Category: Places

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Los Patos Waterfall

Our hiking lunch break was at this beautiful waterfall!
Los Patos Waterfall
Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

David and I Ate Our Sack Lunches Immediately! 
 Los Patos Waterfall, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

While this Swiss couple were anxious to get into the water!
 Los Patos Waterfall, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Actually the German guy was first to dive into the water, while his girlfriend ate first.
 Los Patos Waterfall, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

And here is my guide David Vargas diving in off the big rock (a belly buster!)
 Los Patos Waterfall, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

First one girl and the other in next photo diving in
 Los Patos Waterfall, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Sorry I didn’t get the names of the two couples, the German couple here
 Los Patos Waterfall, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

And before we knew it, time to dress and head back up the steep trail!

I had to make a portrait of my excellent birding guide David Vargas first!
 Los Patos Waterfall, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

And I think Jairo made this shot on David’s cell phone camera which he posted on Facebook. 
Since I’m a birder and the two Euro couples are not, Jairo assigned David to me as the birding guide.
 Los Patos Waterfall, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica
I have hiked into Corcovado National Park three times now and this was the best! Both Jairo and David made it so as well as it being an excellent wilderness with fewer visitors. It was more difficult to hike with lots of steep hills or ups and downs which they say is the meaning of the Spanish word “Corcovado,”  –  “up and down”  though my online dictionary just translated it “hunchbacked” which is maybe a harsher version of the same thing?  🙂  My other two visits to this park were both on flat land near the ocean, La Leona and San Pedrillo and with different trees, plants and animals, though I saw more here – giving credit to Jairo and David. See the three locations on the map below.
I made a lot of other photos on this one all day hike, so check out the different category sub-galleries like birds, other wildlife and general Corcovado folder in my TRIP Gallery: 2018 March 13-17 – Danta Corcovado for a lot of fun images from this great wilderness.
Only one more Ranger Station I can visit – Sirena.  It is illegal to enter at any other point.
And Sirena requires a very long & difficult hike or boat or seaplane trip. Maybe someday!
Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica
¡Pura Vida!
I love this place!
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Corcovado Park Birds

Less than half of what we saw, not counting those at the lodge, but 20 photos is a big post!

Arranged in order found in book The Birds of Costa Rica, A Field Guide
which puts families & similar birds together.
Neotropical Cormorant
Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

White Ibis 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Lesser Yellowlegs 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Common Black Hawk 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Laughing Falcon 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Laughing Falcon 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Scarlet Macaws
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Red-lored Parrot
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Baird’s Trogon male guarding nest 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Baird’s Trogon female feeding babies in nest 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Slaty-tailed Trogon 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Amazon Kingfisher 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Golden-naped Woodpecker 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Common Tody Flycatcher 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Tropical Kingbird 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Blue-crowned Manakin 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Red-capped Manakin 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Cherrie’s Tanager male 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Black-striped Sparrow 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Great-tailed Grackle female 
 Los Patos, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica
This is my third time and third part of the park to hike into and the best experience yet with the most birds and other sights. And it is a less-visited part of the park I think, which helps make it better! 
Note that my sightings/photos here of the Blue-crowned Manakin and the Red-capped Manakin are first time for each or “lifer” birds for me. (LIFER: A bird species when it is first seen and positively identified by an individual birder, a species that birder has never seen previously.) But he red-capped manakin was not doing his “Michael Jackson dance” that you may have seen on nature TV to attract females.

For what it is worth, other “lifers” on this trip at the lodge were the White-shouldered Tanager and the Scarlet-rumped Cacique. I shared photos of these and a few others seen at the lodge on my March 14 Post: Birds Seen Wednesday. And of course all will soon be in my online bird gallery and the TRIP Gallery 2018 March 13-17: Danta Corcovado. 

And oh yes, “Los Patos” is the name of this area of the park and name of the Ranger Station we had to go through and register for the visit. Real “backwoods” area not close to anything or any town. I just visited one of the most ecologically diverse places on the planet and possibly the most! I will never tire of visiting Corcovado. More photos tomorrow! 

¡Pura Vida!
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Sunset on this week’s adventures . . .

Sunset Over the Pacific 
From our little 12 passenger Sansa airplane on the hour-late flight back to San Jose.
Along the West Coast of Costa Rica
¡Pura Vida! 
 And ohhhh soooo many more photos to share, but exhausted again tonight and so much to do here. So tomorrow I will continue my report on Danta Corcovado Lodge, probably first with birds seen in the park, then much more over the next few days. Buenas Noches.
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Hot Water Shower AND a Frog!

I was mistaken, thinking I would have cold-water shower. Not only is there hot water but for the first 24 hours this frog stayed on my bathroom wall, eating insects. He is gone now.

