Refugio Curu, Costa Rica
Our last morning in Costa Rica is celebrated with a pink sunrise and the discovery of new traveling companions. A small pod of spotted dolphins plays in the wake of the Sea Voyager, sparkling in the new day as they leap out of the bow surge. A number of newborns are observed, small, more playful and as yet spotless. It is as though the proud mothers wanted to show them off.
After breakfast we go ashore at a remote private wildlife refuge and sanctuary named Curu. Although still a working ranch and farm, much of its acreage has been set aside for scientists to establish long-term study plots and to seek effective means to re-establish threatened species such as the scarlet macaw. Disembarking along one of the small rivers we are greeted by an American crocodile. Groups split into more leisurely bird-spotting wanderings in more open dry forest regions or adventurous treks who want an intimate experience of the stream side canopy forests. Many species of birds are seen including wood creepers, puffbirds, trogons, hummingbirds and other species, such as clouds of butterflies, and a raccoon in a coconut palm.
Howler and spider monkeys comment on our passing while a coati – one of the many tropical raccoons – also paused to watch us pass. The rainy season afforded a profusion of multihued fungi including scarlet cup fungi, oyster bracket fungi and numerous tiny toadstools.
A leisurely afternoon of beach strolling, swimming, and kayaking at Isla Tortuga provided a fitting closure for our tropical explorations. As we prepare to return to the Sea Voyager for our final cruise, a young collared peccary strolls down the beach to wish us a speedy return.
Our last morning in Costa Rica is celebrated with a pink sunrise and the discovery of new traveling companions. A small pod of spotted dolphins plays in the wake of the Sea Voyager, sparkling in the new day as they leap out of the bow surge. A number of newborns are observed, small, more playful and as yet spotless. It is as though the proud mothers wanted to show them off.
After breakfast we go ashore at a remote private wildlife refuge and sanctuary named Curu. Although still a working ranch and farm, much of its acreage has been set aside for scientists to establish long-term study plots and to seek effective means to re-establish threatened species such as the scarlet macaw. Disembarking along one of the small rivers we are greeted by an American crocodile. Groups split into more leisurely bird-spotting wanderings in more open dry forest regions or adventurous treks who want an intimate experience of the stream side canopy forests. Many species of birds are seen including wood creepers, puffbirds, trogons, hummingbirds and other species, such as clouds of butterflies, and a raccoon in a coconut palm.
Howler and spider monkeys comment on our passing while a coati – one of the many tropical raccoons – also paused to watch us pass. The rainy season afforded a profusion of multihued fungi including scarlet cup fungi, oyster bracket fungi and numerous tiny toadstools.
A leisurely afternoon of beach strolling, swimming, and kayaking at Isla Tortuga provided a fitting closure for our tropical explorations. As we prepare to return to the Sea Voyager for our final cruise, a young collared peccary strolls down the beach to wish us a speedy return.
