Manuel Antonio National Park and a Nice Kayak Through the Mangroves There

 


At Christmas time we were not able to get into the world famous Manuel Antonio National Park due to capacity constraints and it being the holiday season.  We opted to return back to the Pacific Coast before heading out of the country back to snowy New York.


As with many parks in Costa Rica our bags were searched for 'contraband' food items as carrying any type of food into the park will attract the wildlife and make for uncomfortable encounters with them.  We had already experienced that at Cahuita National Park with the monkeys!


The park not only had some really nice hiking paths but many pristine beaches for folks to lounge at and go swimming in the warm waters of the Pacific.


The three mile, very hilly, trail around Punta Cathedral Peninsula was always a stone's throw away from the ocean.  How gorgeous!


There were many outcroppings of rock that the waves constantly crashed into.  As we were there a bit late in the day, we had the place all to ourselves.


Along with the main beaches in the park there were many smaller and more secluded beaches for us to 'pull up a towel' and do a bit of relaxing reading.


Check out the root system on these small mangrove trees in the park.


We had no idea what this plant is called but the prickers on it were lethal. They were each about an inch long and strong as a rose thorn but more pointy.


Our 'final resting spot' for the day even provided us with a nice tree swing.


While in Manuel Antonio we opted for a kayak tour with a local group called Macha Tours. We were joined by another couple from the Netherlands for our two hour tour.  We met a guide "Michael" outside the park so he could show us around the mangrove trees in the park.  He was, as all the other guides have been, a real character.


Growing amongst the mangroves were balsa trees.  The white barked one in the middle is one of them.  I remember building model airplanes out of balsa wood when I was a kid.  Lots of fun!


This friendly little raccoon came by to see our guide as he feeds him banana every day while he does his tours.  Our guide also had made friends with a few small yellow birds in the area as when he seemed to whistle out of the blue they came swooping in and caught pieces of banana mid air!  Quite impressive indeed.


Not the most exciting of wildlife but these white-lined bats do quite a service to humans as all bats do by consuming hundreds of bugs every day apiece.  They are only about 5 centimeters long and were seen here on the underside of a bridge waiting for feeding time as the sun goes down.


Our guide was getting a banana ready to feed the monkeys a little at a time when this happened.


This is one of the most adorable videos I have ever captured!


Of course, as we suspected, all our guide was doing was indeed illegal! But when in Costa Rica, live in the moment, Pura Vida!











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