Baño Frog
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

Large Cave-man Bathroom (outdoors or out of screened-in area, but private)
 The lizard behind the mirror is art – not real. But we have real ones too!
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

Eagle Holds the Shower Head
And not shown, a snake is one of the towel hooks
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

This has been a very interesting “rustic” lodge where I cannot wear shoes inside my room, the dining room or the lobby area. That part reminds me of Lookout Inn at Carate with the same rule. The food has been excellent, sort of a blend of Gourmet Tico with items like gazpacho or pumpkin soup before dinner, but still plenty of beans and rice if wanted and all kinds of meat dishes with lots of different veggies and salads. Most tours are with their guides, but a few like kayaks in the bay or the zip-line are provided by other vendors that Danta transports you to. Tomorrow’s park hike will be with one of the Danta guides and they provide our sack lunches and car to park entrance. 

¡Pura Vida!
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Danta Corcovado

Whale’s Tail Beach
Uvita, Costa Rica

Landing Strip
Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica

Driving Out of Puerto Jimenez
On 30 Minute Drive to Danta Corcovado
Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica

My Huge Bedroom!
A pleasant surprise when shown to my cabin.
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

Outside Entrance to My CabinDanta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

Daaaaa – viiiid
Welcome receptionist, bartender, waiter, and sometimes cook!
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

Unknown Lizard (I will look him up when I get home, probably an Ameiva)
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

Unknown Insect (Look him up at home too!)
On my cabin screen, outside!
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

At 6:45 AM my driver takes me through suburban traffic to the airport and the start of one of my more pleasant experiences here, flying in a small plane over the magical mountains to the ocean, Pacific this time. Though the pilot was too close, I still got a different view of “Whale’s Tail Beach” at Uvita and a different view of the landing strip in Puerto Jimenez.

A thirty minute drive to Danta Corcovado is a whole lot easier than the rough hour and a half drive to Carate on the other side of the park (my 2009 trip). Like everywhere in Costa Rica all the people are so welcoming and always smiling. My driver Eduardo helped me with my Spanish and got me to David (pronounced Daaaaa-viiiid here) as the receptionist and later the waiter and bartender in the restaurant. He arranged three tours for me and also put up with me speaking Spanish poorly to him. I later met the birding guide who is also named David.

By noon I was hotter than I can remember ever being here but a little afternoon shower has cooled it down and the two fans in my room help! Ooops! Just as I got to the WiFi spot in lobby the little shower turned to a long and heavy downpour!

I was expecting more primitive housing, though some of you might consider this primitive. I’m basically in a large screened-in porch on a platform above ground with a solid tin roof. Plus I have mosquito netting for my bed. Only cold water, but in the hot tropical humidity, that is what one prefers. The bed is very comfortable and the bathroom is chic primitive and big!

Tomorrow is my morning bird hike and evening night hike. Thursday will be the hike into Corcovado Park – all day! Friday and Saturday will probably be around the property here unless I decide to add another tour. And for unknown reasons Sansa canceled my Sunday flight back, so I am now on a Saturday evening flight home, meaning one less night here. And now you are all caught up on this trip for now!  –  The adventure continues!

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Jungle Camping Tomorrow

Tomorrow (Tuesday) morning early I fly to Puerto Jimenez with a ride into the jungles alongside Corcovado National Park for 4 nights. My most primitive stay in the park yet at Danta Corcovado Lodge.

Corcovado is the largest protected coastal rainforest in Central America
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

My Room is basically a wall tent on platform with mosquito netting on bed.
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

Lobby and Dining Room feature rustic furniture
and I will eat lots of beans & rice, other basic Tico food
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

Hope I get this close to an Anteater! And maybe a Tapir!
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

Night Hike promises frogs, snakes, insects & surprises!
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

It is one of the few places for the endangered Squirrel Monkey
Danta Corcovado Lodge, Costa Rica

My days will be filled with hiking on the lodge trails on my own, and tours with professional guides

for a birding hike, interior of park hike, kayaking a river, a night hike, and possibly a visit to an indigenous people village, panning for gold, or I might even be ziplining above the forest. This could be one of my most adventurous trips since moving here. All of the above photos were copied from the internet, but I hope to return with many more of my own! They are suppose to have wifi in the lobby, but I doubt it will be strong enough for regular nightly posts. We will see! I had scheduled 5 nights, but this afternoon, Monday, Sansa Airlines canceled the Sunday flight, so I now come back Saturday evening. Adventure is good! said Aesop

Read about the place at http://www.dantalodge.com/
-o-

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
-Mark Twain
Retired in Costa Rica
¡Pura Vida!
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Last Day of Festival de Vida

