Costa Rica

[jasmillo]

My wife and I recently got back from Costa Rica. My wife loves photographing/observing wildlife. It’s her main hobby and that’s the main reason we go. Our days are wake up before sunrise, get out to various National Parks and Reserves to hike and photograph, get back by sundown and do it all again the next day. It was a great trip. Tons of species spotted Including Two Fingered Sloths, Three Fingered Sloths, Capuchin Monkeys, Howler Monkeys, Squirrel Monkeys, Spider Monkeys, Agouti, Coati, Tapir, Anteaters, Tayra, Toucans, Toucanettes, Quetzals, Caiman, Crocodiles, various snakes and much, much more. Such a cool country. Some day I might even drag a fly rod along with me.

The wife has finally started to go through her photos. I had her send me a handful to share. Please don’t mind the odd cropping in a few. She adds watermarks because a few of her photos have been taken and used without her permission in the past. Not worried about that here so just took upon myself to not include her name. I got her permission though . I also loaded them not quite to at the size/quality level of the originals but you’ll get the jist.

Two Fingered Sloth


Three Fingered Sloth


Squirrel Monkey


Howler Moneys


Spider Monkeys


Tayra


Resplendent Quetzal


Yellow Throated Toucan


Northern Emerald Toucanet


Blue Chested Hummingbird


She still has….thousands of pics to go through. If she gets through them soon, I’ll post some more species.

 

[brownheron]

Great photos! Please do post.

Pura Vida!

 

[Brute]

You should bring your rod...I'd like to fish the fresh water with a fly rod...

 

[Canuck from Kansas]

Incredible shots - amazingly colorful birds, please do post more as they become available.

Cheers

 

[Kenneth Yong]

A mere "Like" is not sufficient. The photo of the Tayras is my favorite. So far.

Please convey my gratitude to your wife for allowing you to share her photos. Simply amazing.

Kenneth

 

[Long_Rod_Silvers]

Is the three fingered sloth smiling for the camera?!

 

[Cabezon]

Those are amazing pictures. I had to google what a tayra was... Costa Rica is on the list for a long visit to do exactly what you and your wife have done, but with a fly rod or two (and maybe a mask and snorkel...). Thank you for sharing.
Steve

 

[jasmillo]

A mere "Like" is not sufficient. The photo of the Tayras is my favorite. So far.

Please convey my gratitude to your wife for allowing you to share her photos. Simply amazing.

Kenneth

That was a cool sighting. We’ve never encountered those before.

It’s really interesting how much wildlife photography is like fishing. Skill is certainly important but a huge key to success is putting in the time and effort.

A good chunk of folks who visit Costa Rican NP’s and reserves use guides. We’ve done a few guided hikes over the years (in places where it’s required) and those guys definitely spot everything.They also share info so it’s pretty much a guarantee you’ll see a variety of stuff. That said, they are doing 2-3 hour hikes generally, sticking to where sightings have occurred and fairly close to trail heads so they turn groups around quickly. We’re not fans of that. A big part of the fun is finding the wildlife. We also like to explore at our own pace and if we find something cool, sometimes sit and photograph it for as long as we please without being pushed along.

In the case of the Tayra, those were spotted in a reserve up near Monte Verde. The guides working there were taking all their clients to an area where a bunch of Quetzels were being spotted (everyone who goes to Costa Rica wants to see a Quetzal). That left hundreds of acres and most trails empty. We headed out early, peeled away from the crowds/guides and headed out deeper in the reserve. We came across one other couple all morning and had some really run wildlife encounters. The Tayras were probably 150 feet up a tree. I only spotted them because they knocked some debris down which prompted me to explore a bit. We also came across a gang (not the technical term ) of Coatis roaming through the jungle. Probably 15-20 of them. That was super cool as well. We actually only snapped a couple crappy pics of them. Coatis are pretty common so we have a ton of pics from previous trips, plus they were moving fast through thick forest. Just a cool experience being there and watching them though.

Is the three fingered sloth smiling for the camera?!

Ha, those guys are so photogenic. This was a great sloth trip. I think we photographed 12 or 13 different individuals across 4 different NP’s and reserves. We’ve actually had a couple Costa Rican trips where we did not spot any. We also got some great shots on one of the properties we stayed at as well. Kind of a cool/unique property of 30-40 acres a good chunk of which is protected from development and connected to other protected areas. Due to that, they occasionally release/rewild rehabilitated sloths there. We spent a couple or early mornings walking the trails and roads of that property looking for wildlife as well.

