Prove Yourself, Adventuring along the ” Road Less Travelled” of the Osa Peninsula. Leaving Puerto Jimenez before Dawn, paddling across the Golfo Dulce, sided by Dolphins and Turtles, we will start a Long Trek that will head us through Mangrove Canals, an Uninhabited Pristine Lagoon, the Sierpe Valley Wetlands and its Flooded Forests, and exploring the infinite Canals of the Sierpe-Terraba Mangrove Complex , before to Dive in the Crystal Waters of the Caño Island Absolute Reserve. Along the Trek we will rest and feed with the Family of local Farmers, we learn how to milk a Buffalo or extract the sweet juice from the Sugar Cane and try to catch a Snapper for the Evening Tent Camp BBQ on the Beach. Wildlife here is Abundant and Confident, so be sure to have a good waterproof camera for astonishing full frame Pictures. You don’t need to be a Pro Kayaker, but some previous experience is preferable, as a good physical condition. …and… remember Robert Frost words… ” Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. “…….
The Guests arrive at Wild Trails Adventure Office at Midday, for to have time to discuss with them the plan of the Trek, explaining what will be possible and good to bring with them, define if there are some issues with some kind of food and or diets, for to be able to adapt or modify the scheduled food supplies and lunch/dinners along the Trip.
Then there will be a session of materials and tackle reconnaissance for to deliver to them their maps, communication radios, and safety equipment.
Later in the afternoon the Guests will participate to a short Mangrove and Bioluminescence Kayak Trek, during which we will evaluate their skill with Kayaks and Snorkel tackle and techniques, for don’t have surprises during the development of the Trek.
This same activity we use for Guests Skill evaluation and materials reconnaissance, is the one we offer to Airbnb Guests as the: “ 4×1 Kayak Tour with Bioluminescence “ , that has high appreciation from Guests and receive great reviews too.
For the night, the guests are hosted ( in double Occupancy, as every other night ) at our Il Giardino Rooms facility, located on the beach front Boulevard, where they have a dinner, a la carte, prepared by the Chef of Il Giardino Italian Restaurant.
After an early Breakfast ( around 04.00) the Guests will take their personal stuff and the Kayak assigned to them and will start paddling, under the control and direction of our Guide, on the calm waters of the Golfo Dulce, for a route of 25 Km that will bring them to the North-West coast of the Golfo, at the Mouth of the Esquina River.
During the Trip they will have the chance to stop one or two times, depending by their physical condition, for a quick snack on one of the beaches they will find along the Northern coast.
Is not uncommon to have some encounter with Dolphins and Whales ( depending by the season) during this part of the trip.
Once arrived at the mouth of the Esquina river , depending by the tide, will be possible to do some exploration of the Mangrove canals, or going directly to the Farm where they will Camp, using our double Tents placed under roof, and have a typical dinner with fresh fruit drink and Costarican Coffee, prepared by the same farmer, following the local tradition. The dinner will be consumed at the table were the Farmer family will have their food
If the tide will permit, and the guests want, it will be possible to do a late afternoon Mangrove Kayaking, and/or try to catch some fish using the local tackle and technique. In these Estuarine Mangroves, is possible to observe several species of birds as:….. mammals as: Raccoons, Monkeys, Otters….Reptiles as : Crocodiles, Turtles, Tree Boas, Iguanas, Crabs, etc….
After an Early Breakfast, based on the traditional food the Farmers have before to go to do the hard work in the field, the Trekkers start walking along a trail that will bring them, crossing Farmlands and Forest, to the top of the ridge that divides the Golfo Dulce from the Sierpe River Valley, and from there to a Farm that is facing on the Sierpe Lagoon and its astonishing Panorama of the Sierpe valley with the Raphia taedigera ( one of the Plant Family with the biggest leaves in the world ) Flooded Forests.
During this Hiking is possible to observe: Grassland Birds, Forest Birds, Monkeys, Reptiles,
Here they will have chance to assist the Farmer in the operation of Sugar Cane pressing for to extract the juice used for the production of the Tapas, a kind of compact brown sugar tabs, of around half a kilo each, locally used for to sweeten fruit juices, coffee, milk, and other traditional drinks.
From the same sugar cane juice, the farmers produce their personal reserve of Guaro, the traditional liquor obtained by the fermentation and distillation of the juice.
The same farmers will prepare the dinner, using the products harvested in their land, the milk of their cow, eggs and chicken meat of their livestock, and the abundant fruits of the farm.
The Night will be spent in the tents, placed on the hill that faces the lagoon, from where, if the timing is allowing, is possible to observe the spectacle of the full moon over the water body and the valley, and, if Guests want, a short Forest Night Tour is possible, for to discover the Nocturnal Wildlife ( specially Frogs, Toads, some kind of Snakes, Coati Mundi, Opossum, Owls and other nocturnal birds) in action.
After the early Farm Breakfast with the Farmer, and tents packing up, the Trekkers will start walking downhill to the Shore of the Sierpe Lagoon, a water body, that had never been used for Tourism by anybody in the past, being quite difficult to reach by land or, less, by water, and for this reason remained untouched and still preserve its natural habitat as thousands of years ago.
The Trekkers will find their Kayaks( that had been transported there by our crew the day before, while they were hiking), at the Lagoon shore, and they will start paddling across this Pristine Water, in a perfect silence broken only by the birds calls, until reach the opposite shore where they will have to cut with the Kayaks, the dense floating vegetation composed by water lilies , for to reach the first waters of the Sierpe River, that starts from the Lagoon, and that soon became a wide, deep river, that cross the most pristine Wetland of the country, with its Flooded Forests of Raphia taedigera and Symphonia globulifera.
