22
May

Sloths in the City – Cahuita, Costa Rica

Posted on May 22nd, 2013 :: Posted in Accommodation, Animals, Beach, Boutique Hotel, budget hotel, Central America, Costa Rica, National Park, sloth

The main reason to travel to Cahuita on the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica is to explore Cahuita National Park. We certainly did that, but we also found great food, an amazing bargain hotel and sloths in the city.

Visiting Cahuita National Park

There are two entrances to Cahuita National Park. The most convenient entrance from the town of Cahuita is the Kelly Creek entrance which you can easily walk to from the southern end of this small town. When we visited the park there was no mandatory entrance fee at Kelly Creek, just a donation of your choosing. This was a pleasant surprise and a help to the old travel budget since most national parks in Costa Rica charge US$10 per person.

There are toilets, showers and picnic tables right at the Kelly Creek entrance and many visitors never make it any further into the park, preferring to just kick back on the beach. However, there’s much, much more to see.

The inviting beach inside Cahuita National Park on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast.

Cahuita National Park protects 2,732 acres (1,100 hectares) of land and 55,200 area (22,338 hectares) of marine area including a major reef system. The beach here is lovely with wide sloping angles and nearly white sand. Snorkeling is allowed in some areas of the park but you must take a guide and they charge US$25 per person.

Good thing the hiking is free. A 4.5 mile (seven kilometer) trail runs through Cahuita National Park and it’s a lovely walk–mostly shady and often so sandy that you can take your shoes off (though not always so wear good hiking shoes for the rough sections).

We saw howler monkeys, capuchin monkeys and lots of racoons as the trail hugged the shoreline, then undulated inland before returning to the water’s edge. It felt like a less spectacular, but also far, far less crowded, version of Manuel Antonio National Park.

Capuchin monkey Cahuita National Park, Costa Rica

It only looks like this capuchin monkey was shaking its fist at us as we hiked by in Cahuita National Park on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

A serious warning

Even if you’re an experienced hiker heed the many posted warnings about staying on the trail in Cahuita National Park. The tropical rainforest here is thick and disorienting and it’s also home to pit vipers and eyelash vipers–both venemous. A friend of ours spent 11 hours bush whacking through the rainforest after wandering off the path. He only barely found his way out before dark but not before his unplanned “adventure” left him with plenty of cuts, scratches and bug bites.

Sloths are basically everywhere you look in Cahuita.

Sleeping in Cahuita

For a small town on Costa Rica’s less visited coast (many more people visit the Pacific coast side), there are a lot of lodging options to choose from running the gamut from bare-bones shared dorms to solid three star offerings like Playa Negra Guesthouse.

French-Canadian owned, Playa Negra Guesthouse spreads out around a private garden behind an ivy-covered wall. There are spacious and spotless rooms and multi-bedroom cottages in festive Caribbean colors. The cottages have full kitchens too and there’s a small pool as well with an “honor fridge” stocked with cold beers going for bargain prices. It’s a peaceful environment with more amenities than most other accommodations in Cahuita.

Playa Negra Guesthouse is located roughly 10 minutes by foot from the center of Cahuita past Playa Negra which is so named because the sand is nearly black. This remains a mystery to us since the beaches inside Cahuita National Park were so white.

We stayed in a few of the many budget hotels in Cahuita as well and the standout was Cabinas Palmer where US$20 got us a clean private double with bathroom, fan, TV, a furnished porch with a hammock, free coffee and bananas all day, use of a shared kitchen, parking and WiFi. It’s right in the center of town, just ask for it when you arrive and tell Jaime, the manager, that the Trans-Americas Journey sent you!

A three-toed sloth ventured onto the ground (except for its back legs which clung to the tree) in the town of Cahuita in Costa Rica. It proceeded to eat mouthfuls of soil. Our best guess is that it wanted minerals found in the earth.

Eating in Cahuita

The lodging options in Cahuita are only out-numbered by the eating and drinking options including a couple of typical eateries where you can get a Costa Rican casadao for a good price. There are also quite a few spendy seafood, Italian and international restaurants.

Somewhere in between lies Surf Caribbean Food, on main street not far from in from the Kelly Creek park entrance. We wandered in, drawn by the festive painting on the tables and back wall and by the reasonable prices on the diverse menu.

Plus, they had chifrijo which is a meal in a bowl packed with rice, beans, chopped tomatoes, spices and succulent pork (they serve a vegetarian chifrijo if, for some mysterious reason, you don’t want the delicious pork). Chifrijo, which was invented in the ’90s as a combination of chicharon (chi) and frijoles (frijo), has become a kind of official dish of San Jose, the captial of Costa Rica, but it’s not easy to find so we jump at every chance we get to enjoy it. We were not disappointed at Surf Caribbean Food.

