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South Pacific – Corcovado
This is a land of mystery with sacred burial grounds, violent thunderstorms, and two of the most beautiful national parks in the country, Corcovado, and Isla del Coco, the latter being an island under the administrative control of the national park’s department 360 nautical miles off this tropical coast. The historical ties of past cultures stem from South America and have provided archeologists and collectors with some of the most beautiful and ornate gold ornaments and biscuit pottery found on the isthmus. Moisture and precipitation increase as the traveler heads south. After Quepos, the coast forms a peninsula which receives the influences of a wetter climate pattern during the rainy season from April to early December. Osa Peninsula gets its name from the ant bear or giant anteater which raises its body partially upright in an intimidating gesture when approached by a predator. Not unlike the ant bear the peninsula can be very intimidating to the inexperienced. It’s covered with a large coastal rain forest uncommon on the Pacific side of the isthmus which is protected by the boundaries of Corcovado National Park, the tropical jewel of this system. Attractions/Activities: the Natural Parks and the wonderful remaining pristine areas. Hiking, surfing, diving, snorkeling, and horseback riding.
Corcovado Park It is pristine except for a few areas of radical destruction caused by illegal gold miners on the south end of the park. Most of its rare and endangered species are cradled between this disturbed zone and the growing communities on the northern coastline. It protects over 300 species of birds, including the, the Great potoo and he largest numbers of Scarlet macaws, and nearly 140 species of mammals. Today the park is healing and visitors have the rare opportunity to see one of the last stands of pristine rain forest on the Pacific side of Central America. Nineteen feet of rain falls on Corcovado from mid April until Christmas keeping the 42,000 hectare park enveloped in a moisture bath. Deeper windless environmental niches are cloaked in epiphytic growth anchored into patches of lichen, moss and algae. Giant trees here often hold more leaf mass than they produce and are sometimes forced to stand with thousands of pounds of water collected in the staggering number of bromeliads.
La Amistad Park La Amistad’s nearly two hundred thousand hectares holds the richest tract of montane forests in the country and probably on the isthmus. Mt. Chirripo National Park on Amistad’s Northwestern corner of the tract has a large percentage of the three major mountain life zones; lower montane forest, montane rain forest and sub-alpine rain paramo. At the pinnacle of Mt. Chirripo observers can see both the Caribbean and the Pacific. On more nights than not, the peak freezes with the coldest recorded temperatures reaching minus 9C or 16F. Several of the lakes near the summit have been established as formations left by glaciers 30,000 years ago on this largest mountain range in Costa Rica, the Talamancas. This is one of the least known parklands because of its remote location and lack of access roads into its interior of dense, sloping montane forest. Higher elevation cloud forests are buffeted by high winds and driving rains creating logistical nightmares for those in search of experiences or scientific goals within the canopied forest! It has the only true paramo in the country and probably the largest concentration of the Resplendent Quetzals remaining in the wild, throughout its range.
Cano Island Less than twenty kilometers from the northwest corner of the Osa lies a tiny island called Caño, an archeological site among blue waters, rocky reefs and a contrasting climate pattern that shakes the vicinity during fast moving thunderstorms. More than any other points in the region, lightening strikes the island hard, often visible from the mainland. Indigenous cultures worshipped the ground because of the frequent strikes, and it became a sacred place to bury leaders and shaman. Snorkelers can see brilliant tropical fish and moray eels among the coral beds. Offshore waters teem with common and bottle-nosed dolphins, and sperm, pilot, and humpback whales, which migrate down from Alaska.
Wilson Botanical Gardens The Wilson Botanical Gardens, 6 km south of San Vito, is much more than its name suggests and well worth the drive south in itself! Foremost are the 10 hectares of cultivated gardens established in 1963 by Robert and Catherine Wilson, former owners of Fantastic Gardens in Miami. Approximately 10 km of trails meander through the Fern Grove, Orchid Grotto, the largest palm collection in the world, agave and lily beds, and heliconia groves containing over 1,000 genera in 212 plant families. Las Cruces acts as a center for research, scientific training, and public education.
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