Fish Catching Travel
There hasn’t been any fishing but there sure has been some traveling. As the Van Halen song said – Panama – aa-aa-Panama. When we left Banana Azul to come to Panama things got weird, this trip is just getting crazier and crazier. Puerto Veijo in Costa Rica was a gritty little coastal town full of expats, rasta dudes, backpackers, Costa Ricans, and a host of other interesting and marginal characters. What we experienced next was a major culture shock.
We were picked up by the van and driven to the border crossing between Costa Rica and Panama. Our destination was the famous Red Frog Beach and Red Frog Beach Resort. But first the van stopped in the gritty little border town in the middle of the jungle where first we paid the lady $8 to leave Costa Rica – 7 for the state and 1 for her. Then it was to immigration to get our passports stamped, and then the most unusual crossing ever – a bridge. The 2 countries are separated by a bridge over a river on the coast – that can not take cars or trucks, so you walk and try not to trip and fall in! Of course my travel monster wife had a guide meet us to take us through all that or we might still be there, crazy stuff!
Say goodbye to Costa Rica.
Heading on to the bridge.
Me and our guide truckin’ on into Panama.
This is the good part of the bridge!
I do want you to keep in mind it is raining, funny how that happens in the rain forest. So we truck across the bridge, pay to get into Panama, prove we are leaving later, and get through immigration. You want adventure, this border crossing was it. Thank God for the guide. We then hop on our van and head about an hour to a port city to take a ferry to Boca Del Toro, the island where we will get on another boat to Red Frog. On the way we pass another immigration check point with mean looking soldiers but all is well
We are dropped off at BMT the company that ferries us to Boca. So on a 24 foot panga with a Yamaha 200hp, with another 20 people, we tear ass across open ocean with 7 foot rollers in a down pour. I was lucky enough to sit next to what I think was a hooker with a couple of nice fans.
The good ship Lollypop – Not!
Docking on the island of Boca Del Toro.
We arrive on the island where we head to the office of Red Frog to get our next boat to the island. We drop off our stuff and head to the store to pick up a few things as there is no store on the island. When we get back to the office the boat is just arriving. On the boat is the manager of the resort. Now this is no downstream resort, it does have a hostel, a lodge, and lots of huge villas. Nancy has booked us into the lodge, which costs a little less than staying in a downtown hotel in Austin. Here is where it gets weider than the day has already been, and getting here has been a real adventure.
He says welcome to the resort, I have to go get some folks at the airport but the boat will take you over to your villa. Villa? He says yea, a little construction so it might be busy so we upgraded you to a villa. Huh? So we hop on another panga with a captain wearing a garbage bag for a raincoat and we are again off tearing across the ocean in big swells to Red Frog. We check in, the villa guy loads our stuff, gives us our golf cart for getting around the property, and off to the villa we go. Holy f’n mackerel! And here it is – a $1000 a night in season, 3 bedroom villa, on the top of a mountain in the middle of a rain forest, overlooking the Caribbean, surrounded by monkeys, sloths, parrots, and God knows what else.
Front.
Side.
Living Room.
The deck on the mountain side.
The pool.
What a view.
Me acting like a rich guy.
The golf cart. The only way to get around Red Frog.
The kitchen …….ok you get the point.
So here we are at Red Frog. The resort covers thousands of acres on the island and buts up with a forest preserve. It is truly a rain forest. It has been raining the last couple of days, but it comes with the territory. We took a hike today in the forest and I have not seen a monkey yet. But we did come across a sloth today, what a weird animal.
Just hanging around. You could hang around for a better picture, but who knows when they will move.
Not sure what these are but they have a cool yellow tail and an awesome call.
Waterfalls everywhere.
Some of the most beautiful plants in the world.
Red leaves and popcorn with a blueberry in the middle.
So many flowers.
One of the many famous Red Frog beaches,
The hummingbirds like these things.
These things are cool.
Trekking through the rainforest.
Last night it was lobster caught off the reef that prices Red Lobster couldn’t touch. And eating it at the beach bar as the waves come in from the Caribbean makes it all that much better. Tomorrow is our last full day here, and then it is home. I thought I might fish but there is just to much to do, I have already had a great couple of days fishing so it is time to take advantage of the forest and the villa. I can not tell you how awesome it is to sit on the porch overlooking the ocean in the middle of the forest. What an experience. We have had the usual good time, and with all foreign travel in the less developed countries a few hassles, but this upgrade to the villa has topped off a great experience.
In 2 days it will be 2 boat rides and 3 van rides, plus another border crossing, to get back to San Jose Costa Rica and the hotel for our last night here. When you take this kind of trip it can be work. But to get to the great places off the beaten path that is the price you pay. And this is off the beaten path. As usual my lovely wife has done a fabulous job planning this trip, the possible pitfalls are many, but she has done a superb job. So keep stopping in and hopefully there will be another adventure right around the corner. Thanks for reading my stuff.
Good Luck and Tight Lines
