On Thursday December 13th, I was invited on a trip to isla Chíra. Isla Chíra is Costa Rica’s second largest island, which covers an area of 43km². It is located in the gulf of Nicoya, close to the mouth of the river Tempisque.
Isla Chíra belongs to the province of Puntarenas. It has approximately 3000 inhabitants, and has 3 schools including one high school. Most of the inhabitants live off farming and fishing. The area on and around Isla Chíra is said to be Costa’s most diverse dry rainforest fauna. The island has its own fisherman association, and a “Asociación mujeres artesanas” which is a women’s association that makes handmade arts & crafts.
We left at 11:30 AM from an area called San Pablo in our rented boat. It was said to be 1 hour boat ride, but we arrived at the island in less than 50 minutes. We were with a group of 14 people, and had rented a not-so-luxurious-boat for ₵25.000 ($50 USD), which I thought was a very reasonable price.
The ride there was amazingly beautiful. You have to picture yourself in a canal surrounded by all kinds of mangroves , tropical rainforest trees, beautiful birds, and – oh yeah – the troops of crocodiles! That’s kind of scary if you overthink it, especially given the small size of the boat – and the huge size of the creatures surrounding you – but it also gives you an amazing feeling that such things are possible!
After getting through the “canal,” the island comes into sight. I wasn’t expecting very much of this small island in terms of development, so when I got there it wasn’t a surprise that there wasn’t very much there. A couple of bed & breakfasts, maybe 2 “sodas”(very small restaurants), a church, a soccer field and the “Asociación mujeres artesanas” were a few of the only “attractions” I saw.
We were driven around in a mini-bus, and got a little tour of the island. Here and there you could spot a couple of kids getting cooled off and having a blast playing in and around the water. It all looked very tranquil, peaceful.
But of course, after a 30 min drive you’ve more or less seen it all. We arrived at a small “soda” at the fishermen’s market, and sat there, drank something and relaxed a little. Before we knew it, it was already 4 PM and time to go back while the tide was still high.
We had to hurry, because in the afternoon the tide will go out and the canal will dry up, making it impossible to continue by boat. This would mean that we would have to get out and walk the rest of the journey (in the vicinity of all those crocodiles!) or, we’d have to return and sleep over at the island. Two options that none of us wanted! So our best option was to hurry up!
At our departure point some people went up to the fish market and bought some fresh fish. As I was looking at the beautiful sunset over the hills, and the still water I was thinking how this was the perfect end to a beautiful day. However a little incident caused us a bit of a scare. A little kid almost drowned when his mother left him unattended, but thankfully everything worked out fine. Actually one of the park rangers who was part of our group, Dorian Mendez, saved the little boy’s life!
All in all I would say that Isla Chíra is the perfect get away from the hectic world. It’s a great place to find some peace and tranquility, and enjoy and appreciate the wonders of mother nature. It’s also nice to explore paths that you wouldn’t normally have a chance to get to know on a tour in a car.
I believe it’s also possible to rent bikes on the island. That is something I would definitely like to do on my next visit. That way you get the opportunity to cycle around and explore little roads that aren’t accessible by car, all while also doing a little exercise.
If you or anyone you know is interested in doing a tour to this island, please contact us so we can give you some tips and advice or even help you arrange your trip!
By Tiffany Dunker, Marketing Intern
