Second Day at Otorongo Lodge ~ Dec. 23, 2010

12/23

[warning: there are two images of spiders in this blog,in case
you are one of those people who panic at the sight of eight hairy legs]

Dawn found me hanging over the bannister outside my door to drink in all the sights and sounds. The night before I'd been lullabied to sleep by all manner of frogs, crickets, and perhaps nightbirds. This morning I was awakened by a choir of birds, including the liquid "coo-bloop-wheeoo" of either an oropendula or yellow-rumped caciques (I never did sort that out). Birds were flitting through the trees across a narrow strip of garden as the sky quickly brightened.

Today we'd go in search of a giant Ceiba tree, across the Amazon and up a small tributary to the south. There were many birds to see along the way: egrets, hawks, yellow-rumped caciques (say Ka-SEEKs), long-toed jacanas, and many others. Fishermen plied the waters with nets ~ several nets were strung across the river and our boatman had to lift the motor to cross over them.

We passed one little boy diligently rowing a long boat with a younger girl aboard. They eyed us solemnly as we passed. I drew them later from my camera viewfinder. Here's the page they're on.

There were numerous little land holdings on the banks we passed. Here's an assortment of things we saw. from left to right: a tree full of the hanging nests of yellow-rumped caciques, the boat children, and a small farm with black pigs roaming free.







At length our boat swung into shore and we climbed a steep bank up into the dim forest. It was beautiful inside, and within a few yards we accidentally walked through the web of a golden-silk spider ~ if you live in the southern US, you will be familiar with this big orb-weaver. In the Everglades they make orbs that span the boardwalks. This one was even bigger, and Osmar twisted some of the web together and gave it to me (it's glued into my journal just above the boat children, on the right edge ~ see above).

After a short walk, following the boatman who was swinging a machete (plants grow so fast in the jungle that a machete-cleared trail will grow back together in a very short time) we came to the giant ceiba tree. It was unimaginably huge, with buttresses stretching out fifteen feet to the side. Osmar took a picture of me with the binoculars, standing at the base of the tree, but it doesn't really show the size. On the opposite side of the tree, in an open space, I could get far enough away to see it, so I took three vertical pictures which I have stitched together here. I used the image of me from the other picture to try to show you how very small I am compared to that tree. I couldn't get over the immensity of the tree and its wall-like buttresses.

Near the Ceiba tree, Osmar found a Crested Forest Toad (we thought it was a Sharp-nosed Toad, but the stripe down its back means it's the Crested Forest Toad). I sketched it on the sketch page above. On our way back to the boat we surprised a praying mantis building an egg case.

Rain started misting down as we descended the bank to the boat, but this is the rain forest, after all, and since the air was warm and the mist wasn't really cold, it turned out to not be a problem EXCEPT....

And here, dear followers of my packing blog, I have to confess to the failure of my lovely bandana/hat invention due to humidity. If you recall, I explained how to turn your bandana into a sun hat. But on the boat, when the sun appeared and I pulled my bandana out of my bag and folded it into a sun hat, I realized that the 100% humidity of the Amazon completely spoils the effect (and effectiveness) of the thing. It's a flop (literally) in a humid climate. Oh well, it'll still work for desert rats and people that live in "normal" humidity.

We got back in time for lunch and I had a chance to get acquainted with some of the denizens of Otorongo. Our host Antony was playing with Ara, the Scarlet Macaw. That bird shrieks "Lara, Lara, Lara" frequently, and I thought that was her name, but it seems that Antony named her Ara for her specific name, Ara macao. The Blue-and-Yellow Macaw (Ara ararauna) is named Azul, which is Spanish for blue. They have the run of the place during the daytime but are put in an enclosure at night so they won't be eaten.

The Spix's Guan also runs free. Her name is Penelope, and she pecks shiny things. You don't want to get your shiny eyes too close to her beak...

And here is Tio Juan (Uncle John). He is a Yellow-ridged Toucan, Rhamphastos culminatus and a real clown. He terrorizes anyone who shows the slightest fear of him, but it's mostly bluff. I managed to get up the nerve to make "friends" with him after a couple of days, always being aware that he could do damage with that bill and that I had to be really careful to keep my face out of range.

Early afternoon was generally reserved for siestas in the hammock room (a lovely, cool screened porch with six hammocks rayed out from a central pole to the sides of the room.) In one of the hammocks I would nap, or sketch seedpods and snails, sketch from my camera viewfinder, paint my drawings with watercolor pencils, and glue in things like the golden-silk spider web.