 

[SurfnFish]

Great photos. Haven't been back since the early 90's. For wildlife, way fun waves and a low key hang away from the tourist path, hard to beat the Matapalo area. For surfers on the forum, ping me if you want details on the waves.

 

[Brute]

I once saw a Great Currasow, a female which reminded me of a pheasant, that walked up to us as we were camped near the summit of Mt Chirripo…I was enjoying a hot cup of coffee after getting drenched in the cold rain ; I tried to get my camera in the tent, but as soon as I moved she took off…

 

[brownheron]

We had a similar experience with Coati a few weeks back. We were sitting by the pool after dinner nursing drinks and looked up and there was one about 8' away sitting on a tree branch. Howlers outside my window at 5:30AM I can skip from here on out.

My daughter studied sustainable development at The School For Field Studies in Atenas where she participated in mist-netting and geospacial surveys of birds all over the country. She has some amazing bird (and bat) photos. We visited her then and have been going back to Guanacaste every year since, mostly for surfing but we do a little wandering too. Next year, we're thinking about focusing more on the southwest instead, maybe into Panama.

Thanks again for posting!

 

[jasmillo]

We had a similar experience with Coati a few weeks back. We were sitting by the pool after dinner nursing drinks and looked up and there was one about 8' away sitting on a tree branch. Howlers outside my window at 5:30AM I can skip from here on out.

My daughter studied sustainable development at The School For Field Studies in Atenas where she participated in mist-netting and geospacial surveys of birds all over the country. She has some amazing bird (and bat) photos. We visited her then and have been going back to Guanacaste every year since, mostly for surfing but we do a little wandering too. Next year, we're thinking about focusing more on the southwest instead, maybe into Panama.

Thanks again for posting!

Next year we’ll be spending the majority of the trip on the Osa Peninsula/Corcovado NP. We did a long day trip out of Sierpe this time around. It was amazing. We went to Panama 5-6 years back. It was great. Costa Rica has better wildlife/more protected areas to explore which is what always brings us back.

 

[DimeBrite]

Wow! Amazing wildlife in Costa Rica. Thanks for the write up!

 

[SurfnFish]

Next year we’ll be spending the majority of the trip on the Osa Peninsula/Corcovado NP. We did a long day trip out of Sierpe this time around. It was amazing. We went to Panama 5-6 years back. It was great. Costa Rica has better wildlife/more protected areas to explore which is what always brings us back.

this is a great hang. Used to be called Phil's Cabins. Phil is a New York surfer who transplanted to CR in the 80's, and did a phenom job of landscaping the property..some of the cabinas have a great view over looking Golfo Dulce and Panama.

Ecolodge Owners

Bosque del Cabo is a Costa Rica nature lodge owned and operated by Phil & Kim Spier. Through their efforts, they have provided visitors with one of the best rainforest experiences in the Osa Peninsula. They are dedicated to preserving the richly diverse nature found here in this part of Costa...

www.bosquedelcabo.com

 

[Merle]

Those photos are amazing. The 3-Toed Sloth looks super chill and the Tayra looks terrifying, like he's ready to pounce on you for invading his territory. Glad you had a long lens!

 

[Scott Salzer]

Thanks for sharing. Love Costa Rica and the wildlife is incredible. The fer-de-lance we found was a special treat - from a reasonable distance.....

The parks down there are amazing.

We usually spend at least a few days in Drake Bay and hit Corcovado.

 

[DimeBrite]

Bonus points for doing these trips as a couple. My lady does not enjoy warm humid climates or cold ones. Bugs deter her as well.

 

[jasmillo]

Bonus points for doing these trips as a couple. My lady does not enjoy warm humid climates or cold ones. Bugs deter her as well.

Ha, yes she’ll put up with a lot for wildlife viewing. Definitely hot, especially on the coast. Came back with lots of bites. Even pulled out a couple of ticks while down there.

Thanks for sharing. Love Costa Rica and the wildlife is incredible. The fer-de-lance we found was a special treat - from a reasonable distance.....

The parks down there are amazing.

We usually spend at least a few days in Drake Bay and hit Corcovado.

We saw a side striped viper this trip. That was pretty cool. This is a cell phone pic, taken through a spotting scope on the one guided hike we did up in Monteverde (night hike).

 

[Paige]

Costa Rica is a special place, Pura Vida it is! I only spent a week in the northern part(1 mile from Nicaragua) but was still blown away and cant wait till the next adventure there.

Amazing photography by your wife there jasmillo, keep it coming!