Parque
Nacional Tortuguero extends north along the coast for
22 km from Jaloba, six km north of Parismina, to Tortuguero
village. The 19,000-hectare park is a mosaic of deltas
on an alluvial plain nestled between the Caribbean coast
on the east and the low-lying volcanic hills of Coronel,
Caño Moreno, and 300-meter-high Las Lomas de
Sierpe--the Sierpe Peaks--on the west. The park protects
the nesting beach of the green turtle, the offshore
waters to a distance of 30 km, and the wetland forests
extending inland for about 15 kilometers.
The
park--one of the most varied within the park system--has
11 ecological habitats, from high rainforest to herbaceous
marsh communities. Fronting the sea is the seemingly
endless expanse of beach. Behind that is a narrow
lagoon, connected to the sea at one end and fed by
a river at the other, which parallels the beach for
its full 35-km length. Back of the lagoon is a coastal
rainforest threaded by an infinite maze of serpentine
channels and streams fed by rivers flowing from the
central mountain ranges and by the torrential rains
that fall in the area. On the periphery of the forest
lies a complex of swamps.
Tortuguero shelters a fabulous array of wildlife,
including more than 300 bird species, among them the
great green macaw; 57 species of amphibians and 111
of reptiles, including three species of marine turtles;
60 mammal species, including 13 of Costa Rica's 16
endangered species, including jaguars, tapirs, ocelots,
cougars, river otters, and manatees. Commonly seen
birds include toucans, aricaris, oropendolas, swallow-tailed
hawks, several species of herons, kingfishers, anhingas,
parrots, and jacanas. The wide-open canals make viewing
easier than at many other parks--superb for spotting
crocodiles, giant iguanas, and basilisk lizards basking
atop the branches, swallow-tailed hawks and vultures
swooping over the treetops, and caimans luxuriating
on the fallen raffia palm branches at the side of
the river. One of my favorite pastimes is to watch
bulldog bats skimming through the mist that rises
from the water and scooping up a fish right on cue.
Amazing! That hair-raising roar? A male howler monkey
that has misjudged a leap and hit a tree with legs
spread apart (this, at any rate, was the explanation
given by one irrepressible guide).
The
western half of the park is under great stress from
logging and hunting, which have increased in recent
years as roads are cut into the core of the rainforest
from the west, north, and south. The local community
and hotel and tour operators are battling a proposed
highway sponsored by banana and logging interests
into the region between Tortuguero and Barra del Colorado.
The Tortuguero Conservation Area Project, Area de
Conservación y Desarrollo Sostenible de las
Llanuras del Tortuguero, Apdo. 338, Guápiles,
tel. 710-2929, fax 710-7673, works to protect the
region and publishes literature on local ecology.
Particularly threatened is the large mammal population.
About
50,000 tourists a year come here to explore the forests
and swamps of Tortuguero National Park and to see
any of four species of turtles that nest on the beach.
The recent boom had spawned fears that the park was
becoming overloaded with tourists (there were only
240 visitors in 1980). Help by carrying out anything
you bring in. Rubbish disposal is a serious problem
at Tortuguero: leave no trash.
Entrance
is $6, payable at the Cuatro Esquinas ranger station
(park headquarters), tel. 710-2929, fax 710-7673,
at the southern end of Tortuguero village, or at Estación
Jalova, at the park's southern end (45 minutes by
boat from Tortuguero village). You can also buy a
four-day pass ($10) that includes access to Barra
del Colorado Wildlife Refuge. There's no fee to travel
along the canals via the park en route to/from Tortuguero
village.
Manatees
Tortuguero's fragile manatee population is endangered
and was thought to be extinct until a population was
located in remote lagoons within Tortuguero. Traditionally
they have been hunted for their flesh, reputedly tender
and delicious, and for their very tough hides, but
the greatest threat of late has been chemicals and
sediments washing into the waterways from banana plantations.
Ironically, ecotourism is taking a toll, with increasing
boat traffic. Manatees have moved west toward more
remote lagoons seeking quiet places to mate and are
rarely seen. It is thought that perhaps about 100
manatees inhabit the lagoons of Tortuguero and Barra
del Colorado. Alas, Dr. Bernie Nietschmann of the
University of California, Berkeley, who ran a research
program to count and study the manatees, died and
his research program has since foundered.
