[swfobj src=”https://barrycainphotography.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/frogsm.swf” align=”center”]
I am finally getting to post about our trip to Costa Rica. We stayed in two areas. On the Caribbean side in Tortuguerro and on the Pacific side in Quepos. Tortuguerro is an area famous for it’s Sea Turtle nesting area, hence the name. While strolling the beach you can see the many abandoned nests since the season is pretty much over by the end of November. We did catch one nest with a few baby turtles making their way to the sea. This is a rainforest and travel through the area is by water taxi. We took two boat tours of the canals in search of wildlife. Many different birds, monkeys, and lizards were easily viewed. Shooting was difficult as it was very overcast and dark. It was high ISO time for sure. The guides were very knowledgeable and this is no place to try going on your own. It is very easy to get lost in the maze of canals. We stayed at the Laguna Lodge. This is supposedly one of the best in this area. Not bad if you don’t mind high humidity and no air conditioning. The food was tolerable but not great. The people in this country are just great and very willing to please. Prices are very reasonable for everything and they take dollars everywhere.
Out next stop was Quepos. If you are traveling within Costa Rica I would recommend flying instead of the bus rides offered by many travel groups. The roads are pretty bad and a 25 minute plane ride beats a 3 1/2 bus ride any day. The only downside is the 30lb luggage weight limit on the small 14 seat twin-turbo props. Quepos is near Manual Antonio Park which is right on the ocean and another good place to view wildlife. It is also not too far from a whitewater rafting area. We stayed at the Hotel Costa Verde which I highly recommend. The rooms were large and were more like a suite with a King and double bed, a small kitchen, balcony and air-conditioning. The food at the restaurants was excellent and nearby restaurants were excellent as well. Costa Rica experts put our package together and did a great job with our transportation, flights and touring.