Spot: Jicaro Island Ecolodge

Location: Granada Isletas, Nicaragua

The Good Stuff: Set on a private tropical island with only 9 two-story casitas, Jicaro Ecolodge is an upscale nature resort. An ideal setting for a variety of travelers who want to experience adventures, romance, and rejuvenation.

What We Love: A secluded island getaway, Jicaro is the perfect upscale alternative to hotels and resorts in downtown Granada.

 Green Cred: Water is heated with solar panels; focus on reduce, recycle, reuse; all staff are from the local area and food and other products such as food and furnishings are sourced locally as well. Use of organic and biodegradable soaps, cleaning detergents and spa products; Chlorine free systems to clean water in the pool, Energy efficient lighting and illumination throughout the island.

 It was dark by the time we got to the road that runs up the coast through the little surf towns here. Surfers returning from their wavy day gave us a tropical welcome as we were looking for a sign for our hotel… Guess what? Latitude 10 is a Costa Rica beach hotel, very much a boutique property, striving to be as sustainable as possible. Low-key hominess in a beach-luxury atmosphere is also a goal. So there are no signs at all along the road. It’s a move that warms our hearts, as the overabundance of signs in some areas of Costa Rica and other tourism destinations detracts markedly from the experience. It did take us a little longer to get here, since basically the only way to find the hotel with the naked eye at night is to know where it is. Or get here during the day so you can see the small sign in the entrance. Our solution for arriving at night – stop at a friendly looking clapboard house and ask the locals how to get there. Two minutes later and we were here.

The beach right in front of the hotel has a soft strip of sand and then is rocky as you move out toward the ocean, creating some inviting pools with all kinds of marine life. An ideal beach scenario for the young kids with us.  Just two hundred yards down the beach is the wide expanse of sand known as Mal Pais, with a sprinkling of surfers and surf wannabe’s. Or just as inviting for those of us who love to run on the beach. Low tide lets you run for miles.

The area gets a little more crowded when Costa Rica surfing really kicks in after the middle of November. But on a glorious August day, there was just the ride balance of sun, surf, scenery and local beach scene flavor. After working up a lather running in the sun, there was an interesting surprise in the open-air shower of our huge bathroom.

Latitude 10 has done a wonderful job designing gigantic bathrooms for each of the detached units here. Instead of looking up at a white ceiling while showering, you look up at the canopy of the tropical forest. This does, however, create some unexpected housekeeping challenges. My post-run shower had to wait a few minutes while the attentive staff got the astonishingly large amount of Howler monkey scat cleaned out of the shower floor. Pretty sure it was the large male leader of the troupe, and as he swung by he decided to leave us that little gift to remind us that we’re in his domain.

Back inside our suite sitting on our private balcony facing the ocean, just a few yards from the beach, the friendly lizards, iguanas and some other rainforest insects stared at us curiously. With the high tide’s waves crashing on the rocky beach outside, feeling very much a part of the surrounding environment, I picked up the little hotel manual (printed on recycled paper).

Is Latitude 10 for you!? Read the four following hotel highlights below and decide for yourselves.

- Latitude 10 casitas are tucked amongst the native vegetation, the wooden structures have shades but no windows.

-There are no locks on the doors

- There’s no a/c

- The bathrooms are completely open-air with large hot water showers and gardens (and regular wildlife visits)

Overall my take is that it has an upscale feeling, but is not overdone.

Another marvelous memory was our stay at the Bosque de Paz, in the cloud forest. It is a special
place, close to nature, secluded and peaceful. The owners were there, and treated us like family.
We never would have known about it on our own. I’m so glad we got to stay there. There was
a young man, native to the place, who is a naturalist and gave us a wonderful nature hike, and let
us see a microscopic orchid he collected that is extremely rare.

From there, we headed toward Arenal, stopping on the way for what turned out to be an
absolutely delightful afternoon with Dona Mara and her family (daughters, grandchildren), with a
home-made delicious lunch in her covered, open-air patio (with kitchen!). Dona Mara is a
gracious and kind lady who made us feel like part of her family. She helped us make our own
tortillas (a first for me, I buy them in packages at home!) and gave us a bountiful lunch of local
cuisine. Then she gave my daughter and I earrings she had made in the colors of the Cost Rican
flag as souvenirs. This experience was certainly unique and not one we would have had on an
ordinary tour, or on one we had planned ourselves. It was unforgettable and it still makes me
smile to remember it.
A few words abut our guide, Julio Madriz. A more knowledgeable and congenial travel
companion cannot be found. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of the flora and fauna,
geography and history of Costa Rica and shared it in a casual and interesting way, helping us
sample a forest-found fruit and see tiny creatures hidden to the untrained eye. He had boundless
energy and patience and made us feel like new-found friends. I hope you are lucky enough to
have Julio as your guide. He added so much to our trip.

