Recent Adventures

Poison Dart Frogs

We tease Paulo that in order to have a perfect trip, he needs to find a poison dart frog for us to photograph. He teases back that we can stop at a zoo, but then cautiously says there is a small chance we might see one at Dominical, on the Southwest coast, and our last stop before returning to San José and our flights back home. .

Wow, a perfect trip, thanks in most part to Paulo, our excellent guide. Paulo has a Masters degree in biology, and a wonderful way of sharing his knowledge of the flora and fauna and history of Costa Rica. His enthusiasm is infectious, and his exclamations of “holy sugar!” were sure to spike our adrenalin since we knew that meant he had spotted another amazing specimen. Paulo has started his own company now, and you can reach him at salesbat@racsa.co.cr or visit his website at http://www.naturalcostarica.com. When we parted with Paulo in San José, we said goodbye to a new friend, who enriched our lives in wondrous ways and gave us a new appreciation for his beautiful country. Steve is already planning next year’s trip. If you want to join him, drop him a line at vaughanphoto@pcisys.com.

Lee stays back at the hotel while we are out on our adventures the first morning, and surprises everyone by finding a poison dart frog on the path behind the hotel. Steve gets up early the next morning to look for the frog again, and his perseverance is rewarded with a few shots of the poison dart frog before it escapes into the streambed.

Masked Tree Frog

Dominical, Costa Rica

Heliconia

Gardens at Bougainvillea Hotel

San Jose, Costa Rica

Relaxing in our bungalow

Dominical, Costa Rica

Costa Rica Adventure

Part I: Tortugero and the Northeast Coast

Part II: Rancho Naturalista

Part III: Savegre, the San Gerardo de Dota Cloud Forest

Part IV: Wilson Botanical Gardens

Part V: Dominical and the Southwest Coast

Costa Rica Adventure Part V:

Dominical and the Southwest Coast

Dominical is extremely hot and humid, and most of us are worn out from all the early morning shoots and long days. Still, we get up the energy to explore the beach and tidal pools, take a thrilling ultra light flight, go hiking in the Baru Wildlife Refuge, and photograph butterflies and a masked tree frog in the butterfly enclosure