Las Alturas

We went to Las Alturas yesterday for a quick overnight trip in order to see a huge forest not too far from Las Cruces.  We drove two hours to a beautiful, more rustic cabin in the mountains.  No heat, no Internet, and electricity only from 6-9PM when the generator is on.  We unpacked and then had a lecture about the area.

Las Alturas was fascinating to learn about.  It is a farm community of 49 families that is owned by a wealthy American businessman.  They grow organic produce and honey for local consumption and have a small seedling nursery.  The bottom third of the property used to be selectively logged, so the trees are grown as part of a reforestation effort.  The rest of the property is untouched primary forest that is next to La Amistad International Park, a protected area shared by Costa Rica and Panama in the Talamaca range.

Seedlings

This morning we made a two hour hike from an elevation of 1500m to 2100m.  It was obviously steep but the beauty of the forest made the hike worth it.  At first the forest looks like a typical thickly vegetated forest, but transitions into a forest dominated by oak and bamboo, and the very top is a dwarf forest with tons of orchids.

Forest at low elevation

Forest at high elevation

Around an hour into the hike, we heard the calls of White-headed Capuchins from far away.  Hearing their loud vocalizations took my breath away.  I assumed that this was the closest thing I would have to any contact with monkeys and already considered the hike to be a huge success.

However, about twenty minutes later the people in front of me stopped hiking and started staring into the trees.  High up in the canopy about 75m away we could see a Spider Monkey swinging through the trees!  The monkey was so graceful and much bigger than I expected.  The monkey was obscured by branches after about 30 seconds, swung away through the forest, and then disappeared as suddenly as we had spotted it.  Although the moment was brief, I felt like I was rooted in spot for several years.  A monkey just passed by me.  In a rain forest.  Where I had already heard other monkeys.  Life does not get much better than this.  If I could spend everyday hiking outside and getting to experince nature like this, I would be the happiest person in the world.  It amazes me that this forest is big enough to support several species of monkeys and that this individual Spider Monkey felt comfortable enough to forage near a large group of noisy people.

I spent the rest of the hike in a state of delirious happiness.  The view from the top was almost as spectacular.  All that was visible as far as the eye could see across the moutains was forest.  Pure unadultered forest.  It was a gorgeous sight.  Although I don't think any of my picture of the rain forest do it justice, I found it impossible to capture just how majestic a sea of forest actually is to see. 
Las Alturas was definitely one of my favorite trips so far.  I can only hope that the rest of the semester will be as eventful and beautiful.