Our penultimate port stop was in Costa Rica. I have to admit, this small country was not
anywhere to be found on our must visit list.
It is known for two things bananas
and lush rainforests. We opted to take the aerial tram tour of the rainforest
and did get to see many of the banana farms as we drove into the countryside.
Before we started the aerial tour, we took a short
walk with our guide through the floor of the rainforest to get some experience
from the ground level. We learned about
how the rainforests grow and the many types of plants and animals that live in
this environment. Right away we had an
exposure to the wild hogs that roam the forest.
The group ahead of us had a few of these pigs run through their tour. This surprisingly had large impact on our
young guide, who was clearly concerned about their aggressive behavior and
began to explain how we might protect ourselves if they returned. I quickly shifted my camera to the sports mode
in hopes of getting some good pictures of the pigs. I suppose, luckily, they did not turn in our
direction and we continued the tour with only be able to smell some of the
stink we were told was common with these animals. One of the many interesting
things that was pointed out was the way the plants in a rain forest have their
roots at the surface to take the best advantage of the water and nutrients. I
would never want to take an extended hike in the dense forest after hearing the
explanation concerning the large number of snake species that inhabit the area,
many of them poisonous. Sure enough, we came upon a reportedly very poisonous small
one laying quietly on a leaf on top of the trail.
The aerial tram tour lifts you from the floor and
travels through the layers of the forest up to the top. Our guide did a great job of explaining how
the forest changes and adapts to survive.
It provided some great overviews of many square miles of the forest. This is definitely a must see experience.
12 comments:
What an adventure. Thanks for the rain forest tour.
thanks for the 'great tram ride' through the rain forest!!
It sounds like a very fascinating tour. Feral hogs might make me a bit nervous, qnald although I've never seen them they have a nasty reputation.
What an amazing tour. I would love to see the rainforest. Thanks for all the super beautiful photos.
Costa Rica is a place I have always wanted to visit. It was my father's favorite place on earth. Taking an aerial tram through the rainforest with a guide seems like a great way to get a feeling for this beautiful ecosystem.
Very interesting ... haven't done these aerial tram tours of the rainforest. In Costa Rica we opted for a wildlife cruise on the Tortuguero Canal with a visit to a national park. But what Mui remembers most is the grilled red snapper he had for lunch at a beachside restaurant.
This looks like something I would so enjoy!!! Thank you so much for sharing this fantastic tour!
We really liked Costa Rica. We loved visiting the rain forest and all coffee plantations. Maybe one of these days we'll make it back again and try out the tram. Who knows ??
The tram seems the best way to see the rain forest, hopefully no snakes or wild pigs.
What a great idea, an aerial tram. No better way to see a birds eye view unless you like climbing trees! ;c)
Absolutely beautiful! You can keep the poisonous snakes and stinky pigs though. I'd love to see it!
Candy
Someday I'll visit there to see the wild parrots!
Post a Comment