Williamson family went to SW Costa Rica in December 2004.

.Ê We flew to San Jose, then on to Drake Bay, on the Osa Peninsula, in Southwest Costa Rica. We stayed 12 days in Mirador Lodge, a rustic family operation setting on a hillside overlooking Drake Bay.Ê Our family of 4 stayed in two rooms at a cost of $37 per day, including meals.Ê Mirador Lodge, turned out to be just what we wanted at a price far below other nearby lodges.Ê It is located at the edge of a small village. People who lived there were very friendly and willing to converse despite the language barrier.Ê

I chose Drake Bay because of its proximity to Cano Island, one of the more accessible scuba diving areas in Costa Rica.Ê It turns out that this biological sanctuary has only five designated dive sites.Ê We dove three sites two times each in three days.Ê Only one of the sites is world-class although we saw white-tip sharks on every dive.Ê The highlight for me was the schools of jacks and snappers drifting in lazy spirals. There are at least 5 Scuba and snorkel operators trying to dive these sites everyday.Ê I wonder how long the sharks will stick aroundÉ

The day hikes through the jungle were fascinating, especially with a guide to recognize the sights and sounds.Ê Drake Bay is adjacent to Corcovado National Park, the largest protected low land jungle area in Central America.Ê We found crowding problems there, as well.Ê On some days, dozens of boats are trying to access one trailhead at San Pedrillo.Ê You can't expect to see the major wildlife when 40 people have been down the trail that morning already.ÊÊ

Although we saw only a handful of Costa RicaÕs 850 bird species and 200 mammal species, the list of new animals we saw grew daily, if not hourly.Ê The jungle vegetation, while not impenetrable, shields the source of many sounds.Ê A guide can be very helpful to interpret the sources of sounds. A discontinuous buzz of cicadas is kind of unnerving to an outsider at first until we realize it's just harmless insects.Ê We saw howler monkeys only at a distance, but their raucous yelling was frequent.Ê The Scarlet Macaw pairs, while gaudily beautiful, scream a hideous caw, like a Raven with whooping cough.Ê We often heard the chirps and croaks of frogs at night.Ê Frogs we saw ranged in size from a thumbnail to a pound.Ê We never spotted a neon colored poison arrow frog.Ê One of the five species of hummingbirds we enjoyed is no bigger than a fingernail. We frequently glimpsed the metallic blue wings of a morpho butterfly. Costa Rica has several species of poisonous snakes.Ê A 4 foot black snake which swam the river in front of our horses sure looked menacing.Ê Most clinics have antivenin now for bites of dangerous snakes.

We walked some trails at night. Spider eyes reflected the flashlight beam. Rustling in the leaves turned out to be an armadillo.Ê A 3 foot brown snake coiled on a branch over the trail sure spooked us. We took a guided night tour with an entomologist known as Òthe bug lady.ÓÊ She showed us a trap door spider, tarantula, scorpion, and various other creepy crawlies.Ê She had ghastly stories of what bugs do to each other and occasionally people.

Our two teenage sons enjoyed boogie boarding on several days.Ê We had to bring inflatable boogie boards, as they were not available in Drake. ÊThe Pacific coast of Costa Rica has plenty of beautiful surfing waves.

We took a boat ride up the Rio Sierpe on what is known as a mangrove tour.Ê This area is the largest protected stand of mangroves in the Americas.Ê On board for this private tour were a guide and a captain. Both were friendly and capable.Ê We saw a small caiman, a type of crocodile, and various shore birds.Ê A mangroveÕs roots are exposed, taking nutrients directly from the estuarine water.Ê It is an extremely rich ecosystem.

Fishing for both inshore and offshore species is excellent year-round in Costa Rica.Ê We went out one day for sailfish but unfortunately only caught a couple small bonito. The sailfish attacked our teasers twice but no hookups. Captain Fred, who owns the Ojala Hotel has an excellent boat and is well worth the money.Ê Boats were doing quite well on dorado most days.

We spoke to several people who had hiked to Sirena on the coast of Corcovado National Park.Ê It is a wild and woolly place where people see crocodiles, jaguars, peccaries, and tapirs.Ê The ranger station offers accommodations and meals, canoes and good advice.Ê I strongly recommend going on at least one guided hike before setting off backpacking into the jungle on your own.Ê Knowing what is a threat as well as what is not a threat will help you avoid problems and enhance your enjoyment.Ê Examples of how to avoid danger are don't grab onto trees and vines and stay on the trails.Ê Scary noises in the dark are often just harmless insects or frogs.

Health concerns: Ê
Although I packed insect repellent and head nets as well as medication for prevention of malaria, we never saw a single mosquito.
Sunburn remains the greatest threat to unwary tourists.

TROPICAL CAMPING EQUIPMENT LIST
Pack or duffel
STOUT SANDALS
MESH HIKING SHOES
LONG SLEEVE SHIRT(quick drying material like Coolmax.)
LONG PANTS(light, quick dry.)

Waterproof Jacket , although we never used it.
Hat that covers your ears from sun
bandanna, to cover head or neck
Light Gloves <
Foam Sleeping Pad , Therm-a-rest type pad and/or hammock
tent or tarp
First Aid Kit
Compass
Moleskin or Second Skin
chapstik
sunblock
Matches in Waterproof Container
2 Plastic Garbage Bags & 2 One-Gallon Ziplock Bags
Pocket Knife
Toilet Paper
Flashlight or Headlamp (with spare Batteries)
Water Bottle
Toothbrush,
Camera
Binoculars
walkie talkie
Sunglasses
Nylon Cord ( About 25')
Optional:
snake gaiters

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