Day 8 - February 4, 2011

Very early in the morning while we were sleeping, we passed into Costa Rican waters. Today we went to Marenco, Costa Rica.  It is on the Osa Peninsula which is known for its virtually undisturbed forests. Our zodiac pilot navigated thru shallow areas between lava rocks to shore. We joined others in an interpretive walk thru the forest, up 100 meters, to a Lodge. We saw Leaf Cutter ants which cut off pieces of leaves, nearly the same as each other, much bigger than the ants, and bring them to the ant nest to grow fungus. Videos of Leaf Cutter Ants.

Extreme Sports Competitor Running Training

Flower from a tree

People own lots which are marked by these markers.

 

 

Punta Marenco Lodge is a small eco lodge, located North of Drake Bay in the south pacific coast of Costa Rica. The lodge is part of the Punta Rio Claro National Wild Life Refuge which protects over 1000 acres of rainforest and beaches. It would have been interesting to stay there for a night.

One of the cabins that you can stay in at the top.

The restaurant/bar at the top

The beach was beautiful and the lush vegetation
of the trail was as well.

The beach

Our Ship Le Levant

The zodiacs that took us to and from the cruise ship were very stable and the crew, staff and other helpers made it easy to get in and out, even for "wet landings".







Back on the ship, naturalist Andres gave a lecture on "Biodiversity in the Rainforest".  He shared some of his nature photography as part of his presentation.





This was the last night on the ship.  There were a number of activities and the Captain introduced all of the staff.  We found the last towel sculpture on our bed.

Finally we were treated to an evening of music.