Road Trip to the Osa Peninsula

One of the highlights of our road trip - seeing the cutest puppy in Costa Rica!!!!

Now that we have so little time left here, we're trying to make sure that we fit everything in that we wanted to do before leaving.  Hiking to the top of the volcano was one of them, hiking the Corcovado rainforest was another.  Last week we made it all the way down to the Osa Peninsula, home of the Corcovado National Park, and had full intentions of visiting it and hiking around, but it seems that we just weren't meant to experience Corcovado on this trip.  We're kind of excited, actually, because it gives us a very good reason to come back again.  Plus, Corcovado is such a huge and beautiful rainforest that it deserves more time than just one day.  There are trails you can take that lead you to the heart of the jungle, where you stay at a ranger station and then take a long hike out to the beach.  We can't wait til the day when we find ourselves bundled up in our cozy sleeping bags in the middle of the rainforest.  It will be so surreal to be listening to the creatures of the jungle come to life for another night and knowing that we'll be up with the sun to take in another beautiful day hiking through the most biologically diverse place on earth.

Kai loved this air freshener! It's called TERROR. Smells like a urinal cake

Even though we didn't make it into the park, we thoroughly enjoyed our time on the Osa Peninsula and our road trip with our new friend Kai.  He's a laid back and witty fellow, born and raised for 10 years in Poland, then moved to the US and is currently living in Portland.   He owns a bike shop (how stereotypical, huh?) and is here in Costa Rica on a 3 1/2 week vacation. He's here with the dual purpose of both experiencing the beauty and culture of Costa Rica and getting some dental work done at much cheaper rates than we pay in the states.  He has been very happy with the work he's had done so far and if any of you need a dentist, his comes highly recommended.  It makes the thought of needing a root canal or some fillings almost exciting because it would give us a good excuse to come back here right away!

So nice to be the DJ instead of the driver!

Anyways, enough about dental vacations and on with the point of this post - our trip to the Osa Peninsula! We got back from Nicaragua on Sunday night and met up with Kai at Galileo to plan our departure the next morning.  Our plan was to drive down about halfway and stop in a little town called San Isidro to stay with some friends of Kai's.  The drive was long and treacherous.  The ticos call the mountain pass we had to drive over "la ceda de muerte" which means "the pass of death".  There are so many blind corners and reckless drivers and the mountain creates it's own hazards in the form of fog and rain.


As we wound our way up and then down the mountain pass we saw the evidence of the dangers of the road. A semi truck was overturned on the shoulder, some cars were driving in the wrong lanes,and we had to maneuver our way around mudslides, bikes, cows, and other random Costa Rican road obstacles.   Luckily Kai is a very cautious driver, so we didn't even come close to getting into an accident of our own. 

Kai's guidebook described San Isidro as a small town nestled into the valley that is best experienced as a stopover point on the way up or down the Pan-American Highway. Not so spectacular for sightseeing, but enjoyed some of the smaller and more unique points of interest, like the walk/don't walk man that took huge strides in place so gracefully it was almost as if he was dancing. He made ours in the states look very boring, always frozen in mid-stride.

Some of their ads for food are pretty hilarious

We arrived in the early afternoon and asked a few different people where their favorite restaurant was to get some casados, the typical rice, beans, meat and plantains dish.  It seemed that no one really had a favorite place, or they all just happened to be within one block of it, because each person recommended basically the closest restaurant in sight. Kai has a friend who told him that out of over 30 countries he's visited, Costa Rica's food is  the worst, and I might have to agree. It doesn't taste bad, it's just a little bland and monotonous. Rice and beans every day, potato and meat dishes that aren't very spicy or seasoned, and not much use of vegetables.  The best food we've eaten here was made by Kirby at the House of Dreams!  We do love the plantains, though.

Jo, Francois, Kai, Kirby, and me on their front porch

 After lunch we went grocery shopping so that we could cook dinner for our hosts, as well as bring them a bottle of rum in exchange for their hospitality.  Francois and Jo were both very nice and interesting to talk to.  Francois rented a car and drove here from Canada over the course of 8 months, and Jo is selling her house in London to buy property here with the intention of reforesting the land and creating a sustainable volunteer opportunity as well as an economic opportunity for the local community.  They met at an animal rehabilitation volunteer center a few months ago and are planning on working together, along with several other people who will come back when the land is purchased, to make this dream a reality.