What about those sloths?

One night as we were returning to our room we noticed a small crowd peering up toward the sky. They were watching a mother sloth slowly negotiate her way along the telephone and electrical lines which run above the streets in the town center. Her baby clung to her body as she carefully made her way hand-over-hand-over-foot-over-foot.

Sloth walking power lines in Cahuita, Costa Rica

A female two-towed sloth with her baby on her belly carefully naviagates her way along telephone wires above the town of Cahuita on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

It sure seemed like this was mama sloth’s first time on the high wire and we were grateful that she seemed to know to stick to the lower cables which were harmless telephone wires. The upper tangle of cables are electrical and they’re uninsulated, meaning one touch and the sloth would be dead. Electrical wires are actually a major cause of death for sloths in Costa Rica.

Mother sloth with baby Cahuita, Costa Rica

Baby’s first steps! A baby two-towed sloth follows its mother along telephone wires above the town of Cahuita on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

This mother sloth is spotted in town most nights and we subsequently saw her baby taking a few tentative steps on the wire and then saw a different sloth on the ground right across the street from Cabinas Palmer.

A female two-towed sloth with her baby on her belly carefully naviagates her way along telephone wires above the town of Cahuita on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

A female two-towed sloth with her baby on her belly carefully naviagates her way along telephone wires above the town of Cahuita on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

Hooks for hands! A female two-towed sloth with her baby on her belly carefully naviagates her way along telephone wires above the town of Cahuita on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

Think sloths are slow, lazy and shy? Check out how this mama moves along the wires above Cahuita, in our video below. More sloth lies will be revealed soon.

Want more sloths? Just down the road (back toward Puerto Limon) is The Sloth Sanctuary. Part rescue center, part rehab center and part research and education center this privately-owned operation (formerly called Aviarios del Caribe) is on 300 acres (120 hectares) and offers two different tours daily (except Monday).

Sloths adorn the bus stop in front of The Sloth Sanctuary on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

The Buttercup Tour (named after a particularly charismatic resident sloth) is US$25 per person while the Insider’s Tour is US$150 per person. Why so pricey? You get to visit the sloth hospital and other behind the scenes facilities on the Insider’s Tour.

After a brief closure the sanctuary has also re-opened its B&B operation so if you just can’t tear yourself away from these amazing/freaky/cute (in the dictionary sense of the word, look it up) creatures you can just stay and spend the night.

Travel Guide to Puerto Viejo and the Southern Caribbean Coast – Costa Rica

Posted on May 13th, 2013 :: Posted in Beach, Boutique Hotel, Central America, Costa Rica, sloth

If you ask us, the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica has the Pacific coast beat when it comes to the most beautiful beaches, most authentic beach town (Puerto Viejo) and greatest number of hotels and restaurants offering value for money on any travel budget. So why do so few visitors travel to Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast? Beats us. Don’t get us wrong. We really enjoyed Pacific coast locations like Santa Elena, Tamarindo, Uvita, Ojochal, the Nicoya Peninsula, etc. But we left our hearts on the Caribbean side. Now you can too with our handy travel guide to the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica, an 11 mile (17 kilometer) stretch of heaven.

Puerto Viejo is the only real town on the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and it’s a charmer with a mix of surfers, international travelers in the know and local families on holiday.

Beach towns of Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast

It’s a lovely, sometimes-coastal drive from Puerto Limon (see our Travel Tip about this dodgy port town below), past Cahuita (which we’ll tell you all about in our next travel blog post) and into the beach town of Puerto Viejo del Talamanca and Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast.

Most people simply call it Puerto Viejo. It’s got an infectiously slow pace, a festive but not fraternity party vibe and a surprising selection of services (from bakeries to chic boutiques) yet it won’t trip your tourist trap radar. There’s also a lovely barrel called Salsa Brava which breaks a few hundred yards from Puerto Viejo’s shoreline, keeping surfers (and surfer watchers) satisfied.

Yes, there are tourists in Puerto Viejo but the place never felt touristy.

Costa Rica surfing Manzanillo Beach, Puerto Viejo

Surfers provide hours of entertainment on the long, uncrowded beaches of Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast.

Beaches of Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast

There are three main beaches stretched out south from Puerto Viejo. All of them are beautiful with wide, walkable swaths of sand, lovely blue Caribbean water and mostly-swimmable surf. Yet each also manages to have its own personality.

