Spend 6 nights/7 days working with leatherbacks at a research station along Costa Rica’s northern Caribbean coast from May 18 - May 24, 2024
The work includes walking the nesting beach at night, helping to measure the turtles, collect the eggs and move them to hatcheries, and working with hatchlings (later in the season). Spend the downtime hanging out on the beach or in a hammock, helping clean the beach, or looking for wildlife like monkeys, sloths, butterflies, birds, and more.
The itinerary is as follows;
DAY 1 - ARRIVE TO COSTA RICA
Start your leatherback adventure by arriving to San Jose International Airport (SJO) anytime on the first scheduled day. Our guides pick you up from the airport and take you to Rosa del Paseo, a comfortable hotel in downtown San Jose. Get a good night’s sleep tonight, as the adventure starts early the next day. (Dinner the first is not included)
DAY 2 - LEATHERBACK RESEARCH
Today you will head out to the Caribbean coast to stay at a remote research station in the rainforest. First, wake up with a delicious Costa Rica breakfast buffet of eggs, gallo pinto (their famous breakfast rice and beans), fresh tropical fruit, delicious coffee, and more. After breakfast, board the private bus for a 4 hour ride to the Caribbean coast. You’ll pass through the country’s largest national park and then descend to the Caribbean lowlands.
The bus will drop your group at a small dock along the Tortuguero canals, where a boat will meet you to take you to the research station. The short boat ride passes through rainforest, so keep your eyes out for monkeys, sloths, toucans, and more along the way. Once you arrive, settle into your cabin and later, the researchers will give a presentation on sea turtles and the more than a decade of work that has gone into protecting this nesting beach. After dinner, you will head out for your first night of patrolling, accompanied by researchers who will guide you along the beach, spot the turtles, and help with the data collection. (B, L, D)
Please note: The station is fairly remote and isolated. The rooms are very basic and volunteers are expected to participate in cleaning up dishes after meals. The station has limited electricity, no hot water, and no internet. Bathrooms are basic and semi-private (shared between two rooms). Meals are simple and often include a meat like chicken or beef along with rice and beans, cabbage salad, and plantains. The station is in the rainforest, which can mean insects in the rooms (mosquito nets are provided).
DAYS 3 - 5: TURTLE RESEARCH
For the next three nights, you will spend four hours each night walking the nesting beach in search of the giant leatherbacks. Years of hard work protecting these turtles has resulted in increases in nests in the Caribbean and the leatherback was downlisted from critically endangered to vulnerable in 2013. But despite this success, their numbers are still declining and protecting their nesting beaches is vital to their long-term survival.
The first thing you notice when a leatherback is nesting is their giant tracks, which look like a monster truck has driven up the beach. Tasks involved in the research include measuring the turtles’ length and width (no small task with a giant turtle!), moving the eggs to a hatchery (where they are protected until hatching), and observing the condition of the turtles, looking for scars or injuries. From mid-May to June, you will have a chance to work with hatchlings, helping to do some basic research (measuring and weighing) and releasing them to the water. Green turtles also occasionally nest late in the season.
During the day, there is plenty of downtime to catch up on sleep, read a book, or walk along the beach. We do not recommend swimming at this beach however, due to strong ocean currents that can be dangerous. Planned daytime activities include a boat ride on the rainforest canals to look for wildlife including birds, sloths, monkeys, & caiman and a beach cleanup activity (even remote beaches have trash wash ashore). (B, L, D)
DAY 6 - CENTRAL VALLEY
This morning after breakfast, you will catch the boat back to meet your bus. Along the way back to San Jose, you will visit Jardin Pierella, a unique butterfly farm, to learn about these fascinating insects and other wildlife. You will see hundreds of butterflies, poison dart frogs, giant walking sticks, and likely sloths and other wildlife. The wonderful family who runs this farm will prepare a delicious traditional lunch. After a final group dinner on the town, head to bed early to be awake in time to go to the airport for your flight the next day. Overnight at Rosa del Paseo. (B, L, D)
DAY 7 - DEPARTURE
Return home with a new appreciation for the hard work of conservation and to share your experiences or extend your stay and explore other parts of this beautiful country. You will be taken to the airport in plenty of time to catch your flight. (B)
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