The
Manatee, Crocodile, and Caiman Conservation Research
Project, tel./fax 226-0986, accepts donations.
Other
good resources include the Save the Manatee Club,
500 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland, FL 32751, tel. 407/
539-0990 or 800/432-5646, email: membership@savethemanatee.org,
a not-for-profit member-based organization that promotes
manatee education/awareness; and the Manatee Survival
Foundation, P.O. Box 50005, Lighthouse Point, FL 33074,
954/943-4391, which promotes manatee awareness and
collects sighting information for regulatory agencies.
Turtles
The park protects a vital nesting ground for green
sea turtles, which find their way onto the brown-sand
beaches every year June-October (the greatest numbers
arrive in September). Mid-February through July, giant
leatherback turtles also arrive to lay their eggs
(with greatest frequency April-May), followed, in
July, by female hawksbill turtles. Tortuguero is the
most important green-turtle hatchery in the western
Caribbean. An estimated 30,000 turtles come ashore.
Each female arrives two to six times, at 10- to 14-day
intervals, and waits two or three years before nesting
again.
During
the 1950s, the Tortuguero nesting colony came to the
attention of biologist-writer Archie Carr, a lifelong
student of sea turtles. Carr enlisted sympathy through
his eloquent writing, particularly The Windward Road
(Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1955).
His lobby--originally called the Brotherhood of the
Green Turtle--worked with the Costa Rican government
to establish Tortuguero as a sanctuary where the endangered
turtles could nest unmolested. The sanctuary was established
in 1963 and the area was named a national park in
1970. The Brotherhood, now the Caribbean Conservation
Corps, CCC, Apdo. 246-2050 San Pedro, tel. 224-9215
or 238-8069, fax 225-7516, email: baulas@sol.racsa.co.cr;
in the U.S., 4424 NW 13th St. Suite #A1, Gainesville,
FL 32609, tel. 800/678-7853 or 904/373-6441, email:
ccc@cccturtle.org, www.cccturtle.org, maintains the
John H. Phipps Biological Station and a Natural History
Visitor's Center (locals still call it by its old
name--Casa Verde), five minutes' walk north of the
village. The CCC also publishes Velador, a quarterly
update on turtle projects in the region. You can also
adopt a turtle for $35 by calling the CCC.
Despite
legislation, poachers from Barra and Limón
still steal turtle eggs on the beaches, and cull turtles
from the sea, often carried out by armed men with
high-speed boats. Incidents have dropped from 1,700
reported cases in 1997 to less than 50 in 1999.
Turtle
Walks: No one is allowed on the 22-mile nesting sector
without a guide after 6 p.m. Only 400 people are allowed
on the beach per night, apportioned by sector; 200
maximum every two hours. Local guides escort walks
at 8-10 p.m. and 10 p.m.-midnight each evening in
turtle-nesting season ($10, including guide, who alone
can buy tickets to access the beach at night). Strict
rules and guidelines are enforced for turtle watching:
no cameras or flashlights are permitted (they'll be
confiscated); keep quiet, as the slightest noise can
send the turtle hurrying back to sea; and keep a discreet
distance. That said, a conservationist ethic is still
tenuous among the local population, and you still
find turtle meat and eggs for sale. You are asked
to report any guide who digs up turtle hatchlings
to show you--this is absolutely prohibited. Turtles
are endangered; respect them.
Volunteers:
The CCC needs volunteers to assist in research, including
during its twice-yearly turtle tagging and monitoring
programs. See the Volunteer Programs to Save the Turtles
chart, in the Introduction. You should be willing
to patrol up to five miles of beach nightly for 8-15
nights. Programs start at $1,360 for one week, $1,785
for two weeks, and $2,075 for three weeks, staying
in the CCC dormitory at the John H. Phipps Biological
Field Station (private a/c rooms in the scientists'
residence are sometimes available for an additional
fee). Rates include airfare, meals, and lodging.