The nearest beach to Puerto Viejo is Playa Cocles, a nearly salmon-colored stretch of sand backed by pure jungle that runs for 2.5 miles (four kilometers) until it reaches a rocky outcrop called Punta Cocles. Best for: beach walking.

On the other side of Punta Cocles, still traveling south, lies Playa Chiquita which runs for another 2.5 miles (four kilometers) until it hits another rocky outcrop, this one is called Punta Uva. Best for: tide pooling and swimming since there are a number of very protected natural “pools” along Playa Chiquita.

Furthest away from Puerto Viejo is Playa Manzanillo and the tiny town of Manzanillo where you can get a cheap meal, a scoop of ice cream, a camping spot and cold beer but not much more. But what else do you really need with the chillest stretch of beach we’ve seen in Central America in front of you? Best for: chilling with a cold beer.

Costa Rica Beach Manzanillo Puerto Viejo Costa Rica

Manzanillo beach along Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast.

Warning: you will be tempted to fling your towel out in the shade of one of the many almond trees on these beaches. Don’t do it. A red caterpillar lives in the almond trees around here and if you touch it (or vice versa) it inflicts an extremely painful wound. There’s a sign posted in Puerto Veijo that advises in the case of an encounter with these “red worms” you can either spend $20 and go to the doctor, though there is no treatment, or spend $20 on rum and deal with the pain that way. Or, just don’t sit under the almond trees…

Hotels of Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean Coast

In addition to the usual suspects (rowdy hostels, mediocre mid-priced hotels and vacation homes for rent) there are some real lodging finds with unexpected character along the southern Caribbean coast. Just don’t expect a view of the ocean. Most accommodations are close to but not right on the beach to keep development at bay and nature at the forefront.

For the stylish and spendy: Le Cameleon Boutique Hotel, near Playa Cocles, is a full-service, starkly white and starkly hip hotel. If there wasn’t sand between your toes you’d think you were in a chic, urban hotel.

Le Cameleon Boutique Hotel - Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

Le Cameleon Boutique Hotel on Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast brings urban chic to the beach.

For families and anyone looking for a real Caribbean vibe: There’s no shortage of lodging options here that offer Caribbean colors and decor but there’s something different about Aguas Claras bungalows. Maybe it’s the ornate wood work and circular architecture on stilts. Maybe it’s the neighborhood feeling with five bungalows (each in a different festive color combo sleeping two to four guests) nestled in the lushly-landscaped grounds. Maybe it’s the full kitchens and inviting porches from which to watch howler monkeys and impossibly-colored birds travel through.

All we know is we didn’t want to leave our bungalow even though awesome Playa Cocles was only a few steps away.

Aguas Claras bungalows Puerto Viejo Costa Rica

The Caribbean style bungalows at Aguas Claras on Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast are simply charming and comfortable.

For nature (and nurture) lovers: The French owners, who opened Shawandha Lodge 15 years ago, call the 14 thatch roof bungalows “neo-primitive.” Each has a large porch, good screens, comfortable beds and artistically tiled bathrooms. Though Playa Chiquita is just a short stroll away you may do your cooling off in the Shawandha pool which is kept clean with a salt water process that skips the chemicals. You will certainly do some wildlife watching on the lodge’s five acres (two hectares). We routinely saw toucans and sloths. And don’t miss their 200 foot (60 meter) tall ceiba tree.

Shawandha Lodge - Playa Chiquita, Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

A playfully-tiled bathroom at Shawandha Lodge on Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast.

Keel billed Toucan Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

One of many keel-billed toucans we saw on the grounds of Shawandha Lodge on the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

A sloth with her baby on the grounds of Le Cameleon Boutique Hotel on the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

Woodbecker banana flower Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

A woodpecker snacks on a banana flower on the grounds of Shawandha Lodge on the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

A cheap eat on Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast

Puerto Viejo has more than its share of mid-to-upper-range eateries. A harder find was somewhere to get reliably good food at a decent price. The cheapest, tastiest option we found was Mare Nuestro where you can get a big grilled fish with sides for around US$6 (2,900 colones).

Use what you didn’t spend on food to treat yourself to a gorgeous beach cover up, bit of jewelry, new beach bag, sun dress or cool hat at the splurge-worthy Luna May store on the main drag in Puerto Viejo.

Animal attractions on Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast

If anything is going to tear you away from the beaches and your new commitment to doing nothing its poisonous frogs and rescued baby sloths. Thankfully, there are places to see both (and more).

Finca La Isla Botanical Garden is one of the best places to get an eyeful of various species of zanily patterned, brightly colored, totally gorgeous poison dart frogs (US$5 per person, Friday, Saturday and Sunday 10-4, wear walking shoes and bug spray). The tiny frogs love the plant nursery and grounds here and a bit of patience and persistence paid off for us with sightings of red-eyed tree frogs, green and black frogs and strawberry frogs though the snazzy-sounding transparent glass frogs on the property eluded us.

