ANTEATER SITING

This afternoon when walking along the path to the studio we had an anteater siting. Approximately 100 feet before the studio there is an old rotting tree stump. As you cross the small creek and start up the stairs, it is easy to spot. Today, enjoying a big meal of termites that live in this tree stump was an anteater. Luckily, this tree stump is close enough to the studio to go get the camera and return.

As we took his photo, he simply worked his way around the stump, always on guard, but not willing to leave such an abundant meal. He is so cute that you just want to pick him up and squeeze him. He looks like a soft stuffed animal. But beware. His front nails are very sharp and a force to be reckoned with. One slash of these claws and he can kill small predators. It is not uncommon for anteaters to kill dogs that get too close.

This is the second siting of an anteater in a week. Late last week he was spotted crossing the road between the casitas and the studio. We are assuming that it is the same anteater. We hope to have many more sitings of him in the future.

GREENHOUSE REVISITED

As a follow up to my blog earlier this year, I am happy to announce that the Monte Azul organic greenhouse has been completed. The new structure´s construction was finished in mid January. Since that time we have been busy preparing the planting beds, starting seedlings and watching the plants grow.

The planting beds are now on the ground instead or raised beds. We have even found a use for the empty wine bottles from Café Blue. We invert these bottles and bury the neck in the ground. In a row, these bottles become a permanent, weather resistant border that we fill with soil. Our hotel guests really seem to like this wine bottle idea.

The plants are all doing extremely well. Our cooks at Café Blue are very pleased with the produce that is again available to them from the Monte Azul greenhouses. Thes guests seem to love the fresh organic produce as well. Some organic produce in the greenhouse includes 4 types of lettuce, 2 types of argula, sweet peppers, hot peppers, basil, thyme, rosemary, parsley, cilantro, celery, tomatoes, and various types of onions. We are also experimenting with Belgium endive, shallots, soybeans and bok choi.

The green house also includes our coffee bean drying area and earthworm composting area. We had our neighbor, Wilberth, the local earthworm expert and Swiss cheese maker, come over and give us all a workshop on how to use the earthworms for composting. He was kind enough to bring us a big bucket of worms to get us started. These worms seem to really love the organic waste from Café Blue.

The only problem we have experienced so far with the new greenhouse is that is is already too small. We have it filled and want to plant more things. We have already started looking at plans to build a second greenhouse. I will keep you posted.

The 4th DOG ARRIVES AT MONTE AZUL

For years we have been able to hold the line at 3 dogs at Monte Azul. A month ago Carlos and I have stepped over this line and have adopted a 4^th dog. Up to this point we had been able to limit our canine family to 3: 1 inside and 2 outside. Tyler was always the “top dog” in the group and received all of the pampering and comforts of indoor living. When she died in August of 2007, she was quickly followed by Scooter a few weeks later. Scooter appeared in the road one day near the cafetal. He was a cute chubby 6 week old puppy in need of a home. How could we not take him in? He became the new 3^rd dog.

In March 2010, Shadow died unexpectedly. A few weeks later Paco appeared in the road frail, emaciated and in need of a home. Paco became the new 3^rd dog and took over the inside dog space with Cookie and Scooter being outside. All was right in the Monte Azul dog universe, 3 dogs, just the way it was supposed to be.

Jump to March 2011. Things changed. We received a call from our neighbor that there were hunters on our property. In addition to Monte Azul’s anti-hunting position, hunting is illegal in Costa Rica, anywhere, anytime, any animal. Our workers quickly went into action to confront these hunters. We found them, took their information, contacted he local authorities and told them to leave our property which they did.

However, they left their dog behind. The dog was out in the forest during the "arrest" of the 2 hunters. We captured the dog and were surprised at his condition. He was very thin, old, covered in fleas, visible cataracts in both eyes and battle scars all over his body. We did our usual routine and took him right to the veterinarian for an examination. We named him Hunter, based upon his previous occupation.

It has been several weeks now and Hunter has gained weight, no longer has worms, fleas or mite nests in his ears. Because of his age, he is now the 2^nd inside dog and 4th dog in total. He is a very gentle dog and has made himself quite at home in the studio. He is now retired and enjoys sleeping in the chair during the day and in a soft bed at night. Hunter and Paco love to play between naps. Here are a few photos of Hunter in the studio.

My only concern is that we have crossed the “3 dogs only” line. Who knows where this dog family end?

NEWEST RESIDENT – A THREE-TOED SLOTH

Monte Azul is very pleased to announce the arrival of another three-toed sloth to the property. Our friends at Cloud Bridge Reserve were called upon to rescue a sloth from a house in Rivas last week. The sloth appeared in a residential area with no forest in the immediate vicinity for the sloth to call home.

Cloud Bridge Reserve is located up the Chirripo Valley (http://cloudbridgereserve.wordpress.com/) at a much higher elevation than Monte Azul. Since three-toed sloths do not thrive in these higher elevations, the folks at Cloud Bridge brought him/her to Monte Azul. He /she was released into the primary rain forest just above Café Blue. We are very pleased to have another sloth on our property.

This new sloth will join the previous three-toed sloth rescued by Carlos in June 2010. This sloth was found near San Isidro. The neighbors had noticed that the sloth was crossing a very busy road once per week. Because a sloth’s metabolism is so slow, they only defecate once per week. They climb down to the ground, “do their business” and then climb back into the tree tops. This particular sloth had recently decided that the best place to defecate was on the other side of this dangerous road. The neighbors were very worried that this sloth would be hit by a car and were looking for a safe home for him/her. So Carlos brought him home and we released him/her in the primary rain forest near the studio.

