Cruising the River and climbing Cerro Tortuguero

 Sigh, my last full day in Tortuguero. I was sad on that day and I'm even sadder a week later. It was really an amazing stay, with amazing people, food and animals. On this day I was fortunate to be booked on a river cruise through the canal and a little part of the national park. Bernardo was our guide, and we started off really early, which was fine for me, but the kids in the other family were less than thrilled. I wish I could tell you everything we saw, but I can't. I can tell you we saw some of the most amazing birds, and occasionally I got a good photo. I noticed on this tour as well as on a couple of my other adventures in Montverde that the guides share information with each other, what bird they're seeing or where the monkeys are, or where the caiman might be lurking. I think that actually makes the experience better, because there were a couple of times where another guide pointed out something to our guide, and that way we didn't miss out on anything. 

Peekaboo

Basking in the sun

I wish we could have seen more monkeys. Sometimes you could see the activity (swinging in the trees, branches bouncing), but you couldn't actually see them. But, it was still pretty cool.

I'm actually pretty proud of this photo - look at the colors on that bill. Amazing.

I had some time on my last afternoon and I didn't want to waste any time with a nap (don't get me wrong, most times, naps are perfectly acceptable). Nobody else had signed up for the hike up Cerro Tortuguero, but because this was my last day, Miguel said he would take me. We took a boat to a jumping off point, and I mean that literally. Leaping from the prow of the boat to the sand hill was not my most graceful moment, but I made it. Then we began the walk and then the climb up the extinct volcano. It wasn't a walk for the weary, but I was fine; all those years of stairclimbing came rushing back. This was pretty much a "climb to the top, look around and come back down" trip, which was fine with me.

We made it to the top and it was really a beautiful view, looking out over the Caribbean Sea and the river. I was fascinated by these birds that kept circling, and I thought maybe they were some kind of hawk or something, but I was told they were actually vultures. It was a challenge getting photos, but I think I did manage a few. 

A little blurry, but you can see the red face.