Wow!Not sure how to write this up because it cannot convey the intensity of the past 7 days.
Corcovado national park is a mindblowing place and so far removed from the 'other' Costa Rica full of gringos and established tours.
It is situated in the south of Costa Rica on the Osa Peninsula and consists of 50,000 hectares of protected rainforest including 800 species of birds and, 139 mammals and 116 amphibians.
We finally arrived at Rio Drake Lodge in the late afternoon after our long journey from Palmar Norte. The lodge is in a fantastic location, isolated at the end of a long quiet beach. Currently, a work in progress, it is owned by a very friendly guy called Edu. We set up our tent in a covered area close to the beach and then walked the 20mins to the nearest shop for some beers and dinner. On our return we were introduced by Carol to Ballardo, her friend and self-proclaimed 'JungleMan' (or JaguarMan, he kept switching between the two). Ballardo grew up in the park and is an expert on jaguars having spent a few years working in Corcovado and San Francisco on conservation projects. He agreed to be our guide in the jungle for the time we would spend there and promised to show us the real 'jungle' rather than the well trodden trails found around the ranger stations.
The following day we walked 3km along the beach with Carol and Tabitha to Drake Bay, a small village north of the park. We also had our first pipa, the sweet clear liquid of the unripe green coconut. We needed money and having misread the book that told us there was an ATM there (the nearest bank was actually one day away in Puerto Jiminez!) we searched for somewhere to cash travellers cheques. However, this proved fruitless and thus we found ourselves stuck in Corcovado with no money with which to live on or pay Edu or Ballado. In the evening, we discussed our plans for our time in the jungle with Ballardo and arranged to set off early next morning and finish in Jiminez on the eastern side of the park so that we could eventually get money for payment.
Ballardo awoke us the next morning at 6.30am so that we would have time to prepare and also to avoid the high tides of the various rivers that crossed the beach on our way down the coast. We took with us just our tent, rainjacket and sunscreen. First we walked for 1hr to Drake to get supplies that consisted of bread rolls, biscuits and plenty of water.
We then, after a short walk along the beach, entered the jungle for our first days trekking. We were heading towards a place called Rincon which was where we would set up tent for the night. We passed quite a number of locals on the way through the jungle and Ballardo seemed to know them all emitting a sort of jungle-yodal to each one to catch their attention. We saw many animals on the way including scarlet mccaws, white-faced monkeys and toucans and at one point had to cross a crocodile-infested creek by boat. We continued through the jungle following the coastline, sometimes walking along beautiful deserted beaches before re-entering the jungle.
A few hours later, we finally made it to Rincon and pitched our tent on the beach just as the skies opened and the rain started to fall. This was when Ballardo discovered that he has left his tent poles behind. We thought this wouldn't be a problem though as being Jungleman he would be able to fashion a bivouac from palm leaves in no time at all. Minutes later however, he has returned to inform us that he is going to stay with jungle friends at their place a small walk from where we are camped. We started to wonder if he really was the jungle man!
Anyway, Ballardo invited us over to meet his friends Rafa and his wife Lidietta who he hadn't seen for a few months and they gave us a hot meal and then asked us whether we would like to stay with them. We refused politely as we wanted to stay on the beach in our tent. It became apparent as the night wore on that to refuse their offers of hospitality would appear to them as an insult so the next time they offered we accepted. As though an important multi-million dollar contract had just been agreed on, there was much shaking of hands and smiling faces.
Rafa and Lidietta are charming people and couldn't do enough to make us feel comfortable. We learned from Ballardo that Rafa had fought in Vietnam against the Americans and had helped train the Viet Cong on behalf of the Nicuraguan government (he was born in Nicuragua). Suffice to say, he doesn't have much time for the Americans.
Later on that evening we walked along the beach with Rafa and his wife to a local bar called Poor Mans Paradise where we shared a few beers. On the way, Rafa and Ballardo caught crabs which later became a delicious soup.
Rafa and Lidietta spoke no English but we got by as best we could with Ballardo as our intermediatery but it was not always clear what was being said or agreed on between him and Rafa. Having no money, we were wary of accepting too much from them but Ballardo assured us that it was all taken care of even though we were not sure what that meant.
After a few more beers back at their home we were shown to our room as though we were royalty and slept well sheltered from the torrential downpour outside.
