What a beautifully full day. Morning hikes at the family-owned farm of Dolphin Quest included sightings of scarlet macaws, great curassows, toucans, squirrel monkeys, and the memorable scent of peccaries. Younger guests were invited to join in a Zodiac driving lesson, during which they all exhibited exquisite tiller talent as they practiced turning, slowing, getting the boat on plane, and finding a strong stance. During our lesson, we were visited by a pair of dolphins, leisurely surfacing and swimming fin-to-fin. To finish the morning, we engaged in a friendly but competitive game of futbol with a final score of 5 to 4. And yes, the winners are still celebrating.
Our afternoon consisted of Zodiac tours of the Golfito River, “Rio Golfito,” as well as kayak tours alongside beautiful mangrove forests. Magnificent frigatebirds, yellow-headed caracaras, laughing gulls, and great egrets flew overhead while crabs dug holes, howler monkeys howled, and mangrove seeds floated beside our paddles. All of this, together, represented the simultaneous biodiversity that exists in the sky, the mangroves, upon the sea surface, and beneath it.
