Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica
The last day in Costa Rica was spent in the southernmost region of its Pacific side. This enclosed Gulf – Golfo Dulce, literally translated to The Sweet Gulf – is one of the richest areas of the national territory; with an average of 4 – 5 meters of rainfall a year, it holds some of the most diverse ecosystems. We had a chance to enjoy these scenic waters in two ways. During the morning we explored the mangrove estuaries on either a kayak or a Zodiac, and in the afternoon, we visited Casa Orquidea, a fantastic botanical garden within the Gulf.
The morning outing was concentrated on exploring the Esquinas River, whose large mouth opens into the sweet waters of the Gulf and allows, during the high tide hours, our kayaks or Zodiacs to enter its realm. As we entered the closed edges of the mangrove forests, we could not help but remember those stories of “magical and enchanted forests” that fairy tales always talk about. The red mangrove’s long and skinny prop roots seemed to be reaching towards us, trying to make us fall into their spell. While investigating the area we had great spottings of snowy egrets, little blue herons, great egrets, white ibis, green iguanas and basilisk lizards.
We repositioned our ship across the Gulf and anchored just off the Casa Orquidea Botanical Garden. This garden established by the McAllisters almost thirty years ago, beginning just as a hobby with both of them realizing they had a green thumb. Their garden grew with time and nowadays is a five-acre haven. Orchids, bromeliads, ferns, palm trees, lilies, fruit trees, bats, lizards and a grand array of tropical birds make their home there. We walked through the gardens either bird watching, enjoying the plants, and/or taking pictures.
As the sun began to set into the Costa Rican horizon, we came back on board looking forward to our next day, our first day in Panama waters.
