Trails & Sidewalks at Xandari

If you count the unofficial paths and trails there are possibly 5 miles of walking/hiking ways within the Xandari property. And I think I have walked over every portion except a little section that dead ends along the river. Around the villas and through the gardens is paved while through the farm and to the waterfalls is dirt paths, sometimes muddy this time of year! I came back to my room with muddy shoes every day! Just a sampling of trails and I did not include some grass-covered paths. Trails are a great way to immerse yourself in nature!

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¡Pura Vida!

See my Trip Photo Gallery:  2018 Xandari Resort

Xandari costa rica   (their website)

Seeing Between the Leaves

Back in November 2016 I did a similar post on seldom seen spots of a garden and wrote: 

“In the forest or my garden, one must look through tiny windows to see behind the leaves.” Again I share what I see in my garden, plain & simple yet full of fantasy!

I’m always astonished by a forest. 
It makes me realise that the fantasy of nature 
is much larger than my own fantasy. 
I still have things to learn. 
~Gunter Grass

Tapanti Park & Scenery

Tapanti National Park
It is one of the larger parks including most of the Mountain of Death
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica

Rio Macho 
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica

A Bridge we crossed before entering the park 
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica

A Huge Exotic Forest of Color and Contrast 
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica

Great Forest for Birding 
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica

Ferns 
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica

Nest of the Red-faced Spinetail Bird (see bird in my birds post yesterday)
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica

One of several Trails We Hiked 
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica

Green! 
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica

Balance in Nature! 
Tapanti National Park, Costa Rica
Balance is not something you find, 
it’s something you create.
Jana Kingsford

¡Pura Vida!


This exact same set of photos in my TRIPS photo gallery:  Tapanti Park & Scenery

And related is the gallery Tapanti Birds in this same TRIPS gallery below
Or see all of my Orosi Trip photos in the TRIP Gallery: 2018-February 6-10–Orosi/Tapanti


                                                                             -o-


Sometimes I share an interesting English Language Newspaper article, but today they all look interesting!  🙂

Updates from

Costa Rica Star News

Costa Rica News

In the 02/12/2018 edition:


Eye-candy Leaves

At least for me!
A Cecropia or Guarumo leaf with its exquisite shape, color and lighting in this case. Captivating to me.
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Resort, San Ramon, Costa Rica

A dying banana or other tropical plant leaf
with its vibrancy of change in color, contrast and life/death
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Resort, San Ramon, Costa Rica
On the Sidewalk
Atenas, Costa Rica

Recycling older photos that may or may not have been used on this blog. For more see

the photo gallery  FLORA & FOREST  that has more than just leaves!  🙂

¡Pura Vida!

Forests . . . the revelation of their harmony.

Bribri Yorkin Reserve, Caribe, Costa Rica

The full quote:

Gustave Flaubert

“I tried to discover, in the rumor of forests and waves, words that other men could not hear, and I pricked up my ears to listen to the revelation of their harmony.”

Gustave Flaubert


Two summers ago on my first visit to the southern Caribbean in Costa Rica with the photo club, I got to spend three nights in the indigenous people Bribri Yorkin Community. I just now completed a Yorkin Trip gallery for that trip. Check it out! especially the forest! This is near where I’m going next week, even though I will not be roughing it this time while in a nice hotel on the beach! But when I saw this photo for the gallery, I couldn’t find that I had shared it before, so here it is! Soon I will have all of my Trip Galleries finished and will announce it here. But you can start looking now if you like with more than two years of trips in Costa Rica already completed. Most recent trips are at the top. 

See also my Flora & Forest gallery. 

Trees & Forests of Corcovado-Drake Bay

Just a tiny sample of the lush forests around Drake Bay & in the Park:

This massive root structure is on property of Hotel Aguila de Osa
Drake Bay, Costa Rica

 

Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

 

Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

 

Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

 

Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

 

Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

 

Hotel Aguila de Osa
Drake Bay, Costa Rica

 

Mangoes on the ground for animals to eat or to rot
Common all over Costa Rica this time of year – We can’t eat them all!
Here on public trail through Aguila de Osa Hotel, Drake Bay, Costa Rica
Mango Tree
Along public trail
Drake Bay, Costa Rica

 

Public Trail Near Hotel Aguila de Osa
Drake Bay, Costa Rica

 

Park Trail, near Pedrillo Ranger Station
Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

 

Bamboo at Aguila de Osa Lodge
Drake Bay, Costa Rica

See also my Photo Gallery called Flora & Forests

My TRIPS Photo Gallery on this Drake Bay Trip

About Corcovado National Park (Wikipedia)  and  About Drake Bay (Wikipedia)
 

Textures of the Rain Forest

While along the Yorkin River in a Bribri indigenous people village I captured several shots of the forest & its textures.
East of Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

 

All photos made by Charlie Doggett at the Casa de las Mujeres Yorkin

 

 

 

 
Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.
 
