Murcielagos Islands and Bahia Huevos, Costa Rica
The Bat Islands or Islas Murcielagos are a remote area within the Guanacaste Conservation Area in the northernmost part of Costa Rica, to which maybe 0.005% of the country’s population has ever been. Accessible only by boat, these islands were once part of the Murcielagos Ranch owned by the Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza. We disembarked onto the bi-colored beach with a cloud-covered sky above us. As a matter of fact, we welcomed the clouds. One of the first groups to depart from the landing area were the hikers and we headed towards the park ranger’s station where the trail began on an almost 90 degree angle. We had a fantastically cool climb because of the weather conditions. Once up on the hill’s ridge, the view was breathtaking. Great contrasting features were on the menu, like giant cactus against a deep green grass with the blue ocean and the white foam of the waves crashing against the rocks behind them. A second group decided to stay near the station we posted on the beach and took part in several activities: swimming, snorkeling, beach bumming, boogie boarding, walking on the beach and the treat of the day: flying kites.
At around noon we were called back on the boat for a great lunch of hamburgers, ribs, and corn on the cob; all accompanied by the best mudslide cookies and the best vanilla ice cream ever. Back to action in the afternoon, beach activities took place for a while, but the afternoon’s most popular endeavor was taking Zodiac cruises into a mangrove forest. Like stories of spooky forests and ghost trees our trustworthy drivers took us through the intricate root systems of stilt-rooted mangrove trees and mirror-like waters into a world not known to most of us.
Back on board we took showers and partook of the cocktail hour before going to bed to wait for our next country’s adventure: Nicaragua.
The Bat Islands or Islas Murcielagos are a remote area within the Guanacaste Conservation Area in the northernmost part of Costa Rica, to which maybe 0.005% of the country’s population has ever been. Accessible only by boat, these islands were once part of the Murcielagos Ranch owned by the Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza. We disembarked onto the bi-colored beach with a cloud-covered sky above us. As a matter of fact, we welcomed the clouds. One of the first groups to depart from the landing area were the hikers and we headed towards the park ranger’s station where the trail began on an almost 90 degree angle. We had a fantastically cool climb because of the weather conditions. Once up on the hill’s ridge, the view was breathtaking. Great contrasting features were on the menu, like giant cactus against a deep green grass with the blue ocean and the white foam of the waves crashing against the rocks behind them. A second group decided to stay near the station we posted on the beach and took part in several activities: swimming, snorkeling, beach bumming, boogie boarding, walking on the beach and the treat of the day: flying kites.
At around noon we were called back on the boat for a great lunch of hamburgers, ribs, and corn on the cob; all accompanied by the best mudslide cookies and the best vanilla ice cream ever. Back to action in the afternoon, beach activities took place for a while, but the afternoon’s most popular endeavor was taking Zodiac cruises into a mangrove forest. Like stories of spooky forests and ghost trees our trustworthy drivers took us through the intricate root systems of stilt-rooted mangrove trees and mirror-like waters into a world not known to most of us.
Back on board we took showers and partook of the cocktail hour before going to bed to wait for our next country’s adventure: Nicaragua.
