Getting from place to place was thrilling on its own. The following are some of the modes of transportation that we encountered.
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| Bus |
Upon landing at the airport in San Jose, Costa Rica, all 20 of us squeezed into a van. We anticipated a 2-hour ride to the El Zota Biological Field Station, starting off at 5:00pm. However, less than one hour into the trip, we encountered a massive traffic jam. A mudslide had wiped out a bridge on the highway. Our only alternative was six and a half more hours of driving all the way around the mountain to reach our destination (well after midnight). The van carrying our luggage did not meet up with us until 1:30am.
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| Hiking |
At the field station for the next 7 days, our main method of moving from place to place was by foot. Through the mud and humidity we marched on and on.
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| More Hiking |
Sometimes we walked by day.
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| Night Hiking |
At other times we walked by night.
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| Wagon |
On occasion, a tractor gave us a wagon ride to reach distant trails. Even then, the wagon became mired in mud and we walked the remainder of the way.
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| Horseback |
Local residents had the option of riding horses. We observed two neighbor children, a boy of 11 years and a girl about 9 years, riding their horse to the village and returning with bags of groceries.
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| Motorcycle |
Local residents also used motor bikes. One morning we saw those same two children (dressed in crisp, clean outfits) getting a ride to school, one at a time, on the back of their shirtless father's motorcycle.
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| Running |
Speaking of local residents, when they challenged us to a "football" match we found out that they had incredible soccer skills, even though some of them played barefoot, and some wore only stockings on their feet, and others skillfully played the ball around us while wearing their calf-high rubber mud boots!
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| Boat |
When it was time to leave the El Zota region for Tortuguera, the mode of transportation became riverboat. Along the way our sightings included crocodiles, basilisks, and many species of amazing birds.
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| Canoe |
Some of us toured the canal by canoe, and we enjoyed the serenity of an early-morning close encounter with nature.
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| Zip Line |
Back on land, we toured the forest canopy by way of ladders, cables and suspended bridges.
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| Mountain Hiking |
We also hiked up an extinct volcanic mountain.
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| Resting |
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| Airplane |
When it was time to return to Omaha, we were delayed on the runway in Houston by Hurricane Alex. Once we were airborne, our final flight carried us home after 10 days of amazing travel experiences.
