At 6:00 a.m., Elvin picked us up for our grand Tortuguero fishing excursion. It was raining, but the cool raindrops were a welcome respite from the Caribbean humidity. I put on a heavy-duty poncho and hopped into the boat.
We maneuvered out to the river mouth and, to my chagrin, found choppy seas and below-optimal boating conditions. Compared to the Pacific Ocean, the Caribbean doesn’t kick up huge waves, but for this area, the sea was unsafe for our small boat. Elvin motored around for awhile, trying to find a break in the waves, but finally …
My alarm sounded at 4:45 — I don’t recommend Tortuguero as a destination for sleeping in — and I hopped out of bed, oddly alert for such an early hour. Sun rays were beginning to peek through the trees outside my room, and I could hear the roar of the surf and howler monkeys just past my window screen. Waking up in a tropical, Caribbean paradise — it’s a rough life, I tell you.
Cerro Tortuguero, or Mount Tortuguero, was closed to tourists just a few years ago; an influx of hikers had compromised the integrity …
After yesterday’s power nap and a solid night’s sleep, I woke up at dawn and walked along the beach. Turtle Beach is one of few Tortuguero lodges with its own beachfront, and I wanted to take advantage of every minute in this perfect location. The sun was a soft yellow and the volcanic sand was already warm beneath my feet. I’m an early riser, but rarely do I get a chance to walk along a deserted beach just after sunrise — I decided that this was the ideal beginning to the day.
Fifteen minutes and a …
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