My waterfalls trip finally happened yesterday and here is the first of three we visited plus some other interesting sites that I will be sharing about in the coming days. Yesterday was a wonderful day in many ways and typical of my frequent adventures as a retiree in Costa Rica.
The Llanos de Cortés Waterfall (link to their commercial Facebook Page) which of course is Catarata Llanos de Cortés in Spanish! 🙂 And yes, it is spelled correctly for them and the adjacent community. The other spelling with a “z” instead of the “s” is simply a different family name. 🙂 I’m familiar with having a “different” family name. I’m Doggett not Daggett! 🙂
Tomorrow (Friday the 14th) is a one-day photo trip, my only planned trip for January, to get photos of two special waterfalls. The first is . . .
Flying over Llanos de Cortes Waterfall in 2019.
The Llanos de Cortes Waterfall I caught from a Sansa small plane flight between Liberia and San Jose Airports in 2019 and finally tomorrow I get to photograph it up close! Llanos de Cortes Waterfall is . . .
I think the 4 maintenance men for the Country Park Department are doing the new construction and that means it will be very slow with other duties. It seems like only another wall built in the last month.
Yesterday I completed the last of Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple series of mysteries and had earlier completed all of her Hercule Poirot mysteries. Plus, on my one trip to London I saw her only play, The Mousetrap, the longest running play anywhere in the world! It was great! Just like her books! 🙂
Of course there’s more photos and even more wildlife I haven’t shown like the White-nosed Coati and more butterflies, but I have them in the Christmas Trip 2021 Gallery, so check it out if you want more! 🙂
This was another favorite rainforest shot from Cristal Ballena that also includes the sea, so I just had to add it as my last post on that trip. As you can see, the rainforest not only surrounds the hotel, but flows all the way down to the ocean and the national park beach. It’s a beautiful place that I enjoy visiting and will probably go again someday. Now back to shots from my garden, the neighborhood and the little coffee farmers’ town of Atenas. For awhile anyway! 🙂 I’m trying to schedule a one-day waterfall trip and then in February I’m back to a tree house at Maquenque Lodge, Boca Tapada. 🙂
Rainforest & ocean view, Cristal Ballena Hotel, Uvita, Costa Rica.
“If man doesn’t learn to treat the oceans and the rainforest with respect, man will become extinct.”
I finally figured out how to get to historical statistics on my WordPress Blog/Website, wanting to see what kind of nature photos more people are interested in. Well, it was not my nature shots in 2021 but the posts labeled “Cancer Update” that all had over 200 readers or “hits” with none of my nature posts over 200 except the weird exception of an old one on a Truck Centipede. So THANK YOU for being interested in my health! It has been a long slow recovery still in process but I am so much closer to “normal” now and I was quite active on the last trip. I see my oncologist tomorrow and hopefully not many more times needed after that. 🙂
As of today, I have only five of my typical six-night trips planned, less than the every two months goal, but I expect to add some 1, 2 or 3 day trips in-between! In fact, in January there is a day-trip planned for north of where I live to photograph 2 more waterfalls! That will be the last two photos I need to complete my next photo book on the Waterfalls of Costa Rica which I’m titling “WATERFALLS: The Music of Costa Rica.” 🙂
This year’s schedule includes two totally new places along with three repeats of Favorites! Below each of the 3 favorites I’ve added links to my photos from previous trips there. I can’t imagine having a better retirement than I have in Costa Rica! 🙂 There’s always something to look forward to in nature! And a growing Photo Gallery that I’m proud of! 🙂
Captivo Lodge, one of my two new places this year. (Photos from Captivo Lodge)
And the “Feature Photo” at top of Post is also one from Captivo Lodge Website, the view from my room there – supposedly! 🙂
February in Maquenque Eco-Lodge Tree House
This is the lodge where I’ve photographed the largest number of bird species and where I get to sleep in a tree house near the birds and monkeys! 🙂 Photo at right is the “Tarzan” tree house room on my 2020 visit there. See the Lodge Website or my photos linked below from two previous incredible trips there:
April at Guayabo Lodge for Birds, Indigenous History & 2 Volcanoes
This is the first new location for me this year that will have a lot of good birding on campus and in a nearby private reserve, along with a visit to the Guayabo National Monument, an Indigenous Archaeological Site; plus Turrialba Volcano and Irazú Volcano, two of the biggest in Costa Rica that I have not seen yet. See the Lodge Website or specifics on these tours I plan to include from the hotel:
Guayabo, Ancient Indigenous City Historical Site. (Photo from National Monument Website)
July Birthday at Playa Cativo Lodge
This is the other new location for me on the other side of Piedras Blanca NP from an earlier favorite, Esquinas Rainforest Lodge, but this time on a beach on Golfo Dulce in an even wilder rainforest. See the Playa Cativo Lodge’s Website or YouTube has a lot of videos from there. The feature photo at top is the view I expect to have from my room and the dining room. 🙂
Playa Cativo Lodge, Golfo Dulce (Photo from hotel website)
September Back to Quiet Banana Azul in Caribe
Check out the hotel’s website or see my photo galleries from 4 previous relaxing visits there:
This is an all-around favorite for just about everything! They are 2nd only to Maquenque Lodge for the number of birds I photograph; one of best rooms & room visitas (I always get Room 29!) 🙂 ; excellent restaurant; fabulous forest trails; the tallest and best birding tower in Costa Rica; a beautiful waterfall; other wildlife besides birds; sitting at the base of the volcano; and close to multiple other great birding reserves and the biggest butterfly garden in the country! 🙂
Lake Arenal seen from the Lodge. Volcano is to the right. My 2020 photo. My Room 29 has views of both the lake & the volcano.
The Cristal Ballena Hotel is listed as one of Costa Rica’s “Birding Hot Spots” and my 20 bird species photos help to demonstrate that in the gallery below this Brown Booby photo.
Today I took the “Whale-watching Tour,” 4 hours on a boat in the Pacific Ocean with 4 other tourists, all from Germany, and we saw much more than a whale which we only saw during our last hour. Later I will post about the natural arches, birds on Whale Rock Island, snorkeling, and other things we did or saw – just the dolphins and the whale today with 3 photos of each. Note that whales come up for air only every 10 to 15 minutes and stay up for only 3 or 4 seconds and one doesn’t know where they will come up! 🙂 Almost impossible to photograph! 🙂 Below whale shots are me barely catching the tail as it goes back under water – same whale, 3 different times. Fortunately, Dolphins stay on the surface longer! 🙂
The eye patch is not required here! 🙂 It covers my non-blinking eye for comfort.
With the huge increase of Covid Omicron engulfing the U.S. and other parts of the world, you may wonder why I risk traveling here in Costa Rica? At least 7 reasons:
Covid is not increasing here but down to near nothing.
We have a VACCINATION MANDATE for all of Costa Rica (Biden tried, Republicans said no). I have a cool code on my phone showing proof of vaccination + a printed version & my vaccination card.
All our adults and teens are vaccinated now and the children in process and adults are in process for their 3rd or booster shot, with no one allowed in the country without proof of vaccination (2 shots minimum) or into some business here and in all after Jan. 8.
MASK MANDATE is still in effect for anywhere outside your home!
HAND WASHING is required to enter any business anywhere in Costa Rica.
1.8 METER DISTANCING (6 feet) is required anywhere outside your home!
Costa Ricans listen to science and do what our Health Ministry says to do with no stupid American Republican Party fighting it. What a great place to live! 🙂
