June 29, 1999

Rudi stayed in San Jose because he would probably be bored to tears going to a place where there wasn't a shopping mall close by.

David and I packed and got on the bus and headed down to the airport by 8:00. The little airport van took us through the streets of San Jose and we arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare. There were a surprising good number of people waiting at the Sansa Lounge for the planes to take them to various locations within the country. Our plane finally arrived, with single seating to the left and double seating to the right of the craft.

The flight was uneventful but was quite scary in my point of view. I was able to see the Manuel Antonio area from the plane and the weather stayed clear. The landing was a bit hairy because the landing strip was pretty much just a gravel path. At the end of the gravel runway, a little shack stood to the side with a worn out sign that read "Palmar Sur Airport". There were people waiting there with mini tour buses and people arriving from another domestic airline.

After we boarded our mini bus, it proceeded through groves of palm trees and banana trees. Many had stalks of bananas wrapped in a blue plastic bags. I read that the bags are an ecological hazard because many of them get blown into the ocean and they end up in turtles' stomach and killing them.

It took us about 20 minutes through the pothole and gravel covered road to one of the tributaries of the Sierpe River. On the way, there were plenty of streams, filled with promising looking minnows on the surface, but we didn't stop. A very shabby bridge spanned the tributary to the actual dock - after creaking across the bridge, I vowed that the way back, I would walk instead.

The dock area was filled with sounds of birds. Tall grass blades fringed the brown river that meandered lazily in the noon sun. When I looked in the river, there appeared to be some four-eyed fish hovering the surface. Even though they looked lethargic, the quickly disappear as soon as I approach them with a net. Three boats arrived from Morenco (the lodge where we're staying) and 40 kids got off the boat. It was to our relief that only 2 other couples are there.

We got on the boat soon after and started zooming down the river toward our final destination. The river was filled with turtles and napping caimans. Five different species of mangrove trees covered this vast region, sheltering infant organisms and purifying the human polluted river before it goes into the sea. After riding for about 50 minutes, we came to the mouth of the river where it opened into Drake Bay. Small waves crashed into our boat but we bounced easily around them.

After crossing Drake Bay, we came to a rocky beach area with huts protruding from the forest. We have finally arrived at Morenco. It was a "wet-landing" because there is no dock for the boat so we got off the boat into the shallow water and waded onto the beach. The porters took our luggage and supplies and we hiked up a steep hill of about 1km to the restaurant where we had a quick little lunch of spaghettis with salsa and Flan for desert. I wondered if the spaghettis were leftover from those 40 kids.

The restaurant is an opened aired facility with about 25 tables draped with cloth and ceiling fans whirling above. It has a lovely view of the Pacific Ocean with Canos Island in the far distance. A variety of orchids clung on pieces of driftwood and bark and hung from the roof. Small birds fluttered in and out and the whole place was surrounded by lush growth of primary forest. It was strange to be the only ones here with 24 other empty tables. The rainy season is a slow time for the tourist industry.

Morenco used to be a biological station but it has since been converted into a combination of biological station and a wilderness resort. The few biologists we met there did not seem too concerned with any research or studies. There were a few displays and posters of local wildlife that was collected but that was all.

After eating, we headed to our bungalow. The grounds were nicely manicured and each bungalow had thatched roofs with a small porch that looks out to the Pacific Ocean. The bungalows are simple with 2 beds, each draped with mosquito nets. The bathroom had a large shower area but only cold water. I quickly unpacked and headed down to the beach for some snorkeling. David stayed on the porch to read.

On the steep climb down, numerous skinks littered the pathway and small red-clawed land crab scurried into their holes. I came by a fresh water stream and dipped my net into the water to discover some livebearers and a very nice brilliantly colored blue-clawed shrimp. Something like this would do well in the aquarium trade I thought to myself, and was surprised that I haven't seen anything like it back in the states.

I headed down further into the water and swam a little bit but was disappointed because there was not much to see in the beach area. I decided to skip the snorkeling and hiked along the shoreline and into the rainforest. The shoreline was dotted with small shells, worn out rocks, and pieces of driftwood tangled with large rock formations. The rock formations were similar to the ones in Bermuda with sharp volcanic edges and small tidal pools.

I reached a point where I couldn't go anymore so I headed into the forest and found a trail and started heading back. A few hours has passed since my aimless wandering. The forest floor was covered with small hermit crabs. Occasionally, I would come across a line of leaf cutter ants marching across the trail. When I got closer to the bio station, I saw a troop of white face monkeys feeding in the trees. They usually have a territory where they feed throughout the day in a circular patter along the circumference.

I got back and washed up a bit before heading to the restaurant for dinner. Dinner was delicious with pan fried fish and some salad and bread. It was dark by then and scores of insects started flying into the dining area, attracted by the light. A few fluttering bats could also be seen devouring these insects. There was a young couple on honeymoon sitting a few tables away and other than those two, we were the only ones in the whole complex. We talked to them after dinner and found out that they had the unfortunate luck of having 40 other kids running around the complex during their honeymoon, but at least today they almost had the whole place to themselves. They were from California. After chatted a while longer, we retired to our quarters.