Sensing lunch, the crocodile made a beeline towards the man standing on the muddy riverbank.
This was not a small croc. We’d seen him swimming out in the channel of the Tarcoles river in the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica.
He was not alone. The riverbanks, sandbars, and tree snags all provided homes for crocs of various sizes, and inasmuch as you can get a sense of what’s on a crocodile’s mind, they all appeared to be thinking “come closer, I’m hungry.” And it was clear that when we beached the boat and the guide stepped out for a presentation that the croc had him square in his sights.
It was the final excursion of a trip to Costa Rica. We were finishing in the Guanacaste region, in the northwest of the country on the Pacific coast. Compared to what we’d seen of the rest of the country it was dryer and less humid, but also hotter. It’s also famous for its beaches.
I’m not really a hang out on the beach and work on my tan sort of guy, but I have to admit, after the torrid pace of the rest of the trip it was nice when the itinerary had us warming our heels at the beach of an upscale hotel/resort. Admittedly, it wasn’t a great spot to take in the local culture – most of the locals probably couldn’t afford the place, even at the good rates we seemed to have scored in the tour package. But for a spot to kick back for a day, it was hard to complain.
Although the beach was lovely, and a confident swimmer could enjoy a bit of body surfing, at midday the heat drove us away from the sand and into the hotel pools, including an infinity pool on the end closest to the ocean. I spent so much time in the water my fingers pruned up, toes pruned up, and my belly would have pruned up too, except I’d eaten so well on that trip the extra 10 pounds smoothed out those wrinkles.
Despite all that luxury, the memorable moments were at days end.
Have you ever experienced a sunset that goes from nice to incredible and back again? Where anywhere you look is glorious? Where even someone who barely knows which end of a camera to point forward can take a great picture? Soak this in, and ease your mind and soul…
Are you all relaxed now? Can you hear the sound of the surf and smell the light sea breeze? Has the setting sun and warm colors erased the memories of that big crocodile seeing the man on the muddy beach thinking “one big snap of my jaws…”?
Oh yeah, that crocodile. The day after our relaxing sojourn we did a cruise on the Tarcoles river, through a mangrove and biological reserve, and past a nesting area for scarlet macaws. And at the end of the river was El Jose Loco and his “pet” crocodile.
Ok, it’s not as bad as it looks, although you couldn’t pay me to swap places with Jose. These crocs had gotten used to being fed by the guides; clearly not with fingers as Jose is still digitally intact, but with chunks of chicken.
Moments before this picture was taken, Jose was dangling a bit of chicken above the snout of the croc. Once the croc started going for the chicken Jose dropped it and raised his hand. Crocodile jaws went SNAP, the camera’s shutter went snap, and the chicken disappeared.
I still wouldn’t want to be next to the croc when it figures out that the appetizers are gone, but there’s a good sized meal standing inches away.
After this excursion we headed back to San Jose for our farewell dinner. It was the end of our trip, and the end of my Costa Rica stories, at least for now. But so your last memory is not of some crazy brave Costa Rican risking life and limb for a bunch of gringo tourists, here’s a mellower amen.
Those are beautiful sunsets! I’m glad the croc is “tame.”
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Amazing that such a big croc could be “tamed” by the promise of a couple small pieces of chicken, albeit on a regular basis.
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Loco indeed! I don’t think I could be persuaded to try that!
But lovely sunsets, indeed. And it certainly looked like it was a great trip.
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It was a great trip. My only complaint was the tour company kept us on a tight leash, so our exposure to the “real” culture was pretty limited.
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That’s a shame. Perhaps now you’ve been there once, you could organise an independent trip?
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Actually I’ve been there twice. I went back in the 90’s, when I was still single. While most of that trip was with a group, I went down solo a few days early to do some diving and definitely got more local exposure then. But that’s a whole different story…
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A story that needs to be told…?
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Probably. I still have more photos from the last trip, and a whole set from the first one, so there’s some stories behind that. Grist for a future mill – that’s why I stated at the end of this one “at least for now.”
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Good-oh!
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Your sunset is beautiful! I love your perspective through the tree limb. Very nice!!
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Thanks. 🙂 I find adding some foreground to a shot adds depth and interest, and silhouettes add drama. But I was lucky with the lighting that night, you can thank Mother Nature for that.
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I wish we had trees along the Atlantic coast. That would be so nice!!
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Whew, I’m stressed just looking at the photos if croc-feeding… I’d better look at the sunset pictures… Ah yes, calm again.
Lovely.
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Every time I see that shot I always end up counting his fingers, just to make sure he’s done it safely before.
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Great photos, especially the croc gliding through the water. So sinister!
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Yeah, looking at that guy you can get a sense of why crocodiles have been around for 85 million years. Even evolution steps back when it sees them coming.
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Your last photo really is a stunner. Well, they are all nice, but that one took my heart rate right down! Thanks for sharing Costa Rica with us!
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Hmm, that one is a nice coda, isn’t it?
Back in the late 70’s I accidently took an awesome shot of a kid playing in the surf. A few weeks later when I finally saw the picture (remember waiting for film to be processed?) I discovered I had I severely underexposed the shot because of shooting into the sun. I’d turned day into night, silhouetting the boy and a background cliff, making a ho-hum shot dramatic. Ever since then I’ve had a weakness for pictures of kids playing in surf, especially if the lighting has potential.
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Stunning photos and most interesting narrative!
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Thanks. I was wondering if I was going too far by mixing crocodiles and sunsets, but it seems to have worked out.
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Stunning sunset and what an experience with crocodiles! 🙂 We saw the crocodiles under the bridge on our way to Puntarenas. It was mind blowing too! 😀
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Yes, the bridge is a nice safe distance. I wouldn’t want to go swimming there though.
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Beautiful sunset! People and animals have to live side by side, somehow.
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Beautiful sunset! I would have to say that this is the first post I’ve seen that combined sunsets and crocodiles. Great job!
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Yeah, I wasn’t sure that combining two such dissimilar things in the same post was a good idea. But it seems to have worked out.
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Cripes. Loco sums it up!
Gorgeous sunsets btw.
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It takes all kinds I guess. But Jose gets to relax with those nice sunsets and probably a bottle of cerveza, so he’s probably not too stressed out.
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