The next morning, after Lidietta made us breakfast we packed away our unused tent and entered the jungle once more. It was beautiful trekking, sometimes quite tough, but extremely rewarding as we saw a rare white falcon, more macaws, monkeys, toucans and pesotes. It got to the point where we were getting blase about the wildlife, it was so abundant.
At this point it needs to be said that although we were trekking in the jungle we were not actually inside the Corcovado protected area. The park at 50,000 hectares forms only part of the wider jungle which doesn't for some reason enjoy protected status even though it is still dense jungle. We walked to San Pedrillo rangers station on the edge of the park and against Ballardos advice (that there would be less wildlife becasue of the tourists) decided to pay $8 each to enter the park. We spent a couple of hours inside the park and although we enjoyed some cool trekking including some river crossings we only saw one agouti, a very expensive one at that.
Late afternoon, we made our way back to Rincon. The last part of the trek was at dusk including an exciting but quite scary scramble up a steep bank whilst thousands of bats screamed overhead. One hit Mel on the head which she didn't like very much.
Back at Rincon it was obvious we were going to be staying another night with Rafa and Lidietta.
In fact, they had pulled out all the stops that day and had assembled a large welcoming committee including a family friend Alex and Ballardos so called 'second father'. We got fed again on chicken that Lidietta had killed that afternoon and kept topped up on the local firewater Cacique, a kind of rum.
By this point, it was getting rather embarrassing for us as we had no money with which to tip them but they kept showering us with gifts including Ballardos crocodile necklace, a wallet (needed one of those), two necklaces for Mel and some lucky jungle beans. They seemed to have adopted us into the family and showed genuine heartfelt emotions promising that this would always be our home should we come back to the area. It was all quite fluffy and overwhelming.
See pics here of the end of trek party!
We went to bed exhausted and drunk.
In the morning and following a swim with we waited on the beach for a boat to take us back to Drake so that we could pick up our backpacks. We then took a taxi and headed towards Jiminez. Rafa and Lidietta came with us and invited us to stay the night with their daughters family in La Palmar, it would then be an easy matter of getting the bus to Jiminez the next morning to find a bank...
Again, we were fussed over like were royalty and more food and Cacique was forced on us. Rafa gave Mel his army hat as used in Vietnam and then proceeded to show off his scars where he was shot!
Rafa organised a taxi for us in the morning after a Cacique 'hair of the dog' and we all headed to Jiminez together to find a bank such that we could pay Ballardo and Rafa and Lidietta. I don't know why Rafa and Lidietta needed to accompany us but it soon became apparent that Ballardo had been promising them tips for all the meals, lodging and transport etc and that this had totalled quite a large sum.
Just our luck the bank was closed and the ATM didn't work. We were beginning to panic now and Rafa and Ballardo were starting to look nervous. We had one last chance to get cash and that was to get the ferry across the bay to Golfito (30min) to find the ATM there. Mel agreed to go with Ballardo whilst I stayed behind with Rafa getting drunk in a bar. It was a tense afternoon, especially as Rafa kept buying me beers that I was obliged to repay him for.
Eventually, Mel and Ballardo reappeared with the money and there was much celebration all round including another round of beers. There then followed an awkward moment whilst we paid Rafa/Lidietta, I don't think they felt they were properly compensated and Rafa's mood turned dark. It was embarrassing for us as had we known that everything had a cost attached we might have made different decisions. And they kept reiterating all along that all their hospitality was free and from the kindness of their hearts.
We all stayed in Jiminez for the night and went out to a local restaurant with the others which was tense as Rafa and Lidietta had obviously had a fight over the money amongst other things, which got worse when they found out they were to pay for their half of dinner.
So, we returned back to the hotel a little upset that our wonderful experience had been tarnished at the finishing post but I think it will blow over and that we will all remain good friends for life!
After an emotional goodbye to Ballardo we left Jiminez the next day for Golfito and onwards to Panama for Xmas and NYE!
In summary, I think that before our journey we had a romanticised notion about what it would be like. I think we felt that we would be camping in the middle of the jungle living off berries and catching our dinner etc but in fact what we got was a more authentic experience of the jungle and the people who live in the jungle.
For a complete set of our Costa Rica photos click here.
Facts
Rio Drake Lodge: $6 per peron per night camping
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