We had a really good time at their house cooking, eating, playing games, and experimenting with their instruments.  I tried to remember some songs on the guitar but unfortunately these few months off have taken quite a toll on my musical abilities. I can't even remember how to play nocturnal time! Those of you at Outdoor School must be shocked.  I was.  I did learn how to play the Amelie song on the accordion, though, and Francois entertained us on the guitar later on that night.

Surfboard rentals and lessons.  Too bad we didn't have more time...

 In the morning, Kai whipped up some crepes (he used to be a chef at Brighton Bush hot springs in Oregon) and we enjoyed some coffee as well as a music swap with Jo.  Then back on the road! We made it out of the mountains and took in our first view of the ocean in quite some time.  We drove through the tiny, touristy surf town of Dominical, then on down the coastal road.  Dominical is the town we met David in when we rented the cabin at the start of our trip and it was interesting to see how different it looked now that tourist season has started.  So many more people and a LOT of beachside booths selling everything all the standard tourist stuff.

The view from our beach

We impatiently looked out our windows for a good beach to stop at and swim.  It was hard to see what exactly was happening down at shore level, but the water was beautiful and the road was full of interesting sights.  There were 4 consecutive roadside stands, most consisting of little more than a cooler and an umbrella, each boasting "the best ceviche in Costa Rica".   Since we were on a beach mission, we passed up the opportunity to decide for ourselves. 











We finally spotted a sign for playa tortuga (turtle beach) pointing to a road that looked like something our little nissan sedan could handle.  I think I've mentioned it before, but Costa Rica really helps stretch your idea of what an economy car can do.  The next day we really tested its limits and it held up like a champ! I actually think the drive was more stressful on Kai than it was on the car...

At the beach we swam, searched for seeds, and drank juice out of coconuts that Kai pulled down from surrounding trees and then punched holes into with something he found in the trunk that is supposed to be part of the jack to fix flat tires.  At the end of our time there it started to rain, then started to pour, so we stood in front of the ocean with our hands stretched out to feel the drops on our skin and faces.  It's so wonderful to be able to swim in  the ocean and stand in the pouring rain and not feel cold at all.  One of our favorite things about Costa Rica has been the fact that you don't really have to worry about getting too cold. Even if you take a cold shower right after the sun goes down.  On the flip side, the heat and humidity are not our favorite thing.  Especially the humidity.  Sweating is an everyday thing, the only thing that varies is where and how much.  We're looking forward to being home in the mountains soon and getting to bundle up in all our cozy winter wear instead of debating whether or not we should wear a T-shirt because it might make us too sweaty.  Tank tops have gotten more and more popular.



The rain that started at the beach didn't let up for the rest of our drive, sometimes a light sprinkle and others a total downpour.  Unfortunately it was during one of the downpours that we all had to go to the bathroom and of course we were nowhere near a town.  I was still in my bathing suit so it wasn't too bad, but poor Kirby looked hilarious crouched under her umbrella.


Kai has a friend from the states, Don, who owns several properties here, including a refuge named  after him (Refugio Donald Hayes) that is big enough to make it onto the National Geographic map of Costa Rica!  We were planning on staying with him during our time down south but our schedules didn't align too well so we had to find our own place to stay for the night and plan on going to his house the next day.  We found a nice little hotel just off the road on the way to Golfito.  We settled into our room after our long day on the road and had a dinner consisting of a chicken-stuffed bread loaf that we got at the panaderia and a couple tiny cocktails of run and fresh coconut juice.  Kirby and I got busy writing for the blog and Kai distracted himself (and us) with the Dodgeball movie and The Simpsons. 