They are 30 Km of paddling, from the first shore of the Lagoon, along the Sierpe River before to reach the small Town of Sierpe, 28 Km across the most Pristine Wetland of the country, where it is possible to meet Rare Species of Birds feeding and nesting along the banks and on the floating vegetation, families of Monkey moving along the trees on the banks in their search for food made of fruits and leaves, Crocodiles warming up their bodies on the banks, storing energy for the next night hunt, occasionally a Tree Boa wrapped on a branch suspended on the water and Cascades of Orchid Flowers hanging from the trees branches.
Along the Water Trail there will be a couple of places where it will be possible to stop for to have a break for some snack and energy bar, exchange impressions and pictures of the highlights of the trail, doing the point of the trail with the guide and be prepared for what will follow ahead,
For almost half of the route, the river will run toward the mouth independently by the tide, but the Sierpe is a tidal River, so, it is possible that at one point, the trekkers will have to paddle against the water current, adding some fatigue. Normally there are no problems for an average kayaker to overcome this increased stress, but, if it would be the case, a boat in Sierpe can be alerted and can come to pick the Trekkers up and bring them to Sierpe town. We never had to use it, but, just in case…
Once in Sierpe, the Guests will be accompanied to the River Lodge, where they will refresh and rest a while before the dinner at one local typical restaurant, where the Fried Whole Pargo Fish ( a Snapper), is the plate that everybody would have, accompanied by a couple of cold Costarican Beers .
During the same Dinner the Guests and the Guide will exchange their impressions and eventual requests, while talking about the next day trip and activities. A special attention will be put to the Orienteering in the Labyrinth of mangrove canals that will have to be crossed the next day, and the use of a GPS for to reach specific points along the Route, and what to do in case somebody get lost.
Early Breakfast at the River Lodge and starting Paddling along the Sierpe River.
In case the Tide would be against the Trekker direction, it would be possible to take a boat, with the kayaks and stuff, for to move ahead some kilometer, of the 30 that measure the Trek, and be sure that everybody would reach the Mouth of the River, where to camp , or lodge, for the night.
This part of the Adventure Trek is mostly across the Canals of the Biggest Mangrove Complex ( the Terraba-Sierpe ) of Central America, paddling under the canopy of huge Mangrove Trees Forests that host many endemic species of animals, as the Mangrove Hawk, the Agamia Agami Heron ( the most spectacular of this family! ), and Otters, Crocodiles, Monkeys, Snakes and other reptiles.
In this immense Mangrove Complex there are still some local people that dedicate to the collection of the Pianguas, a very tasteful specie of bivalve shell that lives in the deep of the mud, amongst the roots of the mangroves, and that can be found and grabbed only pushing the hand into it, often for more than 50 cm, making this work a really bloody one. Sometime, depending by the tide level, is possible to observe these collectors in action and buy some of their catches for collectively prepare a Ceviche for the evening camp dinner.
Along this part of the Trek , the Guide will shows to the Guests, how to set a basic fishing line to use, with a bait or a lure, while paddling, for to try to catch some Pargo fish to add to the Ceviche for dinner, cooked BBQ style with some vegetables and the Pipa Juice ( a variety of Coconut that produce a lot of water with a lot of minerals) as refreshing and restoring drink. The Pipa Trees had always been planted by the local farmers and fishermen along the path used for to work or move, with the aim of having always a reserve of this juice that helps a lot to the balance of minerals in the blood and to maintain the physical condition needed for the hard work in the Tropical environment.
The night, after the BBQ dinner, will be spent, depending by the weather and the desire of the Guests, camping close the beach, or in a small, basic lodge run by a local family.
After a Camp, or Lodge, breakfast, the Guest will board a Boat that will bring them ( with a ride of one hour) to the Caño Island Wildlife Absolute Reserve for to Scuba diving in the richest waters of the Country, for an unforgettable experience. Even Guests without any Diving Experience would enjoy this Experience, thanks to a special Diving technique that maintain the Dive master and the Guest physically in contact, hand by hand, for all the time underwater.
During the trip to and from the Island, it is often possible to observe Dolphin and Whales of several species, including the huge Megaptera noveangliae ( Humpback Whale), that come here from the far and cold waters along Canada and Alaska coast, for to giving birth to their calves in a more temperate environment, with much less Killer Whales too !!
The Caño Island, and the Bajo del Diablo, just a couple of miles far from the Island, are the bests diving spots of Cost Rica, only surpassed by the Coco Island, that is more than 300 miles out of the coast.
In these waters it is granted to encounter a huge variety and amount of wildlife, as different species of Sharks, Barracuda, Turtle, Mantas, Groupers and Snappers.
During this Experience, Sandwiches, snacks and fresh fruit will be served.
At the end of the Diving, the Boat will return to Sierpe, collecting the Kayaks and the other stuff at the beach camp, following the main River Stream, for to offer a different scenario to the Guests.
Once in Sierpe the Guest will have time for to refresh and rest at the River Lodge and, in the evening, take part to the Farewell Dinner and exchange their impressions and hints to our Guide and Crew.
NOTES:
For to make the Adventure shorter in Time, for some Guest that has limit in the days to dedicate to this part of the Country, it would be possible to remove the Activities of the Day 3)
This is possible collecting the guest directly at the Mangrove Farm where they spent the second night and Bring them, with a 4WD truck, directly to the point where the Sierpe River is coming out from the Lagoon, but this would means that they lose the Lagoon paddling too.
For the same reason of shortening the Adventure Trek, it would be possible to remove the activities of the Day 6) , the Diving Experience, bringing back to Sierpe the Guests at the end of the Day 5), and giving them lodging and food in Sierpe instead that camp at the River Mouth Beach.