Wet season in Caño Palma, Northern Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica

It is always good to know that in Costa Rica, the definition of the dry season is very wet! So, some of you more astute readers may ask: “what is the definition of the wet season then?” The answer would be, of course, Super Saturated! Welcome to Caño Palma, dry season style!

This week, in the middle of the dry season, our beloved Caño Palma succumbed to another onslaught from the rising waters of the surrounding caños. On Friday evening, after a day of continuous rain, the river had risen to the top of the boat dock. Hoping for good weather, the team were determined to carry on surveys the next day.

Come 04:00 Saturday morning, in time for the boat preparations for bird surveys, the river had risen again to just above the footpaths. Birding in the National Park would have been impossible with a strong current dragging at the boat. The inevitable happened and we had to cancel. Instead, the gang decided to go to Tortuguero for the day to keep our spirits up and our feet dry.

The following day, water levels were increasing further at about 1cm per hour. The whistle was blown; we threw in the towel and prepared for evacuation to our friends at the Caribbean Conservation Corporation (CCC) in Tortuguero. The Expedition Members stayed there for one night before departing for their week 5 break. At its height, the water level rose to 211cm before receding back to normal levels.

Wet season in Caño Palma, Northern Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica