![]() ![]() We’re less than two minutes into our journey to Corcovado when “Eagle Eye” spots our first Costa Rican wildlife. The heat, humidity, and dazzling play of sunlight on the water of the Sierpe River combined to create a pleasant, fuzzy-brained feeling I can only compare to a fever dream. There, we rendezvoused with our new blogger friends Dan & Casey (of A Cruising Couple) our guide, Freddy and our boat captain, Roberto, who is better known as “Eagle Eye.”Īs we put our gear into waterproof bags for the 2-hour boat journey to the lodge, that familiar Costa Rica climate kicked in. If you’re not in a rush, the most exciting way to get to Corcovado National Park is to fly into the Palmar Sur airport and head to the town of Sierpe. READ MORE: The Best Coffee in the World (A Gourmet’s Guide) 10-Foot Crocodile on the Bank of the Sierpe River EXPLORING THE SIERPE RIVER Or maybe that’s just the strong Costa Rican coffee… Though I’ve been working like a dog and am going on less than 5 hours sleep, I find myself feeling renewed and refreshed. I see cotton-fluff clouds caressing a verdant hillside, the vibrant hues of water where the river meets the sea, the impeccable symmetry of an oceanside palm plantation. My breathing slows, my body relaxes, and I start to notice all the beautiful details. All thoughts of deadlines and other responsibilities begin to fade from my mind. We pass over remote mountain villages, winding rivers and, finally, the Pacific Ocean. It’s as if I were shedding filthy work clothes and taking a hot shower at the end of a long day. Both routes require travelers to take an inexpensive ferry from Puerto Jimenez to reach the park.Īs our Nature Air flight heads southeast of San Jose towards the tiny town of Palmar Sur (in the Osa region of Puntarenas), I can already feel the stress being shrugged from my shoulders. The Caldera Rd (Hwy 27) is more scenic, taking you along the Coastal Route (Hwy 34) to Palmar, where it meets the Pan American Highway. ![]() There are two main routes: The Pan American Highway heads east from San José, climbs over the Cerro de la Muerte mountains, then eventually gets you to Puerto Jimenez around 4 hours later. It’s also possible to drive to the park, but a sturdy 4WD vehicle is highly recommended. If money is no object, you can even charter a private flight that will take you directly to the Sirena Ranger Station, in the heart of the park. Numerous carriers offer flights for around $80-$100 each way. The easiest way to get to Corcovado is to fly out of the airport in San Jose. READ MORE: Ecotourism in Costa Rica: The Ultimate Eco Travel Guideīird’s-Eye View of the Seaside Near Palmar Sur, Costa Rica GETTING TO CORCOVADO NATIONAL PARK Perhaps this explains why places like Corcovado make me feel so at home, and at peace. I connect with the NATURAL me, perfectly in tune with myself and the world around me. It is in moments like these that I feel most like the man I was always meant to be. My spirit is filled with an almost childlike awe and wonder. It feels as if the Universe is taking the myriad pieces of the puzzle of my soul– which often feels discombobulated and disconnected by the daily complexities of “civilization”– and reassembling them into a perfectly congruous whole. It’s a mental, emotional, spiritual and physiological transformation. It’s a feeling I’ve gotten every single time we’ve explored the wealth of ecotourism activities and attractions in Costa Rica. There’s a change that washes over me every time we venture away from the city and into the remote wilderness of a place like Corcovado. READ MORE: The 15 Best Places to Stay in Costa Rica Chestnut Mandibled Toucan In short, it’s a veritable Garden of Eden for nature-lovers like us. The park provides a home for more than 500 tree species and a dizzying array of Costa Rican animals, including the endangered Baird’s Tapir, the rare Harpy Eagle, Jaguar, Puma, and four Monkey species. Corcovado offers an impressively diverse array of ecosystems, ranging from montane forest and cloud forest to prairie and mangrove swamp. It’s also one of the most pristine nature sanctuaries we’ve ever visited. Located on Costa Rica’s remote Osa Peninsula, Corcovado National Park has been referred to by National Geographic as “the most biologically intense place on Earth in terms of biodiversity.”Īt 164 square miles, it’s the largest national park in Costa Rica, the largest primary forest on the American Pacific coastline, and one of the few remaining large areas of lowland tropical rainforests in the world.
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