16th December 2013
Today we took ourselves for another wander around the jungle trails of La Selva, with very modest success; a squirrel and some more howler monkeys. I get the feeling wildlife doesn’t like rain much either. So in the afternoon we decided on some reconnaissance and jumped in the 4WD to find Heliconia Island.
This is a lovely looking place, four nice bungalows in verdant gardens full of heliconias with the river flowing past. We immediately wanted to stay, which shows just what hardcore jungle adventurers we are! Sadly our itinerary was all booked. So we sat and had a drink on the veranda while the rain poured down. Then a rustling in the nearest tree turned into a two-toed sloth with a baby, so of course we sprang out into the rain to get a better view. Sloths are very tricky creatures to classify. Are they cute, or are they ugly? Is it possible to be both?
There were plenty of hummingbirds in the garden and the Dutch owner reckons they see otters in the river several times a week – if we ever return to Costa Rica…
But tonight we were back in our simple cabin in La Selva, a humid twenty minute walk from the rest of the research station, including the dining hall where we enjoyed another variation of rice and beans with stuff. In a brief gap in the torrential downpours we wandered around the grounds spotlighting and were lucky enough to spot a woolly opossum, though he scampered around too fast to be photo’d.
Now it’s late and the torrential rain is rattling on the cabin roof. The effect is, oddly, soporif…
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