Follow the Journey

Adios Nicaragua. Next stop Costa Rica. After a four hour luxury bus ride we found ourselves in Liberia, Costa Rica. Although we were only staying in a hostel for a night, we still had a decent amount of exposure to Liberia. Some of us were more than happy to leave the rustic Bone Fide farm. Privileges such as Air Conditioning, TV, a washer/dryer and quality shower rooms were highly anticipated. The change from Bone Fide to a thriving metropolis was basically night and day.The boys of the group immediately found a McDonalds and ordered a hefty variety of McComida. The night was relaxing, but we still found time to prepare for the long travel day ahead.
Beep Beep Beep 7:00am. Cereal on Cereal. Four varieties, not enough time. We rushed out the door to the bus station. After six hours of travel total, and switching from bus to bus, we arrived at the Camaronal sea turtle reserve. As the group stepped off the bus, the sparkling blue ocean was visible and only a short walk away. As the excitement built up, we congregated in an outside mess hall with five picnic tables. The next order on business was to assign sleeping quarters. We had an original plan to send the five boys to the rustic, semi-outside, gaps in the walls room; then to send the seven girls to the air-conditioned, decked out, hotel-looking building. After a mild dispute, we decided to all jam-pack into the latter option, the administrative building. The girls slept where they had initially planned and the boys carried mattresses into the conference room and set up for the week. After a semi-boring presentation about the turtles from our fantastic guide Marvin, we got on our bathing suits and rushed anxiously down to the beach. The first thing most of us noticed was the size of the waves. There were some good ten footers and a good amount of us jumped right in. Others sunbathed, played soccer, and walked down the three kilometer beach. The sights were postcard caliber, someone get the Kodak! With all seriousness though, we were here to protect the turtles and their eggs from wildlife and poachers. There was a beach-side hatchery with hundreds of turtle eggs that had to be protected. And protected, meaning all night long. For the remainder of our stay, we were to guard the hatchery in pairs, one pair at a time, for a three hour shift. There were four shifts: the 6-9pm, 9-12am, 12-3am, and the 3-6am. Not only was there a hatchery pair, but there were also patrol squads. These squads, usually groups of 4-5 students would follow Marvin up and down the beach between the hours of 8pm-12am. The job was simple, patrol the beach for turtles laying eggs, find their nests, and scare away racoons and poachers. Scaring away poachers, meaning them seeing multiple lights coming their direction down the beach, causing them to flee. No close contact was made, so don’t worry.
The week consisted of breakfast at 8:00am, work at 9:00-11:00am, lunch at 12-1pm, then afternoon work was at varying times. Our days would also be packed with group meetings. Keep in mind that all this took place during the day, and the night shifts still apply. Nothing like a day full of hard work…plus all night turtle watching.
Work from day to day varied from consolidating drift wood to be burnt, picking up trash, and carving a jungle path to the top of the spectacular overlook, the Mirador. Day work ranged from boring to difficult at times, but it brought the group together as we bonded more and more. Night time work ranged from awesome to even more awesome. The pairs guarding the hatchery had a view of the star-filled night sky, coupled with the calming ocean and its several slightly moving lights on the horizon. Full of hot tea and intimate one-on-one conversations, the group experienced a new angle to bonding with one another. Then there was the patrol squad, who relentlessly searched for turtle nests. When nests were found, the latex gloves came out and so did the turtle eggs. Marvin pulled out eggs after eggs out, to break a sum of over 100 per nest (and we collected eggs from at least a dozen nests!). Mind-blowing! These eggs were placed into a plastic bag and then quickly transferred to the hatchery. One night, two nests totaling 120 eggs hatched, and it was up to the patrol squad to strap on the latex gloves, weigh, measure and release the baby turtles into the ocean. Throughout the stay the group spotted at least 20 Olive Ridley mothers. Luckily our group experienced an action-packed week in regards to turtles, and everything else. The food and lodging were fantastic. The overall vibe from the week was extremely positive, and we can’t wait to see what our Central-American future holds. Until next time ladies and gentlemen, this has been your boy Tyler. I’m out!