At an hour that is far too early to mention, I peeled myself out of bed and caught a bus to Caño Negro. The bus was exceptionally luxurious for a Costa Rican bus, and I spent the ride talking to two amusing women, both of whom were also backpacking alone. While on the bus, we passed two sloths that were nestled snugly in their trees. As expected, they did not do much, but I still managed to photograph them and their three-toed goodness. We also got out to take pictures of giant iguanas, which are called ¨Chickens of the Tree¨ for some inexplicable reason.
Upon arriving at Caño Negro, we boarded a boat that puttered down the river and stopped every fifteen feet to allow us to photograph every bird, mammal, and leaf we passed. It was exceptionally relaxing and we saw a wonderful array of creatures: birds (including the rare pink spoonbill), emerald basilisks, howler monkeys (including a rare albino monkey), white-faced monkeys, and caimans. At one point, a woman pointed to a large animal in the brush, gasped, and shouted to the driver to stop the boat. The tour guide stood, peered into the trees, and announced, ¨Ladies and gentlemen, on the right we have a cow.¨
We also crossed the Nicaraguan border and got out to stretch our legs, eat cookies, and take pictures of the border crossing. Upon sighting a beautiful butterfly, a member of our group with a large camera began stalking the insect in hopes of capturing a perfect picture. I´m not sure if he did, but I am sure that in his concentration, he accidentally fell into a four foot deep hole. It was hysterical. Well, I thought so. I don´t think he agreed.
I haven´t decided how to spend the rest of my day, but I think I might go hiking. There´s a lovely trail described in my guidebook as follows: ¨Two tourists and their guide were caught in a gaseous eruption here in August 2000; only one person survived. Some of the upper trails are now closed, and the lower area, where the entrance is, lies in a valley that might be covered by deadly gaseous or volcanic flows in the event of a major eruption.¨ In other words, sign me up.