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After several wrong turns, an unexpected Tico fare (who spoke no English, yet still managed to hitch a ride) and a lot of charades, we reached
canopy tour. As we were strapped in to our harness and clicked onto steel cable, it quickly became apparent that this was not about wildlife, but simply about thrill of skimming along treetops fifty feet above ground. At each tree platform, our guides clicked, unclicked and reclicked our main links and safety links to network of steel cables that snaked throughout treetops. We were sent sailing forwards, backwards, flying like Superman, even upside down, sometimes as fast as 30 mph, out-howling howler monkeys across forest canopy. At end of tour, with our pulses racing, we returned to resort to slow our pulses with cool cocktails poolside.
While El Ocotal offers white water rafting, big game fishing, relaxation and a warm, friendly staff, it is best known for scuba diving. Credited as first dive resort in Costa Rica, El Ocotal has a complete in-house dive operation: a dive shop just off beach with enough equipment for more than 30 divers, two top-of-the-line 13.1 cfm Mako compressors, two dedicated dive boats for day trips and two dedicated boats for longer trips. As part of Ocotal's dedication to diver safety and satisfaction, there are never more than 10 divers per boat and five divers per guide. In addition, staff carries all equipment onto and off of dive boats and as if that's not enough, rinses all gear off for divers at end of day.
Among more popular dive sites are Bat and Catalina Islands, located an hour to two hours from Ocotal. Divers can expect to see massive bull sharks, tiger sharks and schools of manta rays, some with wingspans as large as 20 feet across. A ten-day live-aboard trip is offered to Cocos Islands, some 300 miles from Ocotal. Like Bat and Catalina Islands, divers can expect large pelagic marine mammals, but have to battle strong currents and often churning Pacific swells, all without aid of an anchor line. In event of an emergency, nearest hyperbaric chamber is 2 days away in Panama.
High winds and rough seas kept us among dozens of dive sites near Ocotal. Two days of diving local sites revealed dilemma with diving in Costa Rica. While I saw an amazing variety of pelagic marine life including rays, white-tip reef sharks and turtles, visibility was consistently limited to between 20 to 30 feet. A high concentration of plankton and microbial life thrives in 75-85 degree Pacific water, which, while attracting a variety of feeder fish and in turn larger marine life, limits visibility. Visibility typically varies from 20 to 80 feet, sometimes on different dives on same day.
Most dive sites center around volcanic rock pinnacle formations 40 to 80 feet deep. The first dive site we visited was called Virador, just a few miles off coast, around a volcanic rock upwelling roughly 75-85 feet at its deepest point. As I descended, clouds of sergeant majors, grunts and other schooling fish swarmed past me and around me. I passed through a chilly thermocline at 50 feet, but not chilly enough to send me to surface. Dozens of pufferfish idled around us and when we reached bottom, we spied a number of rockfish camouflaged in rocks. On our tour around pinnacle, eels curiously poked their heads out from shadowy dens. I peered out into murky distance and couldn't help but think that there was an entire audience of massive marine animals lingering just beyond my field of vision, waiting patiently for us to leave.
The second dive featured
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By Misha Troyan - Jetsetters Magazine Correspondent - at www.jetsettersmagazine.com
Misha Troyan Jetsetters Magazine. Join the Travel Writers Network in the logo at www.jetsettersmagazine.com
