| Costa Rica Venture log (2003-06-18 -> 2003-07-08)
Leaders: Mike Ioli & Margot Rubin
Students: Matt Beath, Laura Bradley, Molly Fisher, Lisa Isaacs, Ashley Jones, Hannah Larson, Mary Beth Reed, Louise Short, Trip Taylor, Katie Wear, Taylor Williams
Rainforest Hike, June 19 - June 26
Mike and Margot called to let the office know that the group has come out of the rain forest and home stay portion of their adventure and everyone is doing excellently! Moreover, the trip could not be going better. The group is getting along really well and having a blast. They took 4x4 taxis from Santa Maria into the cloud forest and camped at a huge waterfall for the first night. From there, they hiked into a village where they stayed with different families and helped out with everyday life. Finally, they hiked to the Fonseca house where they tree climbed, water fall rappelled and basically learned about the jungle and how to live in it. The group is accompanied by Freddy Fonseca, a local guide and villager who is a tremendous part of this portion of the trip. He grew up in the area and his father helps lead the tree climb and the rappel. Freddy is a jungle expert and he has bonded with the group so well, they have requested that he stay with them the entire trip!
Louise Short was Leader of the Day for an extremely tough hike. She did an outstanding job getting the group to where they were headed. She also was a natural on the waterfall rappel. Katie Wear was the LOD on a 9 hour hike to one house. She never lost the way and also delivered the crew in safely! Taylor has the wonderful ability to put the group first, ahead of himself. Because of this, he is a favorite of everyone! Trip is taking his time here by the horns; he is learning at every opportunity and really getting into the culture. Molly Fisher is acting as the mortar for the group. Her ability to relate to everyone has helped the group communicate. Laura acted as an overall leader on the whole backpacking section due to her alumni status and is really improving her Spanish. Matt Beath is the full time comic relief for the group. He is a huge help and always keeps spirits high. Mary Beth is an outgoing leader who was a huge help on the trail translating the messages from Freddy to the whole group. Ashley is taking on new challenges everyday and having a blast. She is always the first to step up and get involved in whatever is going on. Lisa is the one who is always smiling. Her good spirit is contagious and she helps the group through their tougher moments. Hannah is the work horse. She is always pushing herself and it really showed during the water fall rappel. She was incredible on it!!
So you know: the group helped plant Mahogany trees in a place where they have become nearly extinct as a service project. They spent time with native families and helped them with their chores and watched over their children. They also took medicinal hikes and learned about the cures growing in the rain forest, water fall rappelled and climbed an enormous rainforest tree. The group also participated in an old fashioned sweat lodge, ceremony and all!
Needless to say, they are doing fantastic! They are on their way to the Osa Peninsula to sea kayak.
Sea Kayaking, Osa Peninsula, 6/27 - 7/1
The group finished their sea kayaking and now headed to their 2nd backpacking section. The weather was outstanding and the group spent most of their time enjoying the tropical blue water of the southern Osa Peninsula. They saw many dolphins and camped with countless monkeys. Molly had never been in the ocean and had quite a day! She loved the water and got stuck in the mud at low tide, which was a funny sight.
Hannah and Mary Beth mastered the doable kayak, which is more difficult. They exhibited excellent teamwork and were great partners.
Louise conquered her fear of oceans and also got stuck in the mud at low tide.
Laura continued to be a great leader during the kayaking and helps the group along. She loved the water!
Taylor was LOD on a really long day. The group woke up at 3:30 am to get started to kayak across the gulf. They kayaked 9 miles in 3 hrs to finish off watching the beautiful sunrise.
Trip saw some monkeys AND dolphins! What a wildlife spotter! He is also a great paddler!
Katie continues to be a rock star. She has excellent EB.
Matt cannot get enough of the water. Margot says it is hard to get him out! He has also enjoyed tasting the tropical fruits of the area.
Ashley is another constant swimmer. She is a huge fan of the nature hikes and enjoys the beauty of all that is around her.
Backpacking in P.I.L.A., 7/2 - 7/5
Mike called to say the Costa Rican group has backpacked into La Amistad National Park (PILA) and made it out successfully. The trip was excellent and the entire crew performed perfectly. PILA is a national park that holds the entire ridge line of the country's tallest peaks. The mountains in PILA border Mt Chirripo. The group was dropped off at a ranger station where they met their park guide. The group then hiked deep into the park staying at rustic cabins inside the interior. The park holds incredible opportunities for beautiful views and cascading waterfalls. The abundance of wildlife and exotic birds is what makes this place a national treasure. Mike said that the hikes were steep, hot and long and the crew stuck together and really performed well in the mountain jungle. Louise was the leader for the long hike into the jungle and she was flawless. Taylor is the carrier of the group load both literally and figuratively. He is strong as an ox and has an outstanding attitude. Trip led the group on the hike up to the cabin. He set perfect pacing for the steep climbs. Laura acts as the group motivator. She is so positive and encouraging to everyone! Molly keeps the spirits high and leads by example. She is a mudder. Mike says she hikes best in the mud and is great at helping the others through it! Matt is a huge morale booster for the group. His positive attitude and funny sense of humor is so replenishing for everyone else. Hannah led the crew on the hike out. It was a steep downhill and was very wet. Her pacing and decision making was perfect and the group walked out successfully. Katie is always there to help everyone else. She is forever the first to volunteer to help with whatever needs to be done. Ashley is the group teacher. She is always taking in her surroundings and communicating her excellent insight to the others in the group. She really seems to be enjoying the cultural aspect of the trip. Finally Mary Beth is absolutely conquering the entire trip. She seizes every opportunity to be involved and takes full advantage of it. She is active in every part of the adventure and seems to love it all!
The group misses the awesome spirit and wonderful attitude of their brave group member Lisa Isaacs. She handled herself so well through so many tough situations. Everyone wishes she was still in the country and hopes she is feeling better. As you all can see: the group is tight and having a blast. Right now they are on the beautiful Pacuare River for two days of whitewater fun.
Rafting the Pacuare River and Close, July 5 - July 8
"Wow!" was Margot's response regarding the rafting trip. She said the Pacuare River was so beautiful and so much fun for everyone. There were thousands of cascading tropical waterfalls and exhilarating rapid after rapid. This all took place not on a cold mountain river but on a warm and clear tropical river! She also mentioned that the group could not believe they were still on a Moondance trip due to there stay in the Pacuare River Lodge during their night on the river. The place was amazing and the food incredible. The group definitely deserved a little special treatment after their long and challenging journey in Costa Rica. After two challenging backpacking sections with rain and plenty of mud and a challenging sea kayaking section, it was time for this crew to kick back and have some pure fun with little work. They all paddled like champions for the river section and all had a blast too. They said it was the perfect way to end the trip. Once they were off the river, they moved back to San Jose for their final night and banquet. Mike said the group stayed up late their final night reflecting on the trip and saying their good byes. He could not believe how fast the time had passed. Although it was a full 3 weeks, he said they stayed so busy that the time flew by. He could not say enough good things about his Costa Rican crew and he mentioned that Lisa Isaacs was constantly brought up during the final moon-up. Her departure was tough on everyone since her positive attitude was such an inspiration to the whole group. Mike said that everyone is on a plane on their way to the States and he will not be far behind them. Mike and Margot have a ton of stories to tell about their group and all of their wild adventures.
Back to 2003 Logs
Back to Trip Logs
|
|
