By Ross Kamimoto (Western Washington University)
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
Hello everyone! This trip so far has been amazing, so much in fact that it’s been really hard for me to prioritize school work and assigned readings when there’s so much to see and do in this beautiful paradise. For the sake of sharing such a wonderful experience, I’ve made my blog in the format of a photo journal; there aren’t enough descriptive words in the English language to express how marvelous Costa Rica’s diversity really is.
On a Tuesday we headed out on our backpacking trip to Cerro Arbolito, an old homestead at the highpoint of the peninsula from which you can see both the Golfo Dulce and the Pacific Ocean. While climbing up the steep hill, we stopped here for a quick snack of papaya and mango (pictured). It was also at this spot where we where taught that this specific tree was so important to several cultures throughout Latin America. The sacred “Ceiba” has deep roots in many creation myths, therefore it’s taboo to cut them down. It was surreal to be surrounded by secondary forest with Mother Ceiba towering over everything else, because of her importance to the local culture. In terms of global conservation of biodiversity, it made me think that perhaps by making all Life sacred, maybe we can provide the means for preserving the unique and beautiful aspects of all things as something equally important to be cherished as this particular tree.
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
The ground was a kaleidoscope of red, orange and yellows from redoxymorphic interactions…but I won’t get too dirty into the details by soiling any facts. We set up camp after a two hour hike, mostly uphill. When checking the GPS, it said we were at 262m above sea-level at camp. Words can’t describe how much gratitude we have for both Osa’s Juancito, a former caretaker of the property we stayed at as well as being our guide, and our hoofed friend Tololo (better pictured below) who carried all of our group gear (as well as a few of my personal items due to an injured rib playing futbol, but I digress). Upon our arrival at camp, we had to clear off the concrete platform (top-right) since the property was abandoned after the camp was burned a few years ago. The area we slept on was covered with charcoal, vines, shrubs and small trees. While the girls did a superb job cleaning our area, the boys had the task of clearing a way to the water source, which was a small steam with a tiny pool. Afterwards we had lunch before saying goodbye to Juancito and Tololo. We were to carry all the gear back ourselves after our time here was over.
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
Our purpose for being up in Arbolito (besides having fun and field testing our camp gear in the jungle for a few days…luckily it didn’t rain too much, although there was a massive thunder storm our last night) was to set up camera traps, Lara’s main research project for Round River’s summer program here; the rest of the girls can be seen testing out said trap (upper left). While exploring the area we were about to live for the next few days, we came across several cat tracks and some jungle bounty including sugar cane and coconuts. Also pictured as mentioned above is our four-legged friend and savior, Tololo.
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
Just down the road from where we stayed was an abandoned school. After setting our traps, we had a nice time eating unripe mangoes en route whilst being quizzed on the various trees by instructor Ellie. It was strange to see a building in such shape (containing bats and mostly wasp nests), yet the property still showed signs of upkeep. Behind the school was a citrus tree that contained what was thought to be a few ripe oranges…they turned out to be limes (if only I could have recorded the moment we found out otherwise). Rather than making lemonade, we used them for a tasty salad dressing seeing how we were a little short on food spices (despite being spoiled by the food always tasting so delicious…I’ve grown a whole new appreciation for hot sauce since our arrival on the peninsula).
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
A few picture-worthy sights on our hike down.
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
As with all things here in Costa Rica, time flew by. Before we knew it, it was time to head back to the Piro station. The best part of the trip was the views along the way showing both the Gulfo Dulce and Pacific Ocean. The top-right is the overlook adjacent from Momma Ceiba. One of the reasons why we hold Juancito and Tololo in such high regards is because on this day we were prepared to carry all of the gear ourselves, no pack horse to carry back any group gear. Low and behold, we were surprised to see the dynamic duo show up bright and early while we were packing. After our decent, we stopped at the local bar/restaurant to recharge. Normally it’s a 45 minute walk to get there from where we stay in Piro, so how could we turn down an ice cold beverage with carne asada for lunch? Also, their hot pepper sauce was amazing. We’ve most certainly been spoiled.
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
As I barely touched upon earlier, there was a severe thunderstorm the night prior to our departure. That being said, there was an absolute downpour the night we were back at camp, preventing us from doing the already planned survey in the morning. Callie and I are teamed up for a Neotropical River Otter research project, which the whole group has been spending time on doing stream surveys. We’ve been postponed a few survey days because of the weather, can’t really see much when the water looks like chocolate milk let alone be on the river safely when it’s swollen from torrential rains. Despite being diurnal and nocturnal, these otters are typically hard to find. Between their scarce populations (primarily caused by the pelt trade and deforestation) and shy, solitary behavior, their presence is identified mainly by scat and tracks since actual sightings are so rare. Our study of otter distribution was based on the presence of scat whilst walking up the Piro, Cayunda and Lomas rivers. As shown by our instructor Feña (bottom-right), the shellfish-based scat has a very distinct smell.
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
After a day of surveying, we met with an elder of a family that has lived on the Osa Peninsula for generations, Miguel. He was kind enough to have us over for an amazing BBQ; his stories of the abundant past were incredible. The next day it was just off his property where we were shown an otter frequented spot on the Rio Cayunda by his co-worker and friend, Roy, who traps snakes and is currently in the process of clearing trails for the upcoming tourist season.
Photos by Ross Kamimoto
Photos by Ross Kamimoto