Most Inspirational Moment
Difficult to say as there were many wonderful moments. Two would be seeing two jaguars swimming the river on our way to Tortuguero on our first day and finding the elusive Quetzal at Savegre and spending nearly an hour watching a male and female in a tree. Dont expect to see jaguars but Quetzals seemed to be seen by most at Savegre at this time of the year.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Rafael was simply superb. If Exodus use a better guide I would be surprised. He had great sense of humour, an outstanding knowledge of almost any subject and gave us a grest deal of information about the country and the wildlife we saw. He was determined to ensure that we enjoyed every minute of our stay. I must add that he was assisted by an excellent driver Francisco who also worked very hard to ensure everything went well. They were a great team and a pleasure to be with.
Advice for Potential Travellers
If you love wildlife then go. You will see wonderful birds and also a variety of animals although almost certainly not jaguars. Be prepared for rain although we had none except at night in the two weeks. You will need to change your sleeping patterns as you will have very early starts on most days. You need to pack for extremes of temperature. We went to Nicuesa lodge rather than Esquinas and it was very hot and very humid. From there we went to Savegre where it was cold enough at night to need a fire in the rooms so dont expect tropical temperatures all the time.It is a trip with a lot of driving but our guide always ensured that we had stops along the way to break it up but you have to accept that you are covering a lot of ground in a small country and the roads are not always too good. The trip is well organised to see the various areas and differing habitats.