volcanogirl

My husband and I are planning a trip to Bosque del Cabo and are looking at all the activities that are available. What was YOUR absolute favorite trail to hike? Guided tour? And off-premise activity? We're in our 30s, no children and open to anything, just would love your feedback since the prices can really add up and there are so many choices. Is there something that made a favorite memory for you, or that you consider a "don't miss"? Thanks for the help!

mmb23

We loved everything we did when we were there for 4 days in March, but the standouts were
-Primary Forest with Phillip, which was more of a moveable classroom with living examples than a hike. We did it our first morning and it really helped us observe flora & fauna when we hiked alone. The pre-dinner walk with Philip was really fun--we saw interesting animals, learned a lot, and it was only 45 minutes long.

-We loved all the trails, but here's a tip I wish we'd thought of before we got there: hike early. After the first couple days, we started going out before breakfast and getting a couple hours in. The trails were cooler and we seemed to have more animal sightings.

Have a wonderful trip!

janenicole

We had some activities in mind before we arrived at BdC that we thought we would do, and ended up doing completely different things once we got there.

We went deep sea fishing with Miguel. His boat is smaller (best for 2 people), so faster and less expensive. We got two dorado and one sail. A couple that went with him a few days before us caught three sails and one dorado. It was very fun. So, if you are into fishing, you may want to do that.

My favorite trail to hike was actually the Pacific Trail, mainly because of where it ends up - I love the ocean. And a beach with virtually no people on it (other than BdC guests-maybe) is so awesome.

We also did the animal sanctuary tour. Holding monkeys was a special treat.

You can't go wrong at Bosque del Cabo no matter what you end up doing!

shillmac

mmb23, your thoughts were ours exactly. We, too, decided to do the early hiking instead of breakfast first. Makes infinitely more sense. Especially, as you say, regarding animal sightings. The description of Phillip's Zapatero Trail hike as a "moving classroom" is perfect!

Suzie2

We almost always do the early morning bird walk with Eduardo so we start the other hikes a little later. The only day we might vary that is the Pacific Trail day. Not bad going down but coming up is a toughy. There used to be a girl named Karen that worked there and she was a heck of an athlete. She ran down and up that path-and would talk to you as she passed you. Gerly took her place when Karen left.

Only two lodges have access to that area except for the day trippers to the waterfall for rapelling. Joel at El Remanso next door to BdC runs the trip. Do have flip flops or sandals for walking on the beach, that sand is HOT!

The wonderful thing about the walk with Philip is that it a little different every time because you never know what snake or critter might happen by. That is one of my favorite hikes to do.

volcanogirl

Thank you everyone for your expert advice - your feedback is helping us so much. I was getting overwhelmed with all the options. Great tip about going early in the day as well. My husband has his heart set on seeing a toucan. We've been to Arenal and Manuel Antonio and haven't seen one yet. Hopefully this trip!

coolbluewater

I think all of us who have gone to BdC can pretty much guarantee you a toucan sighting! Sitting by the pool in the afternoon, we saw at least 12 "dive-bombing" from the trees into the palm near the pool.

:miles:: going back in November!!

volcanogirl

Wow, I can't wait to tell my husband about that!

And Leonardo told us we will be in a cabin named "Toucan" so hopefully that's a good sign!

Suzie2

If you are that excited about the Toucan I can't wait to read what you thought about the Scarlet Macaws! You are pretty much guaranteed a Toucan or 20 and at least 3 out of the 4 species of monkeys while just relaxing around the cabins. The 4th monkey is out there they are just a little shy. They do show up around the cabins but not as often. I once had spider monkeys going over my head while showering in the outdoor shower.

You have probably passed many toucans. Once you see one your eyes will recognize them and you will see lots more.

ShellD

We also liked to get an early start on the hiking. Well, early for us anyway It seems that you get up pretty early there. We'd get up, have breakfast and start out with a morning hike. We were only there for two full days though (we arrived mid day on Wednesday and left on a Saturday). And BDC was at the end of our 10 day trip, so we sort of were somewhat tired out by that point! We'd been on several hikes by the time we'd even gotten there!

But we did the Sunset Guided hike and found that to be really good. I wish it was longer than 45 minutes! I would have loved to have looked for night critters for much longer!! I really enjoyed the Pacific Trail for the reason that it lead to the Pacific ocean - not a bathing beach by any means, but it was really a cool beach to walk along. There are beautiful rock formations and tide pools. We saw some cool crabs and in general had a great morning. But I'll warn you that after walking more than an hour down the beach, the walk back up to the top of the "cliff" is brutal - especially if it gets hot! We also did the Zapatero trail, on our own though - we didn't choose to do it guided. We'd already done other guided hikes through the rainforest at previous destinations, and we kind of wanted to hike alone - but we saw so many monkeys as well as other wildlife on that trail! We went around 8 am. We did the Creek Trail and somehow met up with the Trogan Trail (I think) and that was nice as well.

We had every intention of going horseback riding because I'd heard such good things about it here! And I really wanted to do the Animal Sanctuary/Dolphin Boat Ride - the people at BDC we'd met while there who went raved about it - but to be honest, once we were there, just walking on the trails and then relaxing at the pool and on our overlook was more than enough for us.

As for the wildlife, we saw more from our cabina than on any of the trails. As the others have said, I have no doubt you'll see a Toucan - we didn't see a lot of them, but saw more than one - or at least the same one, more than one time! My favorite were the Scarlett Macaws. They are so beautiful and fly in pairs. And there's nothing quite like taking a shower with monkeys right above your head!!