When
To Go
Rain falls year-round. The three wettest months are
January, June, and July. The three driest are February,
April, and November. Monsoon-type storms can lash
the region at any time; rain invariably falls more
heavily in the late afternoon and at night. August
through November are best for turtle-watching. The
interior of the park is hot, humid (very humid on
sunny days), and windless. Bring good raingear; a
heavy-duty poncho is ideal (the lodges provide these
for guests). It can be cool enough for a windbreaker
or sweater while speeding upriver under cloudy weather.
Take insect repellent--the mosquitoes and no-see-ums
(you'll need Avon's Skin-so-Soft for these) can be
fierce.
Exploring
Tortuguero Hiking: You can walk the entire length
of the beach. Trails into the forests--frequently
waterlogged--also begin at the park stations at both
ends of the park. The 2-km-long El Gavilán
Trail leads south from the Cuatro Esquinas ranger
station south of Tortuguero village and takes in both
beach and rainforest. A trail that begins north of
Tortuga Lodge leads to Cerro Tortuguero (119 meters),
two km north of Tortuga Lodge; from here--the highest
point for miles around--you have a superb perspective
over the swamps and coastline from the rusting WWII-era
lookout tower at the top. Short hikes from Estación
Jalova provide a satisfying adventure for those with
only limited time.
Canoes
And Boats: You can hire dugout canoes (cayucas or
botes) in Tortuguero village ($6 pp the first hour,
$3 each additional hour, without a guide; Miss Junie's
rents canoes for $10 for four hours). Give the canoe
a good inspection before shaking hands on the deal:
paddle around until you feel comfortable and have
ascertained that there are no leaks and that the canoe
is stable. Alternately, consider a panga, a flat-bottomed
boat with outboard motor (be sure to rent one with
a relatively non-polluting four-stroke motor), or
a lancha (with inboard motor), which will cost more.
It's also a good idea to check on local currents and
directions, as the former can be quite strong and
it's easy to lose your bearings amid the maze of waterways.
And don't forget to pay your park entrance fee before
entering Tortuguero National Park.
You
can also rent kayaks through the Save the Manatee
Foundation. All the funds go towards purchasing educational
materials for the new village high school.
Guided
Tours
If you want to see wildlife you absolutely need a
guide, as otherwise you'll not see 10 percent of the
wildlife you'll see in their company. The local guides--there
are about 40 guides trained by the National Parks
Service and organized into a local cooperative--have
binocular eyes: in even the darkest shadows, they
can spot caimans, birds, crocodiles, and other animals
you will most likely miss. You can hire local guides
in the village for about $5 pp, per hour (tours usually
last two or three hours). The best guides are employed
by the local lodges and are well versed in wildlife
lore (one recommended guide is Anselmo Najarro Flores,
beeper tel. 224-2400, code 0211; also try Castor Hunter,
beeper tel. 296-2626).
The
guide will lead you deep into the narrow caños
and chug up the side streams where the vegetation
narrows down to a murky closeness and he is forced
to cut the motor and pole to make headway. On a guided
three-hour tour from Tortuga Lodge, I saw crocodiles,
caimans, howler monkeys, sloths, green macaws, turtles,
toucans, herons, a diminutive pygmy kingfisher, river
otters playing tag alongside the boat, and dozens
of other species. The succession of creatures--some
virtually at arm's reach--seemed almost to have been
installed for my benefit. I felt as if we were in
a museum instead of a wilderness. Exploring at night
is no longer permitted.
You
can also book guided trips at any of the lodges or
through tour companies in San José. The following
companies offer guided tours:
Agencia
Mitur, Apdo. 91, San José 1150, tel. 255-2031,
fax 255-1946, email: mitour@sol.racsa. co.cr, operates
a daily "Tortuguero Jungle Adventures" aboard
the Colorado Princess, with accommodations at the
Hotel Ilan Ilan ($160 two days/one night; $215 three
days/two nights).
Costa
Rica Expeditions provides the best operation and offers
a variety of quality tours with overnights at its
Tortuga Lodge. It provides rain ponchos, plus lunches
for day trips to Barra del Colorado. Three-day/two-night
packages with private flight from San José
to Tortuguero cost $299 pp (based on a four-person
minimum); boat tours into the park are extra. It has
the best guides in the area. Recommended!
