Next time, I recommend that you try something even more adventurous - walk across the bridge with your luggage over the Sixaola River from Costa Rica to Panama and take the boat from Finca 60 at Changiunola over to Bocas. The scenery through San San Pond Sak was some of the most gorgeous and pristine jungle I have ever seen.

I would like to be south on the Carribean side my fist time, especially after your desc of the wildlife. Thanks!

I met a dude in Boise who described staying NE and watching a lava flow in the distance from his hot-tub... Seems there is a lot to see...

Ry being nice, shocked me too!

laurie, honey, no competition here - you way beat me in adventure. i am the lazy-man's adventurer, for sure! BTW, the video above of the guys on the raft was on that road to Sixaola. the difference was, we turned around and you kept on going. i do admire you.

guy - understand that it was the HOUSE we stayed in - in the jungle canopy - that allowed the wildlife viewing from the balcony. just being clear to not give false info. our first trip we stayed just outside of puerto viejo. a gorgeous beach was right across the street, but save for a sloth that lived in a tree at the entrance, we had to go LOOKING for the wildlife. the grace was, you could just drive a few miles to see monkeys, if you knew where to look, or do a tour with a guide. sometimes howlers would be roadside mid day to nap. you have to look up all the time!

you are right, CR is diverse in eco zones - you have to research. the NW is an arid rainforest, N central is mts, agriculture & the volcano (laurie, you & gela saw that (La Fortuna), yes?), S central is remote, and Osa in the south is supposed to be wild jungle too.

anyway, it is SURELY not for everyone. for me, it was maybe the most incredible and educational trip of my life. we used field guides & at night he read naturalists' books to me. we learned as much as we could about how the earth works, from the largest creatures to most minute. about how life only exists properly when in balance. when things go out of that balance (clearing of habitat, chemical thinning of a species, change in food supply, addition of species to environ), there is a chain reaction of unbalance. we were fascinated. it makes you think a lot, and re-think a lot.

here's a sampling of the 1000 pics we took. i hope you enjoy them, and see what we saw:

the enchanted rain forest - bruce & jane's CR trip

most have captions explaining what, where or why. thanks.

Jane,

Had to stop prtway thru, but great so far! So... your house was IN the canopy?

Makes me want to go back!! Fabulous pics. I nicknamed Costa Rica "Jungle Book".

SJ, I was halfway kidding about my comment...it was actually very scary walking across that rickety old wooden bridge with luggage and traffic and a raging white water river below..but that is the way to get to Bocas.

perhaps, laurie, but you DID IT! still admire ya! it really IS like jungle book there - what a place.

yes, gridguy, we were IN the canopy. otherwise, you can see monkeys & an occasional sloth roadside, but you have to really look - all animals there pretty much ignore the humans.

so, have you all seen my pics yet??? CLICK HERE (jane & bruce's CR PICS)

Love the pics, Jane. Sounds like our kind of trip! We love to explore!

The experience over the bridge was incredible. I tried to warn LaurieMar (she's afraid of heights which I did not know at the time). I guess it was a good thing that Laurie didn't visualize our adventure beforehand.

SJ - as for "punctual bus", it was a good way to enjoy the scenery without having to drive the awful roads. Did that my first trip (Pacific side) and it was very nice to have someone else get us to our first destination. Loved your pictures, and it makes me want to go back too.