Discovering that Osmar was interested in trying his hand at sketching, I sat him down with an assignment (ever the teacher!) to see what he could do, and realized, looking at his first-ever drawing (done in ballpoint pen, at that) that he has a lot of potential.

So from that time on, whenever it worked for both of us, I provided him with a pad and pen, and gave him sketching lessons, first in drawing, then later in coloring with the watercolor pencils, and we worked quietly together through the hours. He was an apt student.

Earlier that day I had gone exploring in the kitchen garden and discovered a tarantula holed up in the top of a pineapple plant. Looking down into the top, I could only see its furry orange toes. Osmar said it would come out at night, so that night I went back and took a photo. Here it is, ready for intruders coming up from the ground.

Tomorrow we look for hoatzins ~ prehistoric-looking chicken-like birds that appear to be having a perpetual "bad hair day."

To Costa Rica, -- Dec. 17&18, 2010

12/17
Today was the first ever designated Audubon Christmas Bird Count Day for this part of the Osa Peninsula -- history in the making, and I was part of it. What an honor! Actually, anyone with binoculars who wanted to participate was invited, so off we went with Gerardo (pronounced Hair-ardo), the naturalist, up El Remanso's Ridge Trail to see what we could see.

Gera is the BEST naturalist ever, and I count him as a special friend, having first met him in 2007 on his first day at El Remanso. He can answer almost any question put to him, and if he doesn't know, he'll say so. He's an excellent guide to the mysteries of the tropical forest. Here he's holding an anole lizard, having just shown us how it flips out a colorful flag on its chin to warn off intruders or impress the ladies (lady anole lizards, that is).

We saw many wonders, from sloths to trogons (and numerous other birds) to squirrels and a coati nestled on a branch overhead. Gera cut open a tiny fig fruit and we were able to observe the tiny fig wasps which pollinate it (be sure to look at it close-up ~ there's one near the tip of my thumb).

Later that afternoon we took one of the Lodge trucks with seats along the sides of the bed and bounced off down the road to find more birds, including this toucan I photographed through Gera's spotting scope.

We kept getting distracted by monkeys, though, actually seeing all four species that live here along the road to our specified birding site, a large open meadow with a fringe of trees. Which monkeys? Well, there were howlers, spider monkeys, squirrel monkeys (with at least one baby in the troop) and capuchin monkeys. I never have much luck photographing monkeys in the dark trees, but at least this howler is recognizable as a monkey....

During this day ~ along Ridge Trail, the road to the Lodge and in the meadow ~ we spied about 79 species, including Smooth-billed Anis, White-necked Puffbird, Crested Caracara, Bare-throated Tiger Heron, Mangrove Cuckoo, Mangrove Black Hawk, and many others. We likely would have tallied more if we hadn't kept being distracted by other fascinating things, but I guess I'd be pretty stupid to complain about such a "dreadful" circumstance!

Dinner that night was so gorgeous I couldn't help taking a photo of it. All dinners in the restaurant are served by candlelight to keep electricity use to a minimum ~ in keeping with El Remanso's efforts to maintain a low footprint in the ecosystem. The presentation of all the meals is exquisite, and this braised fish was no exception.

I didn't get much sketching today. It was all images "in" and few images "out" although I managed a little drawing of a Slaty-tailed Trogon which I watched for several minutes from the railing of the restaurant. You can see the trogon in the image at right, in the center along the main trunk if you look at it close-up. Since the restaurant is high above the ground, you can look DOWN into the trees for lots of great sightings.

12/18 (my dad's birthday ~ he would have been 109 today!)
After yesterday's birding activity, I was all set for some solo adventuring and major sketching, so I took the trail down to the beach, pausing frequently to appreciate the flora along the way.

I'd been hoping to find an Ojo de Buey, which is the Ox-eye seed that grows on a vine along the trail. Imagine my delight to find the vine producing huge, fresh seedpods. I reached up to touch the fuzzy surface and immediatly got a handful of tiny spines! It took me ten minutes to pull them all out. Glad I had my binoculars ~ looking at the stickers through the wrong end magnified them enormously and I was able to get all those little buggers out. Ouch!

Looking around, I was able to find two seeds from last year along the trail. What beauties! One was to be for Daniel. Sure wish he had been able to come along ~ but I was having a blast nevertheless.

