As my husband and I have been traveling around Costa Rica, like homeless gypsy wanderers, we have witnessed many things that will forever be seared into our memories. Monkeys and sloths crossing the road, 6-foot pit vipers trying to kill us, a pod of 300 dolphins surrounding our boat, tourists being robbed by a pack of rambunctious raccoons, 30 mammoth crocodiles piled up on the shore of a river, spiders the size of our heads…I could go on and on. The animal encounters we get to witness are mind-blowing. The diversity of the wildlife in this country truly is remarkable and we rarely have to leave our house to meet a new animal. A few days ago I was once again reminded of the incredible animals that exist in this portion of the country, as I had three up-close, lifetime bucket list experiences, within a 24-hour-period. My 24-hours of Costa Rican ecstasy began with a bumpy afternoon beach drive on our favorite beach: Playa Linda. The roads in Costa Rica are a special kind of horrible, but this is not always a bad thing. The potholes and multiple river crossings force you to slow down and enjoy the scenery. Creeping along at 5mph, as Andy dodges potholes with his expert driving skills, I happen to notice a large, furry blob clinging to a palm tree. We pull over and admire an adult sloth in the midst of an afternoon slumber. Sloths are only found in Central and South America, so it is a treat to see one in the wild. Although there are many sloths in Costa Rica, they can be hard to spot as they rarely move and have impressive camouflage. We are lucky to spot one with our bare eyes, this has only happened to us a handful of times in our travels around this country. Seeing a sloth in an animal rescue center is one thing, but seeing one in the wild is a majestic and humbling reminder that Mother Nature is one spectacular broad. Still riding my sloth high from the day before, I greet the next morning as the cloud forest rolls through our valley of jungle, with my steaming mug of potent Costa Rican coffee. Just as I take my first sip I hear a ferocious racket in the sky. 16 rare Scarlet Macaws, who mate for life, are doing a fly-by of their favorite tree. Like a gang, they shriek and holler at the family of green Mealy parrots inhabiting their perch, letting them know who is boss of this wall of jungle. Scarlet Macaws only exist in a few small sections of this country, and we are lucky enough to live in one of these areas. We have witnessed a family of 9 flying by before, but seeing 16 at one time is truly a spectacular and unique event, even for this part of Costa Rica. Just when I think it cannot get better, a troop of 50 rare squirrel monkeys invade our yard without warning. They trickle in, swarming the trees like an undercover squat team, and begin to fly through our treetops. Squirrel monkeys are the smallest monkeys in Costa Rica, they are about the size of a squirrel and typically weight only 1.5 pounds. Here is a video I caught of them crossing through our own personal monkey highway: *(right click on below link and open in new tab)* Squirrel monkeys in Costa Rica: MONKEY CROSSING! The chirping squirrel monkeys swarm the foliage, jumping from branch to branch, squeaking back and forth to each other, as they forage the trees for birds nests to raid. A family of Fiery-billed Aracari Toucans keeps a close watch on their competitors. This squirrel monkey family is their direct competition for food, as they both feed on eggs and nestlings of smaller birds. Suddenly there is a dramatic commotion in the trees, and an aggressive squirrel monkey confronts a toucan. They are similar in size and have an intense standoff over a nest. The monkey is squeaking aggressively while the toucan tries to stand his ground…but the monkey wins and violently shoves the toucan out of the tree. Sadly I did not get the monkey/toucan fight on video, but was able to capture this video of the pair right before their confrontation: *(right click on below link and open in new tab)* Squirrel monkey and a Toucan sharing a tree in Costa Rica These 24 hours of incredible animal encounters will always be a part of me, an event I can revisit time and time again in my mind. A napping beach sloth, 16 scarlet macaws soaring overhead, and a troop of 50 squirrel monkeys passing through the monkey highway in our yard, pausing only to shove a toucan out of a tree. I truly don't know of another place on the planet where these 3 phenomenal experiences can happen in the wild, within a 24-hour-period. We are so blessed to live in such a place. Pura Vida. Peace. Gracias. OneLove. Namaste. And Audios Bitchachos.
101 Comments
8/26/2016 11:09:48 am
While you almost lost me at "spiders the size of our heads," this read like scenes from a movie or from pages of a storybook! What an amazing adventure and once in a lifetime experience!!
