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Santa Rosa
National Park:
Travel
to Costa Rica
: One of the first national parks to be
declared, Santa Rosa is important for its history, geology,
and ecology. The old hacienda buildings have been preserved
as a cultural and historical museum, especially commemorating
the Battle of Santa Rosa in 1856.
The rocks that form much of the Santa
Elena peninsula in the extreme western sector of the
park are among the oldest in Costa Rica dating back
to the Cretaceous period, some 130 million years ago.
The forested portions of the park comprise a large percentage
of the precious little remaining area of tropical dry
forest habitat throughout all of Central America.
In addition to providing refuge to the
many plants and animals adapted to dry forest conditions,
Santa Rosa protects two important sea turtle nesting
beaches, Naranjo and Nancite. The latter is one of two
beaches in Costa Rica (the other is Ostional)
where Pacific Ridley Sea Turtles come ashore each year
in large concentrations to lay their eggs.
Among the many creatures inhabiting the
49,515 hectares of Santa Rosa National Park, some of
the more commonly seen species include: White-tailed
Deer, Long-tongued Bats (that roost in the historic
buildings), White-throated Capuchin Monkeys, White-throated
Magpie-Jays, Orange-fronted Parakeets, and Roadside
Hawks.
The vegetation in most parts of the park
is characterized by being deciduous and many plant species
remain leafless for much of the dry season as a means
of conserving precious moisture. Another common feature
of the dry forest vegetation is the high percentage
of plants that have thorns or spines. The prevalence
of this form of mechanical protection has led tropical
biologist, Dr. Daniel Janzen, to speculate that this
defense evolved eons ago in response to the pressure
from huge herbivores such as Giant Ground Sloths and
Mastodons that once roamed this region. Whatever the
evolutionary reason may be, do be careful what you touch
or brush up against in the tropical dry forest!
Getting there: From the town of
Liberia, the main entrance to Santa Rosa National Park
lies 32 km. north on the PanAmerican Highway. Public
buses going to the town of La Cruz will let you off
at the main gate. From here, it is another 10 km. to
the administration area and the historical buildings.
The 12 km. dirt road from the administration to Naranjo
beach is normally passable only in the dry season with
a four-wheel-drive vehicle (check with park service
personnel before attempting this drive). Nancite beach
is restricted because of turtle nesting and research
programs, so advance permission is required to visit
this beach -- which involves a difficult hike from Naranjo
beach.
The less-developed northern sector of
the park, known as Murciélago, can be reached
by continuing another 10 km. north on the highway before
turning left on the paved road that winds down to the
coastal village of Cuajiniquil. The park ranger station
is another 9 km. to the west.
Fishing: Although a bit far from
most of the deep-sea fishing operations in northern
Guanacaste, the Bat Islands (Islas Murciélago)
off the Santa Elena Peninsula are well-known as a productive
fishing spot, and are also a popular scuba-diving site.
Climate: Hot throughout the year,
the chance of rain is almost nil from December to April.
The rainy season which lasts from May until November
is normally punctuated by a several-week dry period
in July and August.
History: In 1855, a brilliant,
but somewhat megalomaniacal, young North American named
William Walker arrived in Nicaragua in time to bolster
a flailing regime. As a result of his efforts, he set
himself up as Commander-in-Chief of Nicaragua, and with
the support of a mercenary army of international origin
and the financial backing of interests from the Confederate
Union of the southern United States, began a military
campaign to conquer Central America.
His sights turned first towards Costa
Rica. When word of the invasion reached San José,
President Juan Rafael Mora organized a civilian militia
to march to Guanacaste and confront the filibusteros,
as the mercenaries were known.
When the Costa Rican forces reached the
hacienda of Santa Rosa on March 20, 1856, the mercenaries
were housed in the main farm building, La Casona.
The ensuing battle lasted all of fourteen minutes with
the national militia victorious in ousting the invaders.
[This being the "epic" battle of Costa Rican history
gives an insight into just how peaceful the nation's
history has been.]
The filibusteros were followed
back across the border into Nicaragua where the Costa
Ricans clashed again with the mercenaries in the decisive
battle in the town of Rivas on April 11, 1856.
Walker himself was not present in either
of these battles, but after seeing his plans thwarted
by the valiant defense presented by the Central American
nations, he fled Nicaragua and returned to the U.S.
where he practiced law for two years in San Francisco.
He was unable to completely forget his ideas for a Central
American takeover and in 1860 he returned to the region,
but was captured and put on trial for treason by the
government of Honduras. His death in front of a firing
squad put an end to this strange chapter in the region's
history.
History proved that it does repeat itself,
and Santa Rosa was again the site of battles between
Costa Rican troops and invading forces from Nicaragua
in both 1919 and 1955. The first was an attempt to overthrow
the dictatorship of General Federico Tinoco, the second
was a coup attempt against the government of José
Figueres Ferrer.
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