Gandoca
- Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge :
Travel
to Costa Rica
:A recent addition to the Costa Rican system of parks
and refuges and one of a growing number of protected
areas that includes marine environments, this refuge
consists of 5,013 ha. in its terrestrial portion and
4,436 ha. of marine habitat. The five-kilometer stretch
off the coast from the village of Manzanillo to the
area known as Punta Mona (Monkey Point) is populated
by more live coral than is found on the reef at Cahuita
to the north, however, the Manzanillo corals have not
yet developed formations as large as those at Cahuita.
The refuge extends to the Sixaola River, which forms
the border with Panama. Several other important habitats
are protected in the southeastern sector of the refuge,
including a sea turtle nesting beach, an estuary with
a large population of red mangrove that serves as a
spawning site for Atlantic Tarpon, oysters, and many
other marine organisms, and a 400 ha. area of swamp
forest in which the most common plant is the Raphia
Palm -- a short-trunked palm tree having the distinction
of being the plant with the largest leaves in the world,
since each frond can reach lengths of 12 m. or more.
Getting there: From Puerto Limón,  take
the road south towards Cahuita and Bribri, but after
Cahuita take the turn off in Hone Creek for Puerto Viejo
and follow the dirt road all the way to where it ends
in Manzanillo. From Manzanillo you can hike to Punta
Mona (min. 5 hrs., round-trip). There are one or two
public buses a day that run from Manzanillo to Limón.
The southeastern part of the refuge is reached by driving
to Bribri and continuing on to the town of Sixaola where
a boat must be hired to go downriver to the mouth (at
least 3 hrs., round-trip). An alternative, if you have
a 4X4 vehicle or hire a jeep taxi, is to drive through
the banana plantations west of Sixaola to get to the
settlement of Gandoca. In Gandoca, inquire about hiring
a dugout for exploring the Gandoca River estuary. There
is direct bus service from San José all the way
to Sixaola.
It is probably safe to venture that the Gandoca-Manzanillo
Wildlife Refuge is one of the least visited reserves
in the National Park system.
Fishing: Although potential ought to exist in
the area with the important estuaries, no industry or
facilities have yet been developed.
Climate: Very warm and humid, the driest months
are March and April.
History: The inclusion of this area in the National
Park system is in large part due to the efforts of a
group known as ANAI (Asociación de los Nuevos
Alquimistas) that has its roots in the New Alchemy Institute
in North Carolina. A group of people belonging to this
organization have been working in the region for several
decades in projects concerning tropical agriculture
systems and appropriate technology and saw the need
to protect the remaining bits of land still in their
natural state.
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