into the village and then down the trail through the jungle alongside the beach this morning. I was captivated by all of the wildlife. It only takes standing still for a few moments to see something new moving in the jungle.
Love this shack on the beach on the way to the park.
On the way through Cahuita, this fisherman was returning home for the day, with his supplies from his boat, including the motor, in his cart.
Three-toed sloth, moving very slowly through the trees.
White faced Capuchin monkey with baby on her back.
Howler monkey.
These guys were hunting crabs on the beach.
These lizards were everywhere. They would walk down the trail in front of me like a dog on a leash.
Leaf cutter ants. It was fun to watch the long trails of leaves walking through the forest.
A Basiliicus, also commonly called a Jesus lizard. These guys can run really fast on their back legs, across water.
This guy was about four feet long, including his tail. He was calmly sitting in a plant, eating. Check out the spikes on his back.
Gratuitous advert….
There are a lot of species in the Cahuita area. Two of them that are in no danger of extinction are German and American tourists. There seems to be a large population of German ex-pats here as well. I heard more German than English or Spanish over the last couple of days. But then again, I spent a lot of time in the jungle listening to nothing. That was the best sound. On several occasions, I had flashes of thought: “Where am I?” “How did I get here?”
It’s still hard to grasp sometimes.
Are you actually there or are you going to wake up in a Days Inn in Middletown, NY to a ringing phone with someone on the other asking …..
Thanks for that…That caused some serious nightmares. 🙂
Just shows you how small the world has become.