Continuing down the hill and out onto the sand, I was met in the very first minute by a scarlet macaw gleaning almonds in the beach almond tree at the foot of the trail. Beach almond trees almost always have some red and yellow leaves, so the macaw was amazingly difficult to see. I was able to get a quick outline sketch of another one I saw further down the beach, then I was delighted to find a bedraggled-but-beautiful macaw feather washed up by the waves.

I came across what for a brief moment I took to be a set of tractor tracks in the sand ~ but then remembering that there are no tractors around, I realized it was the trail of a sea turtle coming from the ocean to lay her eggs, then returning to sea. I sketched the tracks and the nest site, then continued on down the beach, picking up seedpods and fallen tree flowers to sketch as I went.

Snuggling into my favorite sketching spot in the shade of a huge black rock just yards from the surf, I sketched until my bum was numb (good thing I brought that little sitting pad, or I wouldn't have lasted as long!). Here's part of one sketch page ~ the end of the feather crossed over onto the facing page. I really like this drawing.

After a break I sketched other things I'd found on the sand, discovered some ocelot tracks (they look like big house-cat tracks), then headed back up the trail for lunch. But I almost missed lunch when I got seriously sidetracked by an amazing thing I hadn't seen on my trip down earlier...

At first glance, it was obviously a clump of mushrooms. But these "mushrooms" had evenly spaced bumps on them (no mushroom has those), and the oldest, wilted-looking one had actual flowers poking up out of each bump! Gera later identified it for me as Helosis cayennensis (it IS cayenne-colored) and not all that commonly seen. What a thrill!

During happy hour in the restaurant lounge, I decided to try drawing by the light of my battery-powered book-light (remember, it gets dark on the equator by 6pm), and I am happy to report that it works extraordinarily well. Here's a balsa pod I drew and painted with watercolor pencils solely by the light of the booklight (plus a candle, delivered by the waiter, Eljer, unasked, to light the pod). It worked perfectly!

That meant I'd have evenings to draw and sketch both here and later on the Amazon (I packed extra batteries, just in case). With this realization, I grinned, put up my feet, and relaxed with my Margarita. The perfect end to a great day.

Costa Rica Sketch Journal ~ July 10, 2008

We went birding with Gerardo today. Gerardo is superb with the scope and always knows where to find the birds. We had excellent viewing since he took us to an anticline (a place where various habitats meet and blend) of forest, beach, meadow, and stream. Do remember to click on the thumbnail photos here for a larger view!

There was a Tico on a horse, herding the cattle, which appear to be a Brahma crossed with some other breed. Many are white, but there are some gorgeous spotted ones. Having been raised on a farm, I am attracted to cattle, which I think amuses Dan'l

We saw more than 23 new bird species, one of which was a rare Pearl Kite, not even listed as being in this part of Costa Rica. I gave Gerardo my Costa Rica birdbook when I left because a previous guest had walked off with his copy, so I can't look it up and confirm it, but I think that's correct.

I got a photo of the kites through the spotting scope, and also a pair of nuzzling macaws. I'd like to get a lot better at photographing through the scope. The problem with trying to do it on a birding trip is that everyone else either wants to look or take a photo, too, so there's no possibility of hogging the scope while waiting around for a good pose.

The scarlet macaws are a bit blurry, but their character, at least, shows in the photo. I was keeping a birding list from the time we landed in San José till the time we left, and although I had seen a couple of the birds from the birding trip previously on our vacation, the main list we saw is in the right-hand column of the journal page.

After our return and breakfast, I meandered around El Remanso's beautiful grounds for awhile, snapping photos of some of the amazing heliconia flowers, then sketching the rare, solitary Ghost Bat that hangs in the rafters of the Yoga Pavillion, and finally just sitting on our terraza watching the birds flit in and out of the shrubbery with the binoculars and writing in my journal.

Later I got a massage because I was feeling a bit bedraggled. I thought that maybe I was having too much fun, but I was actually coming down with a case of Montezuma's Revenge, which was taking its toll on Daniel, too. So the wonderful massage was the second high point of my day.

Watching dusk descend is a regular evening delight with the insect and frog choruses striking up and pulsing in the warm air. Night temperatures hovered around 65° to 70°, just perfect for sleeping, so sitting out to watch the forest and the fireflies by moonlight (half a moon so far) was one of my favorite things. Tonight it rained, so there was that added attraction as well, watching lightning and counting the seconds to determine how far away the strikes were .

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The Southern Swamp Explorer Update: My printer rep just called to ask how things were going on preparation of The Southern Swamp Explorer, and when I told him the cover painting was only half done he mentioned that their queue is now about four weeks, so if I get everything to them by, say, next Monday -- all the book files and the cover, ready to print, it would still be the first part of September before I get my books. Yikes. So I'm going to be jamming on that cover painting for the rest of the day. I'll try to put up a scan tomorrow on my progress.