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Kari
8/26/2016 11:39:28 am
It truly is :)
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Kari
8/26/2016 11:50:30 am
Costa Rica is very colorful and full of wildlife!
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jose
8/26/2016 12:33:43 pm
Interesting fingers on that monkey. Are these photos from Andy's camera?
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Kari
8/26/2016 12:45:10 pm
I took these with our long zoom lens Canon camera, it takes great photos
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Kari
8/26/2016 01:54:54 pm
My pleasure, thanks for reading :)
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Kari
8/26/2016 07:08:12 pm
It was pretty nuts! Thank you :)
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I absolutely love that you saw a sloth in the wild. I would be beside myself with excitement too! I've got Costa Rica on my bucket list for the sloth sanctuaries, but now I am realising that there are many more species of wildlife there I can look forward to seeing. Your photos are beautiful.
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Kari
8/27/2016 05:29:39 am
It is spectacular seeing a sloth in the wild! Costa Rica is a must-see, the animals alone are worth the trip!
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Kari
8/27/2016 05:30:03 am
Thank you!
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Kari
8/27/2016 05:30:31 am
Me too! They are the coolest :)
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Kari
8/27/2016 06:48:35 am
Be warned! After your first trip the itch will only get worse and you will be dying to return! :)
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Wendy Silcox
8/27/2016 11:51:49 am
Kari - Wonderful blog...makes me want to return even more! Steep road or not! Miss you guys! Hope to see you in CR soon! I love that you got to see the sloth...good, alert eyes!
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Kari
8/27/2016 12:07:19 pm
They are not easy to spot! Thanks, we hope to see you guys very soon!
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8/27/2016 12:02:25 pm
I also found the Costa Rican wildlife to be astonishing. My faves we're seeing leatherback sea turtles nesting and a Tapir in the forest
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Kari
8/27/2016 12:07:42 pm
Awesome, I would love to see both!!
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8/27/2016 02:12:11 pm
Wow your photos are incredible and make me want to book a visit tomorrow! Just wow! I'm a real wildlife gal so this was a treat to learn about. Thank you so much for sharing!
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Kari
8/27/2016 03:25:10 pm
My pleasure, Costa Rica never disappoints!
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8/27/2016 09:01:21 pm
Seeing the Scarlet Macaws fly by most have been beautiful! All those colors! I would love to hold a sloth! It must be awesome to see one in their natural habitat!
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Kari
8/28/2016 08:43:52 am
It is incredible! On the Caribbean side there is a sloth sanctuary where you can pay to go to the back and see and hold baby sloths :)
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8/29/2016 05:12:29 pm
What an amazing adventure in Costa Rica. I love the monkeys, they look like they're up to no good. And those birds! So lovely and enjoyed the post.
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Kari
8/30/2016 08:11:04 am
Thank you!
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Jessica
8/29/2016 08:08:54 pm
You got such great pictures!! Hope you are having a wonderful time!
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Kari
8/30/2016 08:11:36 am
Thanks, we are!
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8/29/2016 08:16:09 pm
wow - your pics are stunning and make me wanna book a flight! The spiders the size of your head makes me hesitate a bit though. :)
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Kari
8/30/2016 08:12:12 am
Me too about the spiders!
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8/29/2016 08:35:39 pm
What a great experience! We went to a wildlife park in Fiji over the weekend and it was amazing to see certain creatures up close and personal!
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Kari
8/30/2016 08:12:48 am
Awesome, would love to see Fiji!!!
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8/30/2016 07:38:15 am
Kari, your blog always gets me excited about going to Central America at some stage. Your sloth photo is amazing and should appear in a National Geographic magazine. Same with the leaping monkey. xo
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Kari
8/30/2016 08:13:34 am
Thanks!! :)
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Kari
8/30/2016 05:40:37 pm
Thanks!
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8/30/2016 10:43:49 am
I was just in Costa Rica this past April. I loved it. I can't wait to go back. It really is the prettiest jungle that I have ever seen
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Kari
8/30/2016 05:41:05 pm
It is!!
