Barra del colorado

We come with a strange fixation on Barra del Colorado for some time now. This is due to several reasons, with the main one being its mystery.

Although Barra del Colorado Wildlife Refuge is a continuation of Tortuguero National Park, featuring the same dense rainforest and vast rainwater systems lazily flowing into a turbulent Caribbean Sea, it doesn’t enjoy the same tourist interest. Additionally, it is the site of a border conflict between Costa Rica and Nicaragua. This enhances the geopolitical importance of the area and adds a strange sense of civic duty to go and explore it.

That’s why we are recruiting 10 adventurers to share this first adventure to Barra del Colorado. The plan is simple. Thanks to the esteemed Karla Taylor, daughter of the legendary Miss Junie from Tortuguero, I obtained the contact of a reliable boatman. Don Eduardo will be our captain and guide. He will pick us up at the port of Puerto Lindo to transport us to the town of Barra del Colorado. Between these two points, there are 20 km of river, a lagoon, hectares of forest I wouldn’t dare to estimate, and a few beers for the journey (or natural juices for those who don’t want to start drinking early. Natural juices like lukewarm tap water).

The Colorado River divides the town of Barra del Colorado in two. Our lunch awaits us in Barra Colorado Sur, at Kawe Lodge, our home for the night. Once on land and well-fed, we are ready to explore the town and its surroundings. Barra Sur is situated between the river and the sea, offering a long beach and an airstrip suitable for cocktails at sunset.

The highlight of the second day is to search for the San Juan River by circling Isla Brava. First through Caño Bravo, which cuts through Isla Calero from Isla Brava to the birth of the Colorado River, which flows south from the San Juan River, continuing its meandering to the east. We then navigate the mighty Colorado River again until we reach the town crossing to turn back on our way to Puerto Lindo.

Already enthralled by everything we have seen, we arrive at Puerto Lindo and negotiate a lunch at the restaurant at the port before happily heading back home in the afternoon. Simple.

P.S. We are traveling close to the new moon, which increases the chance of seeing different predator species at night.

Interesting Facts according to SINAC:

It is the largest refuge in Costa Rica in terms of flora and fauna. It constitutes a single landscape unit with Tortuguero National Park through the system of river channels connecting the port of Moín with Barra del Colorado.

The refuge encompasses 50 km of coastal area, as well as countless kilometers of canals, lagoons, rivers, river islands, forests, swamps (2,700 hectares), yolillars, and hills (former volcanic cones) with altitudes below 230 meters above sea level. It contains the San Juan, Colorado, and Chirripó rivers, which flow into the Caribbean Sea, nourished by the abundant precipitation in the area.

Within the refuge, there is the Northeast Caribbean Wetland (75,310 hectares), which is a Ramsar Site protected worldwide. This wetland includes Tortuguero National Park (23,903 hectares), Barra del Colorado Wildlife Refuge (40,315.1 hectares), and the Costa Rica-Nicaragua Border Refuge (11,091.7 hectares), extending both in the marine and continental areas.