Costa Rica
When one of your friends invites you to go with him on a two-day rafting trip through the jungles of Costa Rica, you just say yes. No questions asked.
And even though jungles are notoriously difficult to photograph, it presented a fun challenge throughout the trip. Well, almost fun…
After meeting up with another friend—Aaron, his sister, and Simon and I set off to explore San Jose and see what we could find.
For the record—San Jose does not take one day to sight-see. After hearing from multiple locals that we should, “go see the national museum and wander around downtown” we opted for an early bedtime*.
Then the next morning, our rafting company, Rios Tropicales, came and picked us up and dropped us off at the main site 2.5 hrs away (I know, right? What company is willing to ferry their peeps around the country?). After breakfast and meeting some of our fellow travelers (even two couples on their honeymoons that we enjoyed getting to know), we pushed off into the fast-moving Pacuare River and began our adventure.
*This phenomenon occurred consistently throughout our stay in the country. Either something was in the air or our bodies just thought we needed 10 hrs of sleep every night. Gladly, there’s not much to do when the sun goes down.
The guides recommended that we didn’t have any camera equipment out of the dry bags, so I didn’t actually get to take my own photos while we were going down the river. Which was kind of a bummer. But, there was a kayaker that took pictures of all of the boats, so that was good.
The scenery was absolutely stunning. Imagine that you’re floating down a river and jungle cliffs shoot up on both sides, hidden waterfalls pop up every so often, and you get a periodic adrenalin rush from the Class III and Class IV rapids that appear around every bend. Hard to beat. And since you’ve convinced yourself that if you fall out of the raft you are in essence consigning yourself to death, your whole body stubbornly holds onto the slippery surface and you keep your feet smashed in the corner to prevent said death from happening. All part of the fun I guess!
Since it was an overnight trip, we landed in the middle of the jungle where the company’s lodges were nestled. Apparently, the only way to access the lodges is by raft or by helicopter. Kinda fun. Also—odd feeling when it’s pouring rain and you don’t even mind, because you’re already soaked. Somewhat liberating actually.
We had a hard time not smiling for a few minutes when we let it all sink in that we were going to sleep in the middle of the jungle. In Costa Rica. Completely bereft of any outside contact.
Once we were acquainted with our new living quarters, I grabbed my camera stuff and after rigging a somewhat water-protectant cover for my backpack, I donned an umbrella for good measure and we went off exploring.
Because of the rain, the colors were rich and dark, helping me capture the mood of the location. A rope bridge, waterfalls, among other things kept us busy for a while. I did start to realize pretty quickly the importance of a high ISO and a wide aperture. Since the canopy shades most of the light, the same subdued light-box effect that makes for some delightful lighting also makes it difficult to get enough light in the shot. But, with resting the camera on some creative places (rotted wood posts etc…) I was able to get some crisp shots.
There were plenty of places with chairs and hammocks to take a leisurely nap.
That is if you received permission from the local residents.
The flora of the region is widely diverse and the contrast of the bright colors with the dark green backdrop was fun to play with. It also helped that the rain let up enough for me to wander around without having to worry about *my body.
My camera body. Obv.
After we finished the rafting, all of us agreed that the trip would have been worth it even if that was the only the thing that we did. I mean, we’re talking way fun. Like, way. But, gladly we still had a few days of schtuff planned. After renting a car, we wended our way up to the cloud forests of Monteverde, with a couple well-placed *soda pit-stops.
Soda: A quaint little Ma & Pop (minus the pop) restaurant often found on the side of the road or nestled in far-reaching places. Cheap[er]. Delicious. Makes you feel like a local.
It would have been stupid to leave Monteverde without doing the zip-line experience (complete with the Superman and the Tarzan Swing, trust me, just do it.) Never have a felt so close to flying then zipping along a mile-long line above a cloud-filled valley above the jungle canopy. One of the most amazing feelings. Probably up there with *eating a perfectly-made chocolate shake.
*Sarcasm; Also know as.
We decided that we would spend all of the money and do what needed to be done while we were here. Which involved a night-walk in the jungle. Part of this was cool just wander around in the dark with a guide, but I was hoping to see some cool stuff and get some good pics. I forgot that it’s next to impossible to take pictures in the dark without a tripod or some sort of stabilizing device. But I did my best. Don’t hate. The green vipers were probably the neatest thing we came across—our guide was kind to remind us that it was a two hour trip to the hospital, so “be sure not to get bit.” Noted.
The next morning we did another walk in the National Park with a guide. You think to yourself, “Why am I paying someone since I can just walk through by myself?” And then you realize, you can barely see the animals even when they’re pointed out to you. So. Lesson learned: get a guide. And for the record, you have to be pretty close to the bird/animal/insect in order to get any sort of respectable pic. Or else you go home and look through your pictures and play I Spy: Jungle Edition until you find your supposed subject. In short, bring your longest lens, and plan on squinting.
We did see the rare *Quetzal bird, and our guides were freaking out because it was really close to us, and oddly enough out of season.
*Thought to be the most beautiful bird in the world. And with feathers like that? Definitely on fleek.
Female Quetzal.
Toucan!
↑ Pic of the Post #1: 1/400, f/3.5, ISO 800, 169mm (EF-S 10-22mm) — I feel like this photo offers a peek into how it feels to be in the jungle.
Simon left us for Guatemala and Aaron and I did some wandering of our own. Like true adventurers, we just took a right and drove farther into the country passing some small towns and villages with the residents probably wondering where these two white guys were driving off to. But we got a better taste of the culture as we drove around and powered by Aaron’s *flawless Spanish, we were almost invincible. Until our road ended in a washed out river bed and we were forced to turn around and wend our way back to San Jose.
*Well, more flawless than mine.
Before long we were back on our respective planes (aka. tall people torture chambers) and we said Pura vida! to another successful trip!
Interested in seeing more? Check out my trip to Africa.
/// FOLLOW ALONG WITH MY OTHER INTERESTS
Firewire Publishing — Book layout design and self-publishing