So - I'd go with an idea of what you want to do - but in our case, once we got there, my plans totally changed. I was totally into relaxing and not doing much of all but soaking in the beautiful surroundings! It shocked me and my husband thought I was nuts - very unlike me to not have every minute of the day planned!

Have a great trip!

volcanogirl

Thanks everyone; I'm going to print out all the responses and bring it with us. My husband loved all the birds at Cano Negro, so it sounds like BdC will be even more amazing. We've seen the howlers and the capuchins, but not the other two, so we are definitely looking forwar to that as well.

I was curious about the trails. Are they clearly marked, or do they have maps available? Also, do they give you an idea of how long each trail takes?

volcanogirl

Oops, I mean forward, sorry... Can't type today.

shillmac

Volcanogirl,
In the cabinas you'll find extensive information regarding all the trails, including times. The longest is the Golfo Dulce which is about a 1.5 hour hike down to the Golfo beaches (depending on hiking speed and wildlife viewing stops). Most of us choose to arrange a pick up down there around 4:00 or 5:00 in the p.m., having left about 10:30 or 11:00 with a sack lunch (makes for a full day, but you want plenty of time to explore all 3 beaches). The other trails are all very moderate and manageable.

The Pacific Trail mentioned above (the one dependent on Pacific tide times) is a quick 25 min. down, but very steep, so a little more time back up. Yeah, I run that trail back up, too. Sure!

Your husband will have a field day with the toucans. They are so beautiful. You'll learn to recognize their sounds as well, sounds a bit like a creaky gate. Do set up an early morning birding walk with Eduardo. Although Bosque del Cabo is at the high end of the price scale, the guided tours there are a great deal, very inexpensive compared to what you'd have to pay elsewhere for the same level (or less) of expertise.

Suzie2

I like to have fun with this web site when I need my howler monkey fix but there are some great toucan calls as well as other things. http://www.junglewalk.com/sound/Toucans-sounds.htm

ShellD

Suzie2 - I love that web site! Thanks for the link! I kept telling my kids about the sounds of the Howler monkey's but it was so hard to convey how they actually sounded - now I can actually let them hear how they sound! Thank you so much!

volcanogirl

Thanks to everyone for all the information on the trails, and Suzie2, that is a great web site. I definitely get the "creaky gate" comparison now. BdC sounds like a magical place.

Roadrunner4

Volcanogirl - in addition to great suggestions you gotten to date..let me add we/ did the strangler fig climb w/ Rob at Matalpo (sp.? already can't remember) beach. It was absolutely incredible. I was scared to death of the descent...my children were in heaven. You hike for about 45 minutes to an hour in the rainforest while Rob shares his knowledge of the forest en route while making your way to the strangler fig tree. Once there, you make your way climbing up the limbs of the fig tree 100' +- to ring the "bell" and then you are "dropped." Of course, you're in a harness and there is some control of the speed of your descent, but not alot b.c you have to clear the limbs in order not to be injured. Very unique experience!! Bosque has their own fig for climbing on-site, but from what I understand the one off-site is considerably higher, and hence, more exhilarating or petrifying depending on your perspective! In addition to this, we too enjoyed the Pacific Crest trail as well as other, also fished, horseback rode w/ Miguel and went to the wildlife refuge. All of the above were absolutely incredible and all so different. Many folks had tried surfing, but it was too rough while we were there for that. You can't go wrong with whatever you choose!! Have a blast!

volcanogirl

I was expecting that some of the activities wouldn't get glowing reviews, but that doesn't seem to be the case at Bosque. I guess having so many options is a good problem to have! I am interested in hearing more about the animal sanctuary - what do you do there, and how far is it? For trips like that, is there a transportation fee added?

I'm getting really excited about the trails - got my wildlife identification cards in the mail today. Roadrunner, I had not heard of the strangler tree climb - sounds thrilling.

ShellD

volcanogirl - for the animal sanctuary tour - there is a transportation fee and a boat fee - but the more people that go, the less expensive it is. I believe the price is on their web site and when you get there you'll get a book in your cabina that outlines the prices of everything. So, of only two of you go you have to split the price of the transportation to Puerto Jiminez by the two of you. I can't remember what the cost of that is. And the boat is something like $120.00. The sanctuary is a donation of $20/person I believe (we didn't do that trip, so I'm trying to remember all this without having actually done it!) So, if you get 6 people to go, you take the total trip cost and divide it up by all of you. I think six is the maximum that can go on one day due to logistics. You still each pay the $20/per person donation though.

From what I gather, at the sanctuary they have rescued monkeys, sloths, birds and you learn about them and get to see and sometimes hold them. I heard a lot of great stories from the people who went. They said it was a great trip from the boat ride to the actual sanctuary - but that it was also a long day.... While I do wish we did it - I also can say I enjoyed my day hiking and relaxing at the pool I guess it depends on how much time you have there! There's a good description in their activities book of what it's like.

tully

To have a howler monkey named lulu hold out her hands to you asking to be picked up and held like a baby is mind blowing. I did the refuge when I was on the other side of the Golfo before I went to BdC so my rate was a lot cheaper ($35 total I think) but if you can get a few people to go it definitely helps with the cost. You may be able to throw in Casa Irquideas as well for not too much more.

You really can't go wrong with any of the activities at BdC, the tour with Phillip is incredibly fascinating, the sunset walk with Eduardo is really cool, all the trails are good ones and well maintained, the horseback riding tour with Miguel is a thrill, the Golfo Dulce trail is a great one with a nice reward at the bottom (the beach)..... It really is an endless list!