When I got there the ropers from the nearby agricultural
university were doing roping trick – very good!
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

FlashBack, the gringo oldies rock band played for two hours, 1-3 – Then others but I’m gone.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

The original benefactor of the food festival.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

You paid 3,000 Colones (about $5) and got to sample 20 different international food entries & vote on the best.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

Individuals & restaurants donated small portions of food to taste.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

For more photos of food and other vendors, see my gallery 2018 Festival de Vida

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Second Day of Festival de Vida

When I left at 2 PM today we were up to 30-something newly registered voters!
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

Mid-day entertainment was mostly dancing today.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica 

We did hear the community marching band play.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

And several dance studios show off their work.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

Another dance studio.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

And remember that big name bands & singers are at night, too late for this old man! 🙂

A food truck showed up today! (Maybe from San Jose)
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

The two most popular foods at these gatherings are Ceviche (raw seafood soup that I don’t eat!)
 and Granizados (Snow Cones)
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

And next most popular is grilled chicken on a stick with a tortilla of course!
Or sometimes it is grilled pork.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

It is called ceramicas here and just one of many art vendors.
Festival de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

Including colorful candles and lots of jewelry . . .

More photos have been added to my photo gallery on the 2018 Festival de Vida 


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Started Registering Voters Today at Festival of Life

It took 6 of us to register 12 new absentee voters this morning and hopefully
the afternoon shift will do an ever better job!  🙂
Festiva de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

Registering American Absentee Voters
Learn more at https://www.votefromabroad.org/vote/home.htm
Festiva de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica

During just the first morning we had a guitar-playing singer, DJ, and this Red Cross group
drumming on exercise balls and dancing. Interesting! Along with many tables selling food, arts & crafts.
Festiva de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica
Festiva de Vida, Atenas, Costa Rica
This is a fun fiesta in Central Park with lots of booths/tables for many purposes including the one I’m helping at to register Americans for Absentee Voting back in the states. There is live musical entertainment almost constantly all weekend and the big fundraiser is the International Food Festival on Sunday where people can taste samples of all the entries and vote on the best for only 3,000 Colones (about $5). One of the benefactors is Hogar de Vida, the local children’s home that my friends from Nashville are coming to serve in this April. 
It is interesting that the Tico Times article used old photos from past year’s Chili Cook Offs which this replaces. Quite a bit different this year! I’m starting a photo gallery on the 2018 Festival de Vida to which I will add photos each day. 
And those keeping up with Costa Rica might like Photos of Women’s Day March in San Jose
¡Pura Vida!
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Starting a School Blog Yesterday

Escuela Colina Azul
A Private Elementary School Nestled in the Mountains of Atenas, Costa Rica

Belinda, the teacher in a local private school here who helped me get my Cedula renewed, talked to me about having wanted to maybe start a blog with her 6th Grade Computer Science class and asked if I would come tell the class how I started my blog and if they could do one on the same platform, blogspot.com. I was happy to help and went yesterday afternoon. With the school’s projector I showed the class my two blogs and explained the purpose and the importance of keeping posts short and simple, (though I obviously don’t always follow my own rule!).

But, instead of showing them how to blog on the Google platform that I use, my research showed a better place for both them and their teacher, designed just for schools with proper security, spam-free, advertising-free, etc. It is called


Belinda has a young student-teacher who was excited to hear about this and of course wants to set it up which is helpful for the regular teacher!  🙂  The class will have a class page the teacher can post homework on, blog assignments, messages to parents, etc.  AND each student has a blog page which the teacher will have some control over, but students from other schools and countries who are on edublog can comment on their posts and visa-versa. I showed them some samples of 6th Grade blogs and read a short story written on one blog by a 7th grade boy.

I browsed through some posts of other 6th and 7th graders and it was great! At least I thought so! And if I have a little bit to do with the 6th graders at Escuela Colina Azul getting started with blogging, I’m happy! And if you work with a school at any grade level, check it out at https://www.theedublogger.com/     It is a subsidiary of WordPress, but it is free for schools and students/teachers and their teacher website has a lot of good teaching resources.

Belinda also teaches 6th Grade English, thus the blogs will be in English and a tool for both her English class and her computer science class (same students – all the 6th graders in a small school). How cool! And almost all of her students are Ticos! There is another private school that is mostly foreigners and more expensive. I really enjoy being involved in the local community like this when I can. Old people and foreigners can still contribute sometimes!  🙂

Escuela Colina Azul Website  

Or go straight to the school photos

AND THIS IS COOL:
Story of a rare American 2nd Grader at Escuela Colina Azul.  On Mom’s blog.

And my Spanish teachers David & Corinna have there son Nicola in 3rd grade here! It’s a new school for me and I like it!