I know that ther is also one other sloth on the property. In May 2008, our gardener spotted a sloth in the trees on the southern edge of the property. This was the first such sighting in the area in 10 years. Everyone at Monte Azul and the area was very excited. The forest regeneration work that the area was doing was bringing back and supporting the native sloths.

I have attached a few photos of these welcomed residents. If we spot them again, I will be sure and let you know.

RACE TO CHIRRIPO

On February 26, 2011, the 23^rd International Cross Country Race to Chirripo was held. Chirripo is the highest peak in Costa Rica and it is a once in a life time event for most people who climb this mountain. From the park entrance, at approximately 4,400 feet above sea level, it is an 8-9 hour hike to the base camp at 11,000+ feet followed by another 3-4 hour hike to reach the summit at 12,350 feet above sea level. Most hikers spend the night at base camp and reach the summit the following morning.

For the competitors in the Carerra Chirripo it is a bit different. These runners come from all over the world to challenge themselves and other competitors in this grueling race, and grueling it is. It is a total of 34 km (23 miles). The 17 km uphill is all about your lung capacity and conditioning as the air gets thinner and thinner. The 17 km downhill is all about the punishment on your knees and ankles. The winner of the race makes this brutal journey in approximately 3 hours, 15 minutes. Incredible! Even more incredible is that there has never been winner of this event from outside of Costa Rica.

This year there were 225 participants. This included Monte Azul’s Andy Cardenas. Andy is the head cook at Café Blue. In his spare time, he is also a porter for hikers to Chirripo. Andy will run the visitor’s possessions to the base camp in the morning and then return to Café Blue to cook lunch and dinner for hotel guests that same day.

Monte Azul is very proud to have sponsored Andy this year and are pleased to announce that Andy finished 33^rd with a time of 4 hours, 15 minutes.

For more information about this race go to www.carrerachirripo.com. Or if you want to attempt the climb on your own, Monte Azul can arrange a luxury package for you including porter service.

AN UNUSUAL DELAY

This week Carlos and I were fortunate enough to make a trip to the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica for a little time away from the day-to-day business of Monte Azul. We headed to Tortuga Lodge in Tortuguero. Even though Costa Rica is a small country, traveling from one location to another can be time consuming. The driving time from Monte Azul to Tortuguero on the northern Caribbean coast would be around 9 hours.

To significantly reduce this travel time, we decided to do what many travelers in Costa Rica do and take a puddle jumper. Our plan consisted of driving to the Quepos airport which is approximately 1 ½ hours away and flying to San Jose and then onto Tortuguero. There are 2 small airlines in Costa Rica that fly to the many small regional airports. These airlines are Nature Air and Sansa. The flights are very short in duration ranging from 20-30 minutes.

On our way back home, we flew from Tortuguero to San Jose which took 22 minutes. The Tortuguero Airport is little more than a landing strip that runs parallel between the Tortuguero River and the Atlantic Ocean, literally steps from either and lined with palm trees. We took a 2 minute boat ride from Tortuga Lodge to get to the plane. We stood with 6 or 7 other people on the tarmac watching the plane arrive. Then quickly boarded and took off within minutes. It was like something out of a movie.

We arrived in San Jose and had a short layover before heading onto Quepos. After they announce that they were ready to board and started out to the plane we were stopped by an official. Our flight would be delayed for a few minutes. It seemed that a large iguana had made his way out onto the tarmac and was being rescued. The large fire truck made its way out into the tropical sun and 2 firemen emerged to capture the wayward iguana.

The iguana was quickly in the hands of the firemen. The rescuer walked over to the group of us so that we could get a closer look and the iguana, pet him and take a few photos. The iguana didn’t seem to mind the attention. As we boarded the plane and took off, we could see the iguana being taken to the park across the street and released.

As we flew away there was a sense of amazement that it wasn’t about meeting a flight schedule but more about the safety and well being of the iguana. I am sure that everyone on that plane will remember him for a long time. I know that I will. I have attached a photo of this iguana and the fire truck used to remove him from danger.

SANTA LUCIA SPRINGS ETERNAL

Summer has arrived in Costa Rica as it does every year. It begins at the end of November and runs through end April. With the dry season come the tourists from all over the world. Many come from Europe and North America seeking a respite from the cold winter. Not only do the visitors get to bask in the warm sunshine and blue skies but they also get to experience the bounty of summer flowers that emerge as the rains come to an end.

It is amazing how many flowers bloom in the dry part of the year. They are everywhere you look. One of the most conspicuous and plentiful is Santa Lucia. It is one of the first summer flowers to emerge and signals to the country that the heavy rains of October and early November have come to an end.

Santa Lucia seems to bloom great numbers overnight. One day it is nowhere to be seen and the next day it is everywhere. It grows n fields, hillsides, along the roads, anywhere that there is plenty of sunshine. Alone it is a pretty little periwinkle colored flower atop a weed-like plant. But in numbers it becomes spectacular. It turns entire pastures into beautiful blue ocean meadows.

Santa Lucia also has a secret. Costa Rica tradition says that if you pick a flower and place it in your wallet, you will always have money. Some say that it only works with the white Sana Lucia flowers which are in smaller numbers. Either way, there are plenty of both colors at Monte Azul so why take a chance. Pick a flower of each color put it in your wallet. This way you will be assured of having enough money for your return visit to Costa Rica.