Costa Rica Nature Journal/Sketching Workshop ~ 6

We were all getting dangerously accustomed to being pampered. Meals at El Remanso are always gorgeous and delicious; we were waited on hand and foot by friendly, competent staff; our rooms were tidied as soon as we left them in the mornings; lovely drinks were brought to us by the pool in the late afternoons as we watched the sunset or swam; beautiful, fascinating, and intriguing things to sketch and journal about were all around. What more could we possibly wish?

This morning at 6:30, Marilyn and I went out to see Jocelyn and Kathy off as they zipped out on the zipline to Gerardo in the huge old canopy tree for breakfast. There, for more than an hour, they absorbed the wonder of their eyrie, sketched, and ate their breakfast seventy feet above the ground amid singing birds and passing monkeys, coming back later with slightly glazed eyes and faraway expressions. Here are a few photos of their experience:

And here are a couple more.

Since this morning's class was expressive writing -- paragraphs, haiku, poetry, they had a perfect subject for their musings. We focussed on making an attractive page with evocative writing (as opposed to terse mutterings), then moved into haiku, which pleased everyone. Here's a haiku from each, seventeen syllables, nature subjects, two ideas, one short and one long, and both related:

Kathy's

Jocelyn's






Marilyn's

They were all very pleased with those, as well they should be. While they were quietly meditating, scribbling lines, erasing, and chewing off hangnails, I got a chance to do a few of my own ~ actually, I'd gotten up with the howlers early in the morning and had dashed off a whole string of them around sunrise. But I did some more in class.

I think those haikus are quite adequate (see on the journal page), but I know that a Japanese poet might spend days on a single haiku, so I realize that mine/ours could probably use some polish. Still, they dress up a page amazingly, much the same way a little sketch does. For instance, my little haiku:

Scarlet macaws,
swiftly passing, long tails trailing.
Two-by-two you fly.

lends itself to my little drawing of flying macaws. Two of them had passed overhead as I was haikuing earlier that morning, and I wanted to commemorate it.

After we had experimented awhile with the haiku, we tried some short poetry. This was fun, as well, with the whole class getting a bit bawdy as we put some of our experiences into 4-liners. After introducing the concept and helping the students with meter and cadence, I worked on a little poem to fill the empty spaces on my journal's Magnificent Frigatebird skull page (another good use for a poem ~ to fill an empty space).

After lunch, we got to the calligraphy part of the workshop. Jocelyn, who has produced calligraphy greeting cards, hangings, logos, and other professional projects, had offered ahead of time to lend her expertise to this section of the class, and I was delighted to have her input. My calligraphy is somewhat plodding ~ I know the basic principles, and I can make recognizable calligraphy letters, but my main thrust in calligraphy has been to use individual letters as initial caps on pages.

Watching Jocelyn produce her beautiful script was humbling ~ I realized that I should leave the teaching of this ancient craft to professionals in the future. Marilyn is quite capable in calligraphy, as well (see her haiku, above) , and even she far outshone my feeble efforts (you'll see an example of mine in tomorrow's blog ~ try not to be cruel).

THEREFORE. I have decided that in future classes, I will be teaching my new Organic Vacation Font, which I freely admit is a take-off on the hand-lettered font created by Danny Gregory, my hero and fellow journalist who wrote The Creative License, Giving Yourself Permission to Be The Artist You Truly Are. The great thing about this font is that 1) you can make it look any way you want it to, 2) you can't get it wrong, and 3) every time you make a letter it can look different (look at each "a" in the example ~ and that's just a sample.) I hope Danny doesn't mind, but I had just discovered its unique character and was using it in my journal for this trip. I highly recommend his book, by the way. It is chock full of ideas and concepts to help you become a versatile and accomplished journaler. He has written and illustrated numerous others, as well

The Organic Vacation Font is the perfect font to dress up a journal, and it really lends itself to a carefree, fun vacation narrative. I'll teach that, but I'll also have some nice calligraphy examples for those who like a slightly more formal look. That's still in the development stages. As I mentioned yesterday, I learn from my students, and I think I learned quite a bit during this class day.

We finished for the afternoon and went our separate ways to hike or swim or to sketch and journal. I spent some time quietly meditating, sketching and writing on the yoga platform, then watching Gaia turn the lights down. A tropical sunset is a very calming experience.