Poison Dart Frogs Finca La Isla Botanical Garden -Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

From top left to right: Red-eyed tree frog, a pair of strawberry frogs, a black and green poison dart frog and a lone strawberry frog all spotted at Finca La Isla Botanical Garden on the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

During a stroll through the Finca La Isla permaculture farm we also saw a baby boa coiled up inside a a huge bromeliad and our self-guided tour was capped off with a tasting of some of the fruits grown on the property and a sampling of the chocolate they make from cacao seeds grown there.

The Jaguar Rescue Center (US$15 per person, guided tours only, closed Sunday, reservations highly recommended) near Playa Chiquita is a haven for far more than just jaguars. During the course of a two hour tour we saw a bad-tempered margay named Diablito (little devil in Spanish), lots of pretty but poisonous eyelash vipers, a boa with a mouse lunch in its cage, colorful jungle birds, imposing birds of prey and many more rescued wild animals which are being rehabilitated and prepared for their return to the wild.

A yellow eyelash viper, a venemous pit viper named for the specialized scales above its eyes.

We also got into an enclosure with howler monkeys which clamored all over us like we were mobile trees. As part of their rehab the howlers are taken into the jungle by volunteers so they can interact with wild monkeys for four hours every day. The monkeys return to the enclosure by choice, most eventually remaining in the jungle when they feel they’re ready.

Howler Monkey Jaguar Rescue Center Puerto Viejo Costa Rica

Karen channeling her inner Jane Goodall in the howler monkey enclosure at the Jaguar Rescue Center on the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

A two-toed sloth that was deemed ready for release was still hanging around the center, spending half its time in the wild and half back at “home.” It’s a process.

Speaking of sloths, a highlight of the Jaguar Rescue Center is its sloth nursery which was full of baby sloths which had been orphaned when their mothers were killed by predators or, increasingly, by electrical wires. Some had been abandoned after falling out of a tree. There really is very little in this world that’s cuter than a baby sloth.

Travel Tip

You’ll have to pass through Puerto Limon on your way to the Caribbean coast. For God’s sake don’t spend a night there. Like so many port towns, Puerto Limon is a hole. However, there is one fascinating historical fact you should know: Puerto Limon was the location of the headquarters of Marcus Garvey‘s ill-fated Black Star Line.

Garvey, a Jamaican, founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association of African Communities League and spearheaded a movement to repatriate African Americans back to Africa where, he believed, they would bring about an economic renaissance on the continent. His Black Star Line shipping company, started in 1919, was formed to transport African Americans back to Africa but corruption, poor management and FBI infiltration forced the company out of business in 1922. The brightly painted, two-story wooden building that was the Black Star headquarters still stands in downtown Puerto Limon and is the oldest building in town.

Black Star Line building Puerto Limon Costa Rica

This building in Puerto Limon, Costa Rica was once the headquarters for Marcus Garvey’s controversial Black Star Line. Swing by to see it, then get out of this dumpy port town.

A Much Cooler Cloud Forest – San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica

Posted on April 29th, 2013 :: Posted in Animals, bird watching, birds, Boutique Hotel, Central America, Costa Rica, Mountains

You may have never heard of San Gerardo de Dota but if you’re traveling to Costa Rica and you have your heart set on exploring some of the country’s famous cloud forests this is a place you need to know about. You will be tempted to head to Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve which covers 26,000 acres (10,500 hectares) and attracts nearly 100,000 visitors a year. When we visited Monteverde we were inspired to call it Disneyland, Only Damper, so take our advice and head to San Gerardo de Dota for a much cooler cloud forest fix without the crowds.

Forget Monteverde

The town of San Gerardo de Dota, about 50 curvy, mountainous miles (80 kilometers) from San Jose, clings to the steep hillsides of the Talamanca Mountains. The Savegre River slices through the valley and in 2005 a 12,000 acre (5,000 hectare) hunk of cloud forest near San Gerardo de Dota was set aside as Los Quetzales National Park.

Valley at San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica

Cloud forest as far as the eye can see and not a tour bus in sight near San Gerardo de Dota in Costa Rica.

There are many different types of forests and ecosystems at various elevations in the region and that hosts incredible biodiversity–we’re talking hundreds of thousands of different species. Most of them are insects, but some of them aren’t, including the resplendent quetzal–a bird you most definitely want to see and namesake of the area’s national park.