Frank Lloyd Wright

 

 

 

Gustave Flaubert

“I tried to discover, in the rumor of forests and waves, words that other men could not hear, and I pricked up my ears to listen to the revelation of their harmony.” 
― Gustave Flaubert, November

 

 

The Bribri on Yorkin River

A few shots of the Bribri indigenous people during our 4 days at Casa de las Mujeres Yorkin

Our guide’s son and his cousin sucking the “white stuff” off Cacao seeds as
we had done earlier. It is a sweet milky stuff surrounding the bitter seeds that
become chocolate later. Jungle kids don’t get candy or junk food, but pull neat
stuff to eat off trees all the time!

Later they were eating this red fruit that I don’t remember the name of.

We made two morning hikes (before and after breakfast) and one afternoon
hike always passing by different homes or farms on our way into the forest.
All homes are off the ground to avoid flooding and the constant mud in rainy
season and to keep out their own animals as well as wild animals.
No roads to the village but some ride horses around the community or to the
tiny town of Bambu (in Bribri language), called Bratsi by the government.  🙂
No cowboy boots, just mud boots like I wished for every day!
We traveled to and from the village in
dugout canoes with outboard motors which
is their bus and supply system, though there
is a walking trail from Bambu which is about
an 11 or 12 mile hike. Horses use it too!
Boat is the fast way at about 45-60 minutes.
The guy in front of boat used a long pole to
get the boat around rapids and sand bars.
Another guy works motor in back.

I’m still tired from the trip. My new maid comes on Tuesdays, so she helped with my laundry of muddy clothing today. If I ever go there again I will take knee high mud boots. That side of Costa Rica gets more rain year around with I guess muddy trails year around. The Bribri all wear rubber boots outside and go barefooted inside as we did. My hiking shoes were great except not high enough for stream wading and mud that comes up over the ankles. Yuk!

  1. The Bribri are an indigenous people of Costa Rica. They live in the Talamanca (canton) in Limón Province of Costa Rica. They speak the Bribri language and Spanish. There are varying estimates of the population of the tribe. (Wikipedia)
A great article about all 8 Indigenous People Groups in Costa Rica who, like most indigenous peoples everywhere are in danger of disappearing or losing their culture. The Bribri have done a better job than most here maintaining their language and culture. 
The main cash crop for the village we visited is cacao pods used to make chocolate. I will do a post on cacao later. They live off the land with no grocery stores, no refrigeration, no electricity, and we ate several vegetables and fruits I had never eaten before. They farm and have chickens for added protein along with fish of course. No beef or pork. They use powdered milk. This village was hurt when the price of cacao fell a few years ago. The women suggested tourism for cash flow and the men said it would never work and be a big intrusion. The men were later surprised at how well the women’s project has worked and a few men now help with it along with some teenagers. Read about what they do with tourists at this website of one tour operator featuring the name of the women’s project: Casa de Mujeres Yorkin 

The Yorkin River is the boundary line between Costa Rica and Panama and is in thick forest.

Well, I’m still sorting photos, so more later on this adventure including some birds!  

Carara National Park Plants

Pixie Cup Fungi, Carara National Park, Costa Rica
Ceiba Tree, Carra National Park, Costa Rica
Also called Kapok or Silk Cotton Tree
In all tropical forests I’ve seen, Africa, South America
The back side of the above Ceiba has a “cave”

 

Rain forests have an incredible variety of trees
and plants. My guide Victor leads the way down
and old road used as trail now.
One of the several varieties of Cecropia Trees,
similar to my Guarumo but not the same. Cousins!
This whole family of trees has multiple medicinal uses.
Rare plant that only grows in this particular
transitional forest and only in the shade.
Has medicinal uses.
And another fungus!   🙂

“The clearest way to the Universe is through a forest wilderness.”

— John Muir