Day 2 - San Jose - Tortuguero

I must begin for apologizing for the lengthy absence of our blog. After our arrival in Tortuguero I found that I would be unable to post to the site while we are here. That said, I hope you are hungry for news of us.

Wow, what a day for our first full one in Costa Rica. It all started at 5am, we were showered, packed and in the lobby at 5:45 am, had breakfast and left the city by 6:30 am.

We passed through some truly outstanding scenery in Braulio Carrillo National Park. The mountains were cloud enshrouded, lush with vegetation and filled with tiny waterfalls and streams around every bend. We noted the enormous, durable “Poorman’s Umbrella” plant that grows in the highlands all over the side of the road, the beautiful mountain Impatiens in full flower and I even spotted a Black Guan! We passed over the Rio Sucio (“dirty river”) where two rivers come together. One is mountain drainage that is very clear; the other is volcanic drainage that is very muddy. Their confluence is truly striking and we heard many “oooos” and “ahhhs” from the students at this glorious site.

After some time in the mountains we emerged into the tropical lowlands and made several remarkable stops. The first stop was to view Montezuma Oropendolas nesting together in their amazing woven hanging baskets in the trees. We also saw Great Kiskadees, a flycatcher, on the power lines there. Both are beautiful birds and ones that we had studied before arriving. I was just thrilled that the students could identify them.

Our next stop was absolutely fantastic; our driver spotted three 3-Toed Tree Sloths in a Cecropia tree. I was so proud that the students could identify not only the animal but also the tree it inhabits. The sloths were so cooperative, seemingly posing for the camera and far more active than I have seen then before.

We had one more very unexpected stop by the side of the road that turned out to be a real experience. There was a truck accident ahead of us and we were held up for a while in stand still traffic. Fortunately in Costa Rica all stops provide learning opportunities. Growing next to the road was a Cashew tree that was in full fruit. We were able to, with the help of the bus driver and friends, sample cashew fruits. It is both sweet and bitter and many of us found it made our mouths numb. I guess I didn’t really like it very much. As it turns out the plant is related to poision ivy in some way and won’t be in my smoothie any time soon.

At this same stop we saw termites in an impressive termite nest and a Sensitive plant. These plants are able to physically respond to touch by closing up their leaflets as a defense mechanism. What a great spot by Robb, one of the adults from the Rhode Island group. Check out the video of this incredible plant.

Shortly after the traffic started rolling we made our way to a lovely butterfly garden and second breakfast (yeah!!). At the garden we were able to see so many amazing flowers that our plant species list is overflowing. We also saw Morpho butterflies in the garden and a chrysalis hatchery where some were emerging right then. Possibly most exciting were the Blue Jean Frogs that are all over the garden. At the restaurant they also had a beautiful Mealy Parrot, roosters and a Guinea chicken that was very, very nervy.

On our way to catch the boat to Tortuguero we saw a Scarlet-Rumped Tanager which I am told has been renamed Passerini’s Tanager. Crazy ornithologists and their name changes. We made one more stop and while the boat was loaded we picked up snacks and drank the juice of fresh cold coconuts right out of the coconut. For one dollar the vendor will use a machete to cut off the top and supply you with a straw. What fun.

We climbed on for a long boat ride to Samoa Lodge. On the ride we saw Black-necked Stilts, Snowy Egrets, Anhingas, Social Flycathers, Turkey Vultures, Black vultures, amazing floating plants and outstanding landscapes of dense vegetation. The boat ride left us all sapped of energy but fortunately for us the cold juice drinks were waiting at the lodge. We settled in, took a dip in the pool and headed into town to see Tortuguero Village.

We all walked together through the village, which is small, isolated and comparatively poor to the affluent area of San Jose we left this morning. We headed out to the beach and took a long walk north in the surf. There is no swimming allowed here as the beach has a serious rip tide and is patrolled by shark searching for turtle meat that might just settle for GlenOak student. So, we just got our feet wet.

On the beach we saw marked turtle nests that are mapped and tracked by the Caribbean Conservation Corps, a non-profit organization that studies and preserves turtles. We stopped in their museum and watched a turtle conservation film. We picked up our boat ride back to the lodge and on the way added a few more sites: White-faced Capuchin Monkey, Howler Monkey, Osprey and a Little Hermit Hummingbird. I was a little overly enthusiastic about calling out to the howler (the students think my imitation of the monkey call is a riot); I now sound like Kathleen Turner and can hardly talk. Amusing the students does apparently have a price.

After we returned to the hotel Tyler knocked on my door excitedly to tell me that, “David caught a turtle”! Needless to say, I got moving right away. What follows is David’s account of the great capture.

“It all started as Marc, Tyler, and I were headed to the pool. When crossing the bridge, we spotted a turtle in the stream. Having a love for turtles, I wanted to examine it closer. Tyler remained on the bridge as a spotter as Marc and I walked to the stream’s edge. Seeing that the turtle was in the middle of the stream, I waited patiently to see where it would go. For some reason it headed towards the bank where Marc and I were standing. As it swam closer and closer, I got more interested and wanted to capture it. It swam right up to the bank and I knew it was the perfect time to catch it. With excitement pumping through my blood I reached my hand into the water and grabbed him, but he swam away. I wasn’t going to let this opportunity pass me by, so I felt around for it and grabbed him. I pulled him out of the water and ran to Mrs. Sudomir to show her. We identified it and then took it around to show everyone else. It was something that I will remember for the rest of my life.”

The turtle was a White-lipped Mud Turtle, and David has earned the name “Turtle Catcher” from the students. This very impressive catch taught me to keep my eye on David who seems to have no reservations about grabbing any animal within his reach. What he calls feeling around for the turtle was more like an unrestrained drive into a muddy tropical stream, hand and foot first.

After some rest and time off we had a dinner of beet and potato salad, rolls, rice, vegetables and chicken. After dinner we caught up with our presentations, Tyler teaching us about Tortuguero National Park and David presenting the Caribbean Conservation Corps.

On our first evening in Tortuguero we broke into 4 groups and patrolled the gardens of the hotel in search of night animals. We saw many fascinating spiders, leaf-cutter ants and quite a variety of frogs. Bufo marinus, the marine toad, the Pygmy Rainfrog, Fitzinger’s Rainfrog, the Smoky Jungle Frog and another Rainfrog. We had a great time hiking around at night.

What an amazing day in Costa Rica. I can’t wait to see what Tortuguero brings us tomorrow.