Ahoy friends!
I am filled with joy that you are reading my little blog!
Last night was a ¨getting to know each other¨ night. We went to a local bar and grill that attempted to approximate a typical USA sports bar. It tasted good but missed on some of the details...like they forgot to fry my country fried steak! (it was grilled instead). We had our first taste of Imperial (Costa Rica´s beer) and played a rousing game of A$$hole.
Today was a stupendous day. We took a short bus ride to the Rio Pacuare. It was a class III and IV rapids. These were big enough to drench us in water pretty frequenty but not so big as to require actual skill. The real reason why people love this river is the scenary. It was spectacular. A hybrid of Indiana Jones, Jurrasic Park, Apocolypse Now, etc. Lush green tropical trees like skyscrapers towering above us. In some places they bent together over the river and created a tunnel effect. Powerful canyon walls with rickety wood bridges or even rusted zip lines that act as functional (and scarey) ways for indiginous folks to cross the river. Stunning waterfalls
around every corner. There must have been 20 or 30. Massive ancient rocks scattered throughout the river that were artistically carved into smooth sculptures by many years of river flow. Even the weather elevated us to another level of adventure. We started with perfect blue skies, but by the middle of the trip the sky was gushing delicious fat rain. It felt great in the steamy humid air. By the end of the trip, all of us were fantasizing about how we are going to become full on White Water Kayakers when we return to the states. I was doubly interested by their control over adventure technology. They had camera Kayakers set up aruond the river catching all the action...and then sold this media at a premium. Anyone want to start an Adventure Media company in Costa Rica with me?!
Now we are back in San Jose and preparing for a 6am flight to Puerto Jimenez. This is one of the main jumping off points to Corcovado Park. One of the loosely thrown around National Geographic quotes about this place is ďt is ¨one of the most biologically INTENSE places on earth¨. I still laugh everytime I say that.
We actually dont know that much about how the next 4 days are going to play out. Definitely no internet (there aren´t even restaurants). We have contacted a few guides but have no solid plans yet. I guess we are going to IMPROVISE!
Don´t worry, I am a Boy Scout and we are all eating Maleria pills!
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Send Private Messagethey have party pics on the rapids?!? hells yeah if you want to open up an adventure media company i'm game... "rapids gone wild"
A sports bar in Costa Rica! That sounds interesting. The rafting looks incredible! And the big trees... I just want to know what's so INTENSE about the biology there.... Oh, and bring it on Maurer! That wooden thingy that Brad is going to buy from some local somewhere is TOTALLY MINE!!!!
It looks like you guys have taken the Colorado River and stepped it up a few notches! If you open an adventure media company, I'll open an american sports bar. Except there will be no sports, just alcohol, pool tables and karaoke. And maybe you, me and Scott can start a band and play there on the weekends. Perfect!
To my little Ecotourists -
Biologically "Intense" basically means - (from the Corcovado Park homepage.)
-An isolated zone of biological diversification and endemism.
-Home to sustainable populations of large mammals and bird due to large intact roadless areas, lack of navigable rivers, and few resident humans.
tourists love parading through it for pleasure but we must take care and leave no trace, so footpaths do not become roads.
i'm sure you are both pros at doing such. but not everyone is. i can't wait to hear about what you see. maybe you'll be like Sting and want to save the rainforest when you get back. ;)
xoxo - my little conservationists.
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