Cindy Southgate's Travels

February 16

I was a bit sad to be leaving Corcovado, but also excited for today’s hike. Very few people hike all the way into the park but most of them use the forest / beach route. Even less people use the trail through the forest. It is not a well worn trail and is much more technical and demanding with a lot of climbing. When I reserved our guide, they asked a lot of questions about our age and fitness to make sure we were up to the task. They were happy to hear that I am a long distance runner and also do strength training.

I did not have a good night’s sleep. I heard some kind of wild cat and some other unidentified animals. We got up at 4 am and packed our food and filled our water containers. I had a 2 litre hydration bag in my backpack and one hand held bottle. We crossed paths with this Caiman early on in the hike.

Today was not about wildlife sightings, but more about enjoying the hike. We did end up seeing a few interesting things, like this little Tent – making Bat curled up in a leaf. The guides are all very well trained so they know where to find things that tourists wouldn’t find on their own.

The kitchen staff prepared a bagged breakfast and lunch for us. The servings were very big so I ended up with way too much food, plus it was very heavy. Mike offered to carry one of my bags. The breakfast contained plantain, eggs, beans, rice and apple juice. We stopped briefly to eat at 7:30, but I wasn’t very hungry and only had the two pieces of plantain. ( similar to a banana )

The forest was beautiful – so many trees covered in epiphytes and vines. Our guide spotted these Puma tracks.

There are five types of big cats in Corcovado and they are all endangered – Jaguar, Puma, Ocelot, Margay and Jaguarundi. Unfortunately we did not see any as they are very good at hiding and are often sleeping in the trees during the day.

The first 10 kilometres were fairly flat and Josue had us walking at a very fast pace. We ended up catching up to the other people that were hiking out that day but had started 20 minutes before us.

It was very hot and humid and I was glad we had decided to wear shorts. It was recommended that we wear long hiking pants in case of ticks, but we had worn them on a night tour once and found that they stuck to our legs, even though they were made of thin technical fabric. Instead, we put some insect repellent on our legs.

We crossed several small rivers but none of them were deep enough to cool off in. Mike spotted an otter here but I missed it.

Some of the crossings were a bit tricky – we needed a hand to cross this tiny and slippery branch. I ended up getting one of my shoes wet and stopped to change into a dry pair of socks. Even so, I ended up with some blisters.

One of the rivers had a big tree lying across it, but it was covered in slippery moss and epiphytes. We crossed it carefully, trying not to damage the plant life growing on it, while also not falling into the river.

This is a plant you don’t want to touch. If you look closely, there are fire ants on the branches. The queen lives in the dark horn, which is very sharp. The plant and ants have a symbiotic relationship – if you touch the leaves the ants will attack, therefore protecting the plant. The ants also cut down any plants that start to grow nearby and might steal nutrients from their plant. In return, the plant provides a safe home for the queen.

As we progressed, the trail got tougher. In some spots it was challenging to find a safe way up over the very steep and muddy sections, while also not touching plants that might be hiding fire ants or worse. We also had to watch for hidden roots hiding under the leaves. It was a bit easier for Mike and I because for most of the hike, Josue led the way. If there were any snakes or tripping hazards, he would find them first. We only saw one snake – a Tiger Rat Snake, and it was off the path on part of a fallen tree. It moved away very quickly. There was a Tail-less Whip Scorpion hiding here as well.

The last 2 km were pretty tough. Not only was the trail itself very technical but we were tired and hot. At 21 km we felt like we were in the middle of nowhere, and seconds later we discovered that we were at the end of the trail. It ended in a large rocky area that I assume is underwater in the rainy season.

We arrived here about 15 minutes before the driver was due to pick us up to take us back to our lodging in Puerto Jimenez. I had worn a bikini under my clothes so I was able to strip down and sit in the river to cool down. It was very refreshing! I felt very proud of myself for completing this difficult hike and getting out of my comfort zone by sleeping in the Ranger’s Station for two nights.

All our gear bags were piled onto the roof of the van and our dirty shoes were put in the back. It was a crazy drive back to the road – we drove back and forth over the river shown above. It was extremely bumpy and almost felt like the van was going to tip over. At one point we had a delay because they were closing a section of the road for a group of wild animals that were headed our way and would be crossing the road. Neither of us remember what kind of animals they were so we must have been very tired. They didn’t show up, so they let us continue. Shortly after being dropped off at Cabinas Jimenez, Mike realized he had forgotten his shoes in the van. Later on they returned them to us. Another example of how kind and helpful the tour guides are in Costa Rica.

We were supposed to have the same cabin when we returned from the hike. Cabinas Jimenez stored our luggage for free while we were on our hike. When we were checking back in the staff at the front desk led us to a different cabin that was separate from the area we had been in before. I’m guessing the owner found out about the problems we had had with the smokers and other staff, and moved us into a nicer cabin. This one was much better and had a second bedroom. ( I had communicated with him before our trip to confirm that he followed the no smoking law, and he had said that he did. ) This cabin had a locked gate for extra security. It was not listed online as an option to book. The nightly rate here was very reasonable so I had booked what I thought was the nicest / most expensive cabin. We were quite tired after our 3 day adventure, so we just hung out on the patio and read.

We once again had dinner at the usual place. We had a nice chat with a couple from Pennsylvania and then sat down for a very good dinner. Mike had ribs and I had a burger with lots of cheese and back bacon. We were so tired we went to bed early.