Secluded Caribbean Beaches of Costa Rica and Panama
Bocas del Toro, Panama, February
18, 2003
 Costa
Rica is a beautiful and diverse country. Lush greenery,
rolling vistas and friendly people everywhere. It has
long been a winter-get-away destination for many people
of northern climates. Most people spend their time in
the central, mountainous forest reserves or at the beach.
The Pacific coast of Costa Rica has the highest concentration
of beach resorts in all of Central America maybe even
North America. It is easy to understand why, the weather
is perfect and the cost is relatively inexpensive. People
love it here and Costa Rica has prospered because of
it.
The less frequented Caribbean side is better known
for bananas and pirates. The climate is not as dry as
the Pacific side with rain showers 2 and 3 times a week.
For these reasons the Caribbean side has lagged behind
in resort development which could be a good thing depending
on your point of view. To get a better idea of Caribbean
life, I traveled to the southern region of the Caribbean
side and a small place called Puerto
Viejo.
With my recently acquired tent (got it from a Canadian
surfer going home), I pitched my home in Miss Iris'
campground
by the beach. Her family has lived here for most
of her life and she is in her eighties. Like San Juan
del Sur, it is a simple setup with an open fire for
cooking, showers and an outhouse.
The tents and hammocks are clustered under open frame
tin roofs that line the fence around the yard. At first
I thought these roofs were for rain cover only which
is definitely needed in these parts. Then a bowling
ball-sized melon hit one of the roofs with a huge thud
and I understood the other purpose of the structures.
 Alberto,
an older local who lives and works in the campground
would take a long pole each morning and knock down a
few more of these kamakazee melons. Alberto is quite
the character. For basic room and board he keeps the
campground clean and tends the cooking fire in the outdoor
kitchen. He knows a lot about the area and is well traveled.
Turns out he is also an excellent drummer. One night
a backpacker from Brazil makes a "birimbow" which is
a traditional Brazilian one-stringed instrument fashioned
like a bow and played with a stone. Albert picks up
a 20 litre water jug (that has incredible tones by the
way) and they start jamming. That was a great concert
and an excellent night overall with good food and conversation.
Puerto Viejo is also a magnet for surfers with some
serious
surf that breaks on shallow offshore reefs. I thought
San Juan was great and it was but Puerto Viejo really
tests your skills on all levels. The reefs are shallow
and create some unusual cross currents. More than one
board gets trashed most days. Mark, a longtime surfer
from Washington has been here for about a week. He knows
the waves and the weather. He, like everybody else,
rises early and watches the surf to determine the kind
of day and size of waves. This is an art and he is good
at it. He predicts killer waves for the afternoon around
2:30 and he is right. These waves are big and nasty
and everybody is on the ocean that afternoon.
The next day I rent a bike and ride south along
the winding coastal road towards Punta Uva. I rode with
no destination in mind just enjoying the scenery and
the moment. I was thinking about this when I saw a sign
by the side of the road. "The wise traveler has no
fixed plan and is not intent on arrival." O.K. now this
is getting spooooky. Synchronicity is one thing but
physical signs by the road?
 The
road is lightly shaded by trees and rolls past miles
of white sand beaches lined with swaying palms over
warm, turquoise waters. This is also one of the few
mangrove
swamplands in Costa Rica with a great diversity of wildlife
that includes turtles, frogs, birds and lizards that
run on water and the ever-present howler monkey. The
first time you hear one of these monkeys is a bit unnerving.
It sounds like a cross between a lion and a wild boar.
The road pulls away from the coast as we gradually enter the mangrove region. I turn off at an interesting point and discover some of the hidden winding waterways through the mangroves. All the giant turtles jump of their sun perches and the lizards run away ... across the water. Now that is a good trick. So I sit down and wait. The turtles start to return and so do the lizards. One lizard pops his head up on a branch about 3 feet away from me. I do not move and he continues looking for bugs.
Back on the main road I find another trail going down to the beach. God I love
beach bikes with balloon tires, they can go anywhere.
The trail breaks on to a breathtaking white sand beach
that is for the most part deserted. I ride the bike
down the beach until I find a spot where people are
swimming. The water is simply the best. After an hour
or so I make my way back to Puerto Viejo.
The weather turns bad for the next few days with rain at night and clouds in the day. I think about leaving but I am not sure where to. I could go to Punta Uva and camp there or further south past Manzinillo to an organic farm that I have heard about but the weather is bad and the bugs will be getting worst down in the mangroves.
 The
next morning I make up my mind; I am going to Panama.
The border is only an hour away and the crossing should
be easy. My potential destination, barring synchronistic
detours is Bocas
del Toro a small group of islands just past the
border about an hour. I cross the border in about 15
minutes which is a treat considering the last crossing
of nearly 3 hours. Bocas town is spread out over one
corner of the main island. There is not much to do in
town. There are a few good restaurants and lots of tour
companies now becoming established. A long winding road
connects it to the rest of the island and the beaches.
Bocas is peculiar in that way, it seems to becoming
a beach resort but all the beaches are really far away.
Great business for the taxis and bike rentals. Most
of the islands are sparsely populated with local natives
but speculation is big here and many islands are becoming
private resorts and lodgings for foreigners now.
On the first day I rented a bike (maybe next trip should
be a bike trip) and headed for "The
Bat Cave". This road was quite hilly and a lot of
fun to ride. It reminded me of cross country skiing
and the great trails in Little Red River Park in Northern
Saskatchewan. The scenery is good but I am riding fast
and enjoying the ups and downs, especially the downhills
with curves. After an hour I arrive at the site. This
is actually a religious shrine that people visit annually.
The cave is at the end of a short path that passes local
farms. The cave entrance is beautifully maintained,
enshrouded in vines and colorful ground cover. The walk
through the cave is another story. It is dark, hot and
the floor is covered in guano. Fortunately it is a short
hike through the hill to an exit on the other side.
Oh yeah and there are bats everywhere.
 For
my last day in Bocas I splurged and went on a full day
sailing tour of the islands on a 40 foot Catamaran.
It was great, Marcel the captain has crossed the Atlantic
3 times and knows the whole Caribbean quite well. The
day turned out to be nice and sunny with a cool breeze
in the morning. First we stopped to watch some bottlenose
dolphins in one of the bays. This type of dolphin
is rather shy and do not particularly enjoy human company,
so it is hard to get close. Next we sailed to a small
reef off another tiny island. A bit of snorkeling and
swimming and then time for lunch. The snorkeling was
o.k. but nothing fantastic. A large percentage of Bocas
del Toro
Islands are mangrove swamp. The continued erosion and
soil from the countless waterways makes the visibility
just a little murky. That was o.k., the water was warm
and it was fun diving to the bottom looking for fish.
The second spot we snorkeled was further offshore and
it was great. Incredible coral, colorful fish, star
fish, urchins and jellyfish everywhere.
So ended my time in Bocas and the Caribbean. My next
destination is Panama city. The home of the Panama canal
and the Panama Pinturo (the real Panama hat).
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Rica: Mountain high, Valley Deep
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