The next morning we drove into the town of Golfito to check the times for when the taxis depart for Puerto Jimenez, the little town just across the gulf and our gateway to Corcovado.  To get to the Osa Peninsula you can either drive hours and hours on notoriously terrible roadways or you can stay on the Pan-American Hwy and turn off to go to Golfito, then take the water taxi across.  Because of the possibility of staying with Don's friend, and the fact that the roads down there are nearly impassible for a car like ours during the rainy season, we opted for the water taxi option.  Good thing, because the main roads were challenging enough.  We got to see some of the destruction the huge storm had left behind a few weeks ago, like this huge landslide that took out a big chunk of the road.







Apparently the water taxi that leaves from Golfito, as well as the town itself, don't draw enough tourists to sustain a very stable economy for the people there, so the government built a huge warehouse-style megastore that sells everything, especially electronics and appliances, for super cheap.  Ticos from all over the country come to Golfito to take advantage of the great deals.      The catch is that you have to go have an admission pass to get into the store, which you apply for in person the day before you want to shop.  This forces you to stay the night in Golfito and probably eat dinner out as well.  The billboards lining the road to Golfito were hilarious.  The woman standing in awe of her new refrigerator and the couple holding onto each other as well as their vegetables were our favorites.









After we checked the schedule for the water taxis and decided on a 7:30am departure for the next morning, we walked through town to find some coffee for Kai.  The soda we decided on had decorated itself in the typical Costa Rican Christmas fashion - gaudy and glittery.













Unfortunately Christmas lights aren't too popular here, especially on the houses, but the businesses usually at least have some tinsel, glittery Santa poster, or Christmas tree completely covered in ribbons, bows, ornaments, and/or fake snow.  One of our favorite decorations was festive as well as functional, a circle of lights and baby Jesuses surrounding an open  circle big enough to spotlight the brand new TV that might make the perfect Christmas present for your special someone.

You can't really see it, but there's a beautiful ocean view behind us!

We left Golfito and headed to Don's house, unaware of all the dips, bumps, mud, and massive potholes that lie in the road ahead of us.  Even though Don's house is only 40km from Golfito, it took us just under 2 hours to get there.  Kai is much gentler on his rental cars than we were, hence the 2 flat tires we got on our trip with Shuli.  The drive was beautiful though, with huge puffy white clouds and lines of palms alongside the roads.  Once we made it to Pilon, finding the place was an adventure in itself, like always.   We got a nice tour of the town and stopped by the public phone to try to call Don and take a break from the search.  Even though we were lost none of us really minded, and the only stressful part was when I got out of the car in someone's driveway to ask someone for directions, his dog came over, and the guy yelled at me to get back into the car because his dog was very mean.  It was a huge dog that looked kind of like a wolf.  I was terrified, but just for those 3 seconds before I was safely in the car with the door closed, no closer to finding Don's house but grateful to not have a huge bite ripped out of my leg.









We made it to Don's house just in time to share their afternoon coffee and then watch the sunset.

He has a caretaker, Ramiro, who lives there with his wife and daughter, Rebecca, a very sweet 11-year old who helped us collect seeds on the beach and then played cards with me with Kirby and Kai cooked a delicious taco dinner.

Will, Rebecca, Don, and Kai - just another day in paradise

We also met Don's friend, Will, a very nice and funny addition to our stay.  Don was very hospitable and even though he had more than a full house he was happy to have us sleep wherever we thought would be most comfortable, and had also checked out some cabinas nearby in case we wanted a bed and more privacy.  Kirby and I opted for the double person hammock which was surprisingly comfortable.  We went to bed very early to rest up for our big day of hiking and were up before the sun to start our next day, which happened to be Thanksgiving!


Well, this post has ended up being quite long, so I'm going to save our Thanksgiving day on the Osa Peninsula for later.  And I'll let the pictures do the talking, since my posts seem to just be getting longer and longer!  I've been slowly but surely working on this one, hoping to finish it by tonight before Doug got here.  Tomorrow morning we're leaving to meet Kirby and Amy in Puerto Viejo at Rocking J's.  In honor of their visit, we upgraded from the tent city to the pimp suite!  We had a great night with Amy last night and are really looking forward to our time all together, relaxing by day and dancing by night at the beautiful Carribbean coast.