Exploring Costa Rica

Years ago, I started viewing images of birds and other animals, especially sloths, from Costa Rica, and added this location as a place to visit as a photographer.

Driving to the Bougainvillea Hotel from the airport with a total stranger is definitely a trust I was beginning to question. The ride was a bit eye-opening, and I realized I had no real idea where I was. The area we were driving through looked very rough. Suddenly, we reached the beautiful hotel surrounded by four acres of lush gardens. Whenever I travel, I start to feel very small in the world, and it makes me appreciate even more where I live.

The next morning, I wandered around the grounds and photographed a gorgeous bird that I later discovered was a Motmot. It was tucked into some trees, and I felt fortunate to capture its image. Sitting in front of a pool, my energy started to return from the previous day’s flight. A very large cockroach crawled on the floor near where I was sitting, a sharp reminder that I was in a tropical location and I needed to be aware of the bugs.

Arenal Observatory Lodge was our next location. Along the way, we stopped to photograph a mom and baby sloth who were just barely moving high up in a tree above a fruit stand. This was my first view ever of a sloth in real life, and I have to say it was pretty exciting. The baby moved around a bit more than the mom, which resulted in some adorable photographs. The lodge was breathtakingly beautiful, and we stayed in bungalows that were separate from the main lodge with a view of the jungle and the Arenal Volcano. The weather made me stand back and realize that, yes, I was staying in the rainforest. This region receives 19’ of rain a year, and this was NOT the rainy season. The lodge doesn’t even open during the rainy season. I decided at one point just to go out in the rain to photograph; I had a hooded poncho and a cover for my camera. However, after having buckets of water dumped on me, I would often seek shelter and wait until the rain lifted a bit. Listening to the pounding rain, the birds near and far, and howler monkeys somewhere in the jungle transported me to a world of which I was not familiar. One particular afternoon, the rain let up for a bit, and my friend Annie and I went out to photograph the hummingbirds. Shortly after we settled in, I received a text stating that the White Nosed Coati had invaded my room. Apparently, I shut the door okay, but didn’t lock the glass door over the screen door. They ripped open a bag that contained my power bars and threw most everything out of my suitcase.

My room was a disaster, and we had to call in emergency housekeeping. Ah, well, it makes for a good story. They are related to the same family as the raccoons in my region, so I know how they love to get into everything. I was able to photograph Yellow-necked Toucans - there was a pair of them flying around and quite a few hummingbirds who popped out whenever the rain died down a bit. The Montezuma Oropendola was also a very prominent bird. Many birds were flying to a fruit tree near Annie’s room, so I stood, out of the rain, on their covered balcony and photographed to my heart’s content. There was also another covered balcony where I photographed little birds that kept flying onto some nearby branches. One was a red-legged Honeycreeper, and a larger bird that looked like a turkey was a Grey-headed Chachalaca. Be sure to check these out on my website, as well as the hummingbird on the rain-drenched red flowers.

Our next destination, Laguna del Lagarto - Boca Tapada, is a small community in the northern lowlands of Costa Rica, within the province of Alajuela. More specifically, it is situated about 7 km north of Boca Tapada. The eco-lodge is nestled in a rainforest area close to the Nicaraguan border and near the San Juan and San Carlos rivers. We were in a pretty isolated region, and although there were plenty of trails surrounding the lodge, the rain again was relentless. I would dash out whenever there was a break or if the rain was light enough that I could safely walk without slipping. There were so many birds in this area, and I was able to photograph the Keel-billed Toucan, Collared Aracari, and bats during some nighttime photography.

Savegre Mountain Lodge was our last location. It is tucked into the Savegre River Valley of the Talamanca Mountains. Savegre Mountain Lodge is located in the province of San José, Costa Rica. It is situated in San Gerardo de Dota, a small community within the Talamanca Mountains. The hotel is known for its beautiful natural surroundings, including cloud forests and gardens. The lodge is at 7,500’, and we drove down a narrow, twisty road from 12,000’ to reach our destination. The rain did lighten up during this three-day visit, and I wished we had more time to spend there. I wasn’t certain if I would be able to find and photograph the Resplendent Quetzal from this region, but it was high on my list. As I was walking down to breakfast one morning from my lodging, I noticed a group of people with binoculars and cameras focused on something in a tree. Moving in to get a closer view, I realized it was a Quetzal. I dashed back to my room, grabbed my camera, and snuck in as close as I could with the group already formed. Then, it was discovered that the male and female were building a nest in the nearby foliage. I found a decent location to photograph them as they sat on a branch and moved back and forth between the branch and the nest. They were tucked into a very shadowy part of the jungle, so I did the best I could to capture some gorgeous photos. I am very happy with the results I received on this trip, and I hope you enjoy them as well.

Then it was back home with a treasure of images to edit and fall in love with all over again.