Resplendent Quetzal cloud forest of San Gerardo de Dota Costa Rica

This is a resplendent quetzal, just one of the thousands of species that need cloud forest environments to survive.

Quetezal watching from a cloud forest ecolodge

By six am we’d finished breakfast and were piling into the extremely cool restored 1973 Land Cruiser owned and operated by Dantica Cloud Forest Lodge. Our guide, Carlos, navigated the steep dirt road down into the valley and about 10 minutes later we were parked near a trail head and off in search of quetzals.

Dantica Cloud Forest Lodge, San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica Land Cruiser

Dantica Cloud Forest Lodge operates this restored 1973 Land Cruiser in San Gerardo de Dota and it’s way cooler than any tour bus ever could be.

After walking about a hundred yards we reached a dead tree trunk. Carlos knew that a hole in the trunk had become home to a quetzal family so we staked it out the nest with tripods, cameras and spotting scopes. Then we waited. And waited.

An hour later the female quetzal appeared. Female quetzals are certainly colorful with their yellow beaks and green, red and blue plumage. However, they don’t hold a candle to the male of the species which sports a pair of three-foot-long iridescent tail feathers during the breeding and nesting season (April to June).

Resplendent Quetzal Costa Rica bird watching

The resplendent quetzal has feathers that change color in changing light, giving the bird a blue appearance like this or a vibrant green appearance like the bird in the picture near the top of this post.

Daddy’s home

Finally, the male quetzal turned up and the pair took turns darting into and out of the tiny hole in the tree trunk bearing agaucatillo fruits in their beaks. These mini avacados are one of the few things quetzals eat and the young are reared on it. Daddy’s tail feathers were way too long to fit inside the small nest hole and stuck out comically as he came and went.

Resplendent Quetzal bringing an aguacatillo to nest Costa Rica

A male resplendent quetzal squeezes into its nest with an aguacatillo fruit in its tiny yellow beak delivering room service for his chicks.

Male Quetzal bird nest in Costa Rica Cloud Forest

A male quetzal prepares to leave its nest after bringing a snack to its chicks.

Male Quetzal tail feathers in cloud forest

The tail feathers of a male quetzal are too long to fit inside its small nest hole and often stick out comically.

Greedy for more, we hiked/ran through the forest in hot pursuit of the male when it lit out from the nest. Our efforts were rewarded with some wonderful glimpses of the bird perched in the sun. This was the fourth time we’ve seen quetzals in the wild and we can assure you that it’s a thrill every time. There really is no other bird like it.

Resplendent-Quetzal-San-Gerardo-de-Dota-Costa-Rica

We bush-wacked through the cloud forest to follow this male quetzal and were rewarded with this perfect perch.

Resplendent Quetzal in flight Costa Rica

A male resplendent quetzal in flight, tail feathers streaming behind it.

Tapirs too?

After our successful morning with Mr. and Mrs. Quetzal we returned to Dantica to explore the three miles of steep trails on the lodge’s 50 acres (20 hectares) of protected land. The reserve and lodge were created by Joost Wilms, a biologist from Holland, and his wife Maria Luisa Castro Fernández, a textile designer from Colombia.

Joost spent years working in the Amazon studying tapirs which are called dantas in Spanish. Joost’s nickname in the Amazon was Dantica or “the little tapir” hence the name of the lodge.

Room at Dantica Cloud Forest Lodge Costa Rica

Massive windows in every room at Dantica Cloud Forest Lodge help bring nature in.

Sadly, our time in San Gerardo de Dota was tapir-free so our quest to see these bizarre and shy creatures in the wild continues. Still, we happily settled for the comforts of their namesake ecolodge which includes 10 stand-alone bungalows with floor to ceiling windows overlooking private and protected cloud forest, ethynol-fueled heaters (though it still gets cold in the rooms since Dantica is located at 8,000 feet or 2,500 meters) and jetted tubs plus a fantastic restaurant. For more, read our full review of Dantica Cloud Forest Lodge & Gallery for iTraveliShop.com.

Costa Rica’s cloud forests are home to more than just resplendent quetzals, including acorn woodpeckers.

Flame Colored Tanager San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica

Flame colored tanagers also thrive in the cloud forest around San Gerardo de Dota in Costa Rica.

Budget travel tip

If Dantica is too spendy for your travel budget we can highly recommend the nearby, basic wood cabins offered by Miriam who also runs the best economical restaurant in San Gerardo de Dota. Rates are US$30 for double occupancy in one of a handful of different cabins with views, private bathrooms, electricity and porches. Even better? Guests get US$1 per person off the deliciously home made and reasonably priced meals Miriam serves at her small eatery up the main road toward the highway. Check in there regarding the cabins as well.