The grand finale was a few nights at Punta Islita resort, where we had arranged to stay in an
individual villa, complete with a plunge pool with a gorgeous view of the forest and beach, and
hand-hewn beds of native woods, in air-conditioned comfort. It was low-key and charming, with
a resident troop of monkeys in a mango grove on the property.. The lovely beach ( very warm
and calm water) and amenities of the resort made it the perfect place to unwind and relax before
heading home.

All in all, it was perfect, just what we hoped for, and more. A wonderful time and now,
wonderful memories.

Read more about some of our highlights of the trip next.

Lapa Rios has been supporting a local team of wildcat researchers and conservationists for several years and we would like to further involve our guests in the Jaguar, Puma and Wildcat Conservation Efforts through this once in a lifetime experience. 

During your four night stay at Lapa Rios in May 2010, you will be able to enjoy all of the regular tours and activities at the lodge, and we will also involve you in a variety of special activities revolving around Wildcat Conservation, such as: 

• Attending a briefing on the status of the wildcat research and conservation program on the Osa Peninsula with project directors Aida Bustamante and Ricardo Moreno. 

• Setting up and checking the heat sensor triggered cameras in the Lapa Rios Wildlife Reserve. These cameras are used to monitor the movement of jaguar, puma and other wildlife in the reserve and the Osa Peninsula. 

• Hiking into the rainforest and helping collect wildcat footprints in the rainforest.
• Learning how to conduct an analysis of the wild cats’ diets in the rainforest. 

• Working along side locals who might have been hunters before and now are active in the conservation of the wildlife, flora and fauna of the Osa Peninsula.

• Participating in talks given at local schools, community groups and hotels about the wildlife conservation program.

• Setting up and testing the program that monitors the movement of peccaries (medium sized, wild piglike mammals) with the help of GPS collars, in the reserve and Osa Peninsula. 

For further Information and reservations, please contact us at info@laparios.com. For more information on the Wildcat Research conducted on the Osa Peninsula, please visit here.

I have to say I feel pretty lucky to be going back to Costa Rica already. I’m going to be visiting some of my favorite places, and people, for an authentic cultural and nature experience. First we will be at Savegre Lodge where the rainforest sights and sounds are at your fingertips.

Then we’ll be off to my beloved friends and “family” in the Alexander Skutch Biological Corridor. This is the area that has two protected nature preserves, one named after the famous ornithologist that lived there and studied the birds and other wildlife in the rainforest for 60 years!

 

It will be great to see everyone again. We are going to do some “comida tipica” or traditional food lessons, learn how to make some yummy “tica” food. We will be staying at La Escondida, the “Hidden Farm”, a sustainable coffee farm and home of Luis Angel Rojas, his wife Carmen and their family. I can’t wait to see the toucans and monkeys that come every morning while you’re eating breakfast!

Then we’ll be off to the coast, to the beautiful and wild Uvita area, to La Cusinga ecolodge, which sits up on the coast with beautiful views of the ocean, and tons of birds on the property that are always in view from their outdoor dining area.

Come on the trip with us! Vamos a Costa Rica

We were 16 days on the cruise and 10 of them were on jungle rivers or exploring wildlife in some way. The wake-up calls on exploration days sometimes came at 5:30 a.m., with passengers having a quick breakfast of fruit, melon and pastries, then boarding zodiacs and heading for the shores or tributaries of the Orinoco and Amazon Rivers. Many days there were two scheduled zodiac trips, one in the morning and one in late afternoon, to check out wildlife or to visit local villages.

This is not a casino/cabaret/dancing-till-dawn kind of  cruise. It’s an ecotourism-style voyage on the Clipper Adventurer, the expedition ship of Clipper Cruise Line that was a former Russian research and passenger ship. Renovated and refurbished, carrying naturalists and culturists as guides and lecturers, the ship now takes 122 passengers (max) on adventure cruises into off-the-beaten-path places where big ships don’t go.  Read about the rest of the adventure here.