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Damas Island Mangroves

Damas Island Mangroves

Destination: Manuel Antonio, Esterillos

Highlights

  • Get close to wildlife
  • Unique tour through mangrove canals
  • Ride in a boat or kayak
  • Easy paddling for kayaks

Facts

  • Location : 10-minute drive from Quepos
  • Hours : Tour times depend on tide
  • Telephone : 2777-2052/2777-2173
  • Price : $65 per person w/ lunch

Capuchin monkeys sail over your head between the trees running along the branches as you idly paddle through canals among the mangrove forest on the Damas Island Mangrove Tour. A two-hour kayak tour through the mangroves takes guests paddling through the thick, bramble of roots and branches close to the local wildlife.

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After a ten-minute drive from Quepos you'll arrive at the Damas Island mangroves where you'll prepare for your journey by boat or kayak. After receiving a few helpful tips you'll get in the water in your vessel of choice: single kayak, double kayak or boat - arranged ahead of time.

Guides lead the way through the mangroves explaining the natural history of the incredibly unique and important mangrove eco-system. Along the way you'll learn about the different types of mangrove trees like the black mangroves with their short roots that stick up from the mud like twiggy spikes, the pineapple mangroves with their thick, volcano-shaped roots or the white mangroves with their gnarled roots that curve and bend in twisted jumbles.

Paddling through the canals between the mangrove trees, guides and visitors search for wildlife camouflaged among the branches and the canopies. Some animals are hard to miss, like the capuchin monkeys swinging and chattering in high-pitch squeaks as they move through the mangrove forest. If you're lucky, you'll get within a few feet of these little guys as they perform their tree-to-tree acrobatics.

Other more difficult animals to spot along the tour include boa constrictors curled up in the trees, long-nosed bats sleeping under shady branches and black iguanas sunning themselves on logs sticking up from the canals.

The mangroves also conceal the world's smallest anteater, the endangered pygmy anteater (also known as the silky anteater for their dense, soft fur). At a mere 7 inches long, the pygmy anteater i lives in the mangroves with a two-inch nose that searches out ants and small insects to eat.

After a tour of the mangroves, visitors settle down to a Costa Rican style-lunch of casado (choice of meat, rice, beans and vegetables) and juice.

Departure & Return

  • Departure point : Tour departs from all major hotels in Quepos and Manuel Antonio
  • Departure time : Hotel pickup is between 30 minutes before tour start time depending on hotel location.
  • Return details : Tour returns to original departure point two to four hours after tour start time

Damas Island Mangroves in Pictures

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