Casa Orquideas and Rincon River, Puntarenas
This morning we disembarked in Casa Orquideas with a warm welcome from the owners of the property, Ron and Truddy Macalister. These gardens, established 23 years ago, have an amazing collection of plants from all over the world.
Our naturalists walked with our guests through the different trails, pointing out plants and birds. One of the most exciting sights was a group of four mature king vultures, extremely rare in nature, even alone. Other interesting observations were the collection of palms and heliconias. Under the large leaves of sabal palms we found groups of tent-making bats, which finely cut part of the leaf to fold them down, making a sort of tent. We also saw the endemic cherrie’s tanagers and golden-napped woodpeckers. Later in the walk we found a short-tailed hawk and a couple of chestnut-mandibled toucans.
br>Once done in Casa Orquideas, we invited our guests to have a refreshing swim from the stern in the warm waters of the Golfo Dulce.
After lunch, naturalist Gustavo Abarca gave an excellent presentation on Costa Rican history. Guests were particularly interested in the economy and conservation policies of the country.
Later in the afternoon, just when the heat of the day was coming down, we organized kayak and Zodiac expeditions to the river Rincon. Just navigating at the mouth of the river we learned about mangrove ecosystems and had the chance to see whimbrels, a crab-eating raccoon, a two-toed sloth, spotted sandpipers, sandwich and royal terns, among many species..
The day ended with a great sunset and cocktail hours in the lounge of the Sea Voyager.
This morning we disembarked in Casa Orquideas with a warm welcome from the owners of the property, Ron and Truddy Macalister. These gardens, established 23 years ago, have an amazing collection of plants from all over the world.
Our naturalists walked with our guests through the different trails, pointing out plants and birds. One of the most exciting sights was a group of four mature king vultures, extremely rare in nature, even alone. Other interesting observations were the collection of palms and heliconias. Under the large leaves of sabal palms we found groups of tent-making bats, which finely cut part of the leaf to fold them down, making a sort of tent. We also saw the endemic cherrie’s tanagers and golden-napped woodpeckers. Later in the walk we found a short-tailed hawk and a couple of chestnut-mandibled toucans.
br>Once done in Casa Orquideas, we invited our guests to have a refreshing swim from the stern in the warm waters of the Golfo Dulce.
After lunch, naturalist Gustavo Abarca gave an excellent presentation on Costa Rican history. Guests were particularly interested in the economy and conservation policies of the country.
Later in the afternoon, just when the heat of the day was coming down, we organized kayak and Zodiac expeditions to the river Rincon. Just navigating at the mouth of the river we learned about mangrove ecosystems and had the chance to see whimbrels, a crab-eating raccoon, a two-toed sloth, spotted sandpipers, sandwich and royal terns, among many species..
The day ended with a great sunset and cocktail hours in the lounge of the Sea Voyager.
