Day 7: Brief Check-in

Hello loved ones :)
Just a brief check-in. We are all okay and still having a blast, however we havent had any wi-fi for several days and will not have any again until Friday probably. So we will work on updating more then! Unitl next time!
Pura Vida....

Day Seven: Flickr Photostream

ecoeco2014's photostream on Flickr.  January 4th, 2014 -- Hi, all!  We're on the road again, leaving Baulas National Park on our way to Karen Mogensen Nature Reserve.  Much of our focus at Baulus was on night time work with black sea turtles, and since flash photography is contraindicated for nesting turtle mamas, we don't have any photos of that.  But our local biologist, Randall, joined us for a mangrove tour, so we included a couple shots of that, as well as a group photo taken near Playa Nombre de Jesus.    Also, we stopped at a local craft shop while driving toward Mogensen, so you'll see a few photos of our shopping adventures.  Notice our lovely bus, too!  Our bus driver, Rocio, is very proud of her bus and keeps it spotlessly clean!

Day Five and Six: Baulas National Park

SEA TURTLES!!!!

What a neat place. We stayed in volunteer houses and played on the beach by day but our work shifts started at 7pm both nights and did not end until after midnight. We hiked to a nearby beach and helped the biologists there with sea turtle conservation and research. The main species of sea turtle found at that beach is the pacific green turtle (also known as the black turtle) and boy, are they huge! We walked the beach to find turtles emerging from the ocean to lay their eggs and followed them and watched and waited patiently for them to dig their body cavity and then the whole for the eggs. At that time, we dug a hole next to the turtle’s back leg and carefully removed the eggs as she was laying them. We did this to hide the location from human poachers and also to hide the scent from animals such as raccoons that go after the eggs. We got to see some baby sea turtles emerging from one hole and it was so magical to watch them head toward the ocean!

At this location we also got to take a mangrove tour which was really neat. We saw alligators and white ibises and sandpipers. We also saw a lot of crabs. The maze of mangrove roots was astounding and our guide taught us all about mangrove ecology as well as conservation issues in Costa Rica.

This is a great location for anyone interested in volunteering with sea turtle conservation.

Showing off our yooper tans at Baulus.

Day Four: 2014!

Happy New Year’s everybody!

We had a blast today. We took a snorkel and kayak tour to Isla Chora National Wildlife Refuge with Samara Adventure Company, which was absolutely beautiful. As we were kayaking to the island, a sea turtle swam right under us! The island was really cool and it was neat to see the beach where we were staying from a different perspective. Our guides cut up fresh fruit for us to enjoy and spoke to us about the decline of the corals in the oceans and how important it is for everyone to help.

While most of the coral was dead and the snorkeling wasn’t very clear, the sunburns today were totally worth the experience.

We spent the rest of the day playing on the beach and walking around town attempting to speak Spanish. It was an early night for all of us, eager to head to our new adventure tomorrow!

Day Two and Three: Flickr Photostream

ecoeco2014's photostream on Flickr. With internet connection today, we were able to add a few photos of our experiences at UGA's campus at Monteverde -- everything from nature hikes to biodigesters, latin dance lessons to milking a cow;  ziplining to birding!  Now we've moved to Samara, where we're staying at the Sol y Mar Hotel.  Time to check out the beach!