cmerrell

Hi everyone,

It took a bit of time and effort, but I've finally got my photos from my December 2007 Costa Rica trip organized. They can be viewed at:

http://cmerrell.smugmug.com/

My pics from the 2006 trip are also out there, if anyone wants to view them...

I have a very lengthy trip report floating around here on the forum (Back from trip #2 to CR), but figured I would post a brief 'Facts at a Glance' rundown here for those looking for info who don't necessarily want to read a novel to get it!

Our December 2007 itinerary was as follows:

Day 1: Arrive at SJO, pick up rental car and head to Orquideas Inn in Alajuela.

Day 2: Day trip through Grecia, Sarchi and Zarcero with side trip to Los Chorros Waterfall.

Day 3: Day trip to Poas Volcano and La Paz Waterfall Gardens.

Day 4: Return rental car and fly to Bosque del Cabo on the Osa Peninsula.

Day 5: Hike Bosque's trails and soak in the atmosphere.

Day 6: Day trip on the Golfo Dulce including Dolphin Watch, Rio Esquinas Mangrove tour, and visit to the Silvestre de Osa Animal Sanctuary.

Day 7: Hike to Golfo Dulce beaches and wander around the BdC grounds.

Day 8: Hike down to the Pacific Beaches and fly back to SJO in the afternoon.

Day 9: Visit to the Doka Coffee Plantation on the way to the airport for our flight home.

We enjoyed the Orquideas Inn; friendly, helpful staff, lovely grounds, good location for the day trips we had planned. The rooms were comfortable, clean and reasonably priced. The included breakfasts were terrific and we also enjoyed the handful of other meals we ate there. We would definitely recommend it to others.

We LOVED Bosque del Cabo! Believe the hype on this forum; it's all true!
The place is beautiful and tranquil, with a top notch staff, great food, and very comfortable accomodations. I loved every second I spent there. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to get away from it all and experience a more remote location with pristine nature.

We were quite happy with all of our excursions and day trips. Costa Rica is such a treat on so many different levels and really does offer such a variety of things to do and see.

I enlisted the assistance of Pat Hewitt who posts here from time to time to take care of some of our arrangements because I just didn't have much free time amidst my sometimes crazy work schedule. Pat did a terrific job and was very nice to work with. He can be reached at this site:

http://www.lovecostarica.com/

I'm happy to answer any questions anyone may have.

volcanogirl

Wonderful pictures cm; thanks so much for sharing them. They brought back a lot of great memories. You got great pictures of the macaws!

Keith

Thank you, cmerrell. You brought back lots of smiles, ad fond memories.

Keith

CathyF

Thanks so much for sharing your pictures!

MichelleY

Dear cmerrell:

I enjoyed your photos very much. Thank you for posting them. Your photos of the Peace Lodge from last year convinced me to stay there on our trip this past November.

Thank you for the inspiration.

MY

sumi

Great report and pictures! We're going to BdC in a few weeks and just found out that we'll be in the La Palma cabin -- it was really nice to see where we'll be staying. I've been on the fence about going to La Paz (thinking it might be a little too "popular" and contrived) but your pictures have convinced me to go -- it looks beautiful!

ShellD

Great pictures! You got some really good ones of the tucans and macaws! Those were the hardest ones for me to get! They bring back such great memories!

Thanks for sharing!

parrmt

Love the pictures, thanks so much for posting them, I have been watching for them. They are beautiful, you got some fantastic shots.

Do you recall the final cost of the trip to the Animal sanctuary? Ride into PJ and then the boat trip. We are finalizing our budget for May and trying to be prepared .Thanks!

kencolian

Wonderful photos thank you for taking the time to post them.

cmerrell

Thanks so much for the nice comments, everyone! I'm really glad you enjoyed the photos. I wish I had been able to get more wildlife shots, but these things are not always within our control. ;-)

Parrmt,

To answer your question about the Animal Sanctuary, my BdC receipt lists a total of 216$ for the 3 of us (including cab fare). Keep in mind that we did a combo tour that also included Dolphin watching and a trip up the Rio Esquinas. I know you can arrange a trip for just the Animal Sanctuary if you like. We also were joined by two other hotel guests which would have factored into the cab fare costs.

Your trip is coming soon, and sumi's even sooner. What a treat you both have in store!

Anybody else going in the next few months? I think Keith just went recently, as did MichelleY. I know ShellD has a bit of time left before her trip. What timeframe are you targeting, VG??

shillmac

Cam, it was worth the wait! Excellent photos. You've made me very "homesick" this evening. Thanks???

I'll check out some of your other albums later. Thanks so much for sharing them. Loved the butterflies!

cmerrell

Thanks for taking a gander at them, Jill.

hipvirgochick

cm -- Thanks for sharing the pics! You got some great and memorable ones. We're staying at Orchideas this time around too, looks great! Love all the wildlife pics especially. The one of Lulu is so sweet! I'm going to try to caption my photos this time! I'm getting excited. 46 days and counting!

tully

Ah, makes me homesick too! Cam I'm going back in May. Will definietly go to the refuge, really want to see Lulu again. Winky is all out of diapers now, funny seeing Winky & Lulu playing together, when I was there they just couldn't keep their hands off each other. Love the capuchin strolling down the pathway! Just spoke with Wady Tours today - ended up requesting Luis, of course, and decided on the Doka tour & Grecia. After 5 nights at BdC I decided I wanted something low-key and not sure my dad could handle all the La Paz stairs. Love all the pics!

volcanogirl

c, we're thinking of sometime in July - that's when we've gone the last two years. We're still narrowing down what we'd like to do; there are so many good spots, and I think we want to return to Arenal too - good problem to have though, right?!

parrmt

Thanks for the sanctuary price info. Again, loved all of the pics and your great report! Toni

Dana_M

Thanks cmerrell for posting the link to your photos. You got some great wildlife shots and also some beautiful shots of scenery.

I'm going to Costa Rica in July and am just starting to look into activities, so I particularly enjoyed the photos of the Cano Negro Tour and your 2006 photos of the Mangrove Tour at MA.

Dana

cmerrell

Thanks for the additional kind comments, Hip, tully, VG, Dana and parrmt. I'm excited (and envious) to hear about all the upcoming CR trips!

I know that I need to explore other destinations on my list (and there are a TON of places I want to see in the world), but there's just something special about Costa Rica...

volcanogirl

I hear you, c. My husband and I have been thinking Belize, Belize, Belize, but now all of a sudden we're back on CR - I cannot escape it, but I love it!

Suzie2

What wonderful pictures. It really helped me get over my winter blues. Hubby and I are splitting our time down there this year at least for now. He got to go first. This is the first time in years I haven't spent most of Jan and Feb down there. I get to go in 12 days and we will have two weeks together before he heads home and I get to stay. Seeing your pictures has made me even more excited to get down there. Not warmer mind you but at least I know I will be soon.