Day 6: To Caño Negro

We start the day in Sarapiquí like many others before this one in Costa Rica, with a big breakfast. I have started each and every one with a good sized portion of Gallo Pinto, the local rice and beans recipe, and today was not different. I can get used to breakfasts like these! Fresh fruit, Gallo Pinto, freshly pressed juice, Costa Rican Café Negro and scrambled eggs: a good way to start the day.

We start off by driving to the main docking area of Porto Viejo De Sarapiquí to get on a boat (again) for a river tour to see whatever wants to be seen.
Today it is Kingfishers, Flycatchers, Cayman, Herons, Egrets, Swallows, and much more.
And rain. A lot of it. It started after about an hour, and basically didn’t stop until around 3pm. Luckily the boat has a closed top!

After yesterday’s and this morning’s rain, today is a much nicer temperature at around 25 degrees and with a little bit of fresh wind it is not searingly hot. A good day for some driving!
We will travel from Sarapiquí to Caño Negro, specifically to Hotel De Campo. At around 160kms it will take us the better part of 4 hours as the maximum speed is around 60km/h and the route is straight through many small towns where the speed limit is much less. Also, we need to have lunch somewhere!

The drive takes us through many pineapple and banana plantations, and really showcases Costa Rica’s agricultural history.
The last leg of the journey takes us through swamps and wetland and over an unpaved road for about 20km’s. I hope all parts of the car are still in their correct order, that was one bumpy ride!

We are the only guests at the hotel, and with it having around 40 cabañas, it feels really empty. Tomorrow, we’ll be the only guests when the owner of the facility takes us on a boat to see the wetlands!