i spent the month of march at new dawn center taking a course in organic gardening, medicinal plants and permaculture and traveling on the weekends with the other students that were at new dawn.
i was doing a volunteer/work exchange type thing at new dawn, so in the morning we worked, i mean did "activities" as ed, the owner liked to call them. mainly we watered the garden, planted or transplanted from the greenhouse, and helped in preparing an herbal tea that they sell, made of a mix of ginger, tumeric and pao d'arco tree bark.
you can't go to costa rica and not use a machete! peeling pao d'arco bark for tea at new dawn.
thursday farmers market in san isidro, the city near new dawn
transplanting the new crop of lettuce at new dawn.
we spent one weekend in dominical. not my favorite beach in costa rica. but it felt good to get in the ocean again after a few weeks. but no surfing, just big, heavy closeouts and lots of rip currents.
march 13th dinner in dominical
we spent one weekend in the town of san gerardo, at the base of mt chirripo, the highest peak in costa rica. san gerardo is a tiny town strung along a dirt road, beside the rio chirripo, surrounded by green mountains, draped in clouds. originally we wanted to climb the mountain, but once when we got there we realized we didn't really have sleeping bags, or hiking boots or a cook stove, or warm clothes. the mountain is at about 13k feet, so it gets cold up there, and the rainy season was starting so the trails are muddy. so we decided to just day hike to the chirripo national park boundary. which is about 4km up the mountain. it was a beautiful hike, it started out hot and sunny, but by the time we made it to the boundary we were in the cloudforest, surrounded by fog and mist blowing through the trees, and pair of spider monkeys. we hiked down through the cloudbridge preserve, a private rainforest preserve next to the national park, full of waterfalls.
on the way to the chirripo trailhead, san gerardo, costa rica.
at the beginning of the trail up chirripo
waterfall in the cloudbridge preserve
into the cloudforest on the trail up chirripo
we made it to the chirripo national park border after about 6 km of hiking from our hostel, straight up the mountain.
the river behind new dawn center, my spot for afternoon swims with tucans and tadpoles.
main street in bocas town
houseboat party for lorraine and maggie's neighbor's birthday, we went to starfish beach
(that's a starfish we're standing next to)
docks on isla carenero
beginning of a hike to wizard beach on isla bastimentos
middle of the hike, after the mud bogs and jungle trailblazing
out of the jungle onto wizard beach
you can't go to costa rica and not use a machete! peeling pao d'arco bark for tea at new dawn.
thursday farmers market in san isidro, the city near new dawn
transplanting the new crop of lettuce at new dawn.
march 13th dinner in dominical
on the way to the chirripo trailhead, san gerardo, costa rica.
at the beginning of the trail up chirripo
waterfall in the cloudbridge preserve
into the cloudforest on the trail up chirripo
we made it to the chirripo national park border after about 6 km of hiking from our hostel, straight up the mountain.
the river behind new dawn center, my spot for afternoon swims with tucans and tadpoles.