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Kari
8/30/2016 05:41:40 pm
Thank you
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Kari
8/30/2016 07:25:41 pm
It is pretty amazing! I could do without the spiders though :)
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Kari
8/30/2016 07:27:25 pm
Pura vida is the best :)
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Kari
8/30/2016 07:27:52 pm
It was pretty spectacular!
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Kari
8/30/2016 07:37:13 pm
I bet the monkey robbers happened in Manuel Antonio Park? They are notorious for that there, I have watched so many monkeys and raccoons rob so many people :)
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8/30/2016 07:53:35 pm
Love your pictures! Those toucans are my favourite!
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Kari
8/31/2016 06:24:04 am
Thanks, mine too!
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8/30/2016 08:21:44 pm
Your photos are amazing! I love sloths so much and I'd love to go to Costa Rica to see them....and I just saw a good fare there (hmm). Super inspiring!
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Kari
8/31/2016 06:24:30 am
BOOK IT!! :)
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8/30/2016 08:28:40 pm
Yay to dolphins, boo to vipers! I absolutely love the vibrancy of all your photos, especially the toucan shots! Really hoping to make it to Costa Rica one day :)
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Kari
8/31/2016 06:29:09 am
Thanks, you definitely should!
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Kari
8/31/2016 06:29:40 am
Yes there is :)
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8/31/2016 01:36:43 am
Wow, what a trip! And the macaus fly-by looks wonderful! At first glance, they kinda looked like kites to me, ha!
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Kari
8/31/2016 06:30:22 am
Haha, they do!
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Kari
8/31/2016 06:31:02 am
Thank you so much :)
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:20:06 pm
Mine too :)
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8/31/2016 04:37:20 pm
Your photos of the animals are amazing! I love the colors on the toucan. And seeing the squirrel monkeys sounds really exciting!
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:20:37 pm
gracias :)
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I wish I had been able to capture pictures like these when I was in Costa Rica! I learned quickly that a better quality camera was absolutely necessary. The wildlife in Costa Rica was by far my favorite part. Just goes to show you don't have to spend a ton of money to see amazing things
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:21:21 pm
So true - we rarely have to leave our house to see amazing animals.
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8/31/2016 09:04:01 pm
So wonderful! We didn't get a chance to see any sloths when were were there, but we did see some monkeys in the trees, which was fun! Definitely some beautiful scenery and wildlife in costa rica!
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:21:50 pm
For sure :)
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:29:44 pm
You should!!!!
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:30:34 pm
Ha ha, yes it is SO true!
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:31:07 pm
Oh it is!!
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:31:39 pm
They are my favorite!!
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:29:06 pm
Gracias :)
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:28:16 pm
CR is such a vibrant place...
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:27:34 pm
I was blown away by the macaws too...what is even crazier is that a few days later my husband and I saw 19 at once!!
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9/14/2016 04:43:37 pm
Looks like you had an amazing experience! Your photos are great!! Costa Rice is definitely on my bucket list :)
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:26:43 pm
Thanks for stopping by!
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:25:59 pm
You won't be disappointed!!
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:25:25 pm
Aw how special, it truly is a paradise :)
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9/15/2016 02:15:59 am
I love wildlife and animals. The 24 hours you describe would be a dream come true for me. The pictures look amazing. I saw a sloth in Panama and really like them.
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:24:51 pm
SLOTHS RULE!!! :)
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:24:10 pm
Oh I was!! :)
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It must be an amazing experience to live in a place with so much wild life! I'm not sure I'd enjoy the "6-foot pit vipers trying to kill us" and the "spiders the size of our heads" (ugh!!), but the sloth, the scarlet macaws and the squirrel monkeys sound great :)
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:23:43 pm
Yes I have a hard time with those also...
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9/15/2016 09:12:43 am
Wow, amazing photos! I would love to see these animals up close and personal some day. Especially the macaws and sloths :) Thanks for this post!
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:23:05 pm
Always my pleasure :)
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Kari
10/12/2016 02:22:29 pm
It sure is :)
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12/24/2018 10:41:25 am
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Kari Pinkerton SilcoxIt would be a tragedy to die, having never really lived. Which is why my husband Andy and I quit our jobs, sold our house and decided to chase our dreams. We moved to Costa Rica without a plan, and this is the story of our adventure. POPULAR POSTS:
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