broken computer...

Last night I wrote a very long account of my lastest adventure complete with dozens of picture, but as things in Costa Rica would go the internet wasn't working. So I planned on posting it today. However I woke up without a working computer, most likely due to salty humid air. My computer will be spending the night in a bag of rice and will hopefully work in the morning. Of not I will keep an account of the happenings and publish them all asap.  Thanks everyone who has been following my posts and stay patient.

Ready the Turtle Dog

Just doing his job, making sure all the babies make it to sea.

So today I bare very sad news and I am fighting back tears as I write this. My turtle dog Ready, who has made countless appearances in my blog entries and has a special place in my heart, has passed away. He was hit by a car today in Playa San Miguel just hours after I switched back to Costa De Oro. Writing about my past few days in San Miguel seem irrelevant now. So I am devoting my post today to pictures of one of the greatest dogs I have known and to the kind people (Alvaro, Meadow and Alicia) who were with him. I am going to miss him greatly!

Ready's famous doggie yoga

Just checking out the monkeys with us.

Ready using an umbrella to hide from the rain

Ready watching the sunset in San Miguel


While looking for my favorite pictures of Ready, I realized what an impact he had on most peoples time with PRETOMA. Every single volunteer  took pictures of Ready, which just further proves what a special dog he was.

Turtles, Laguna Mar and Food!

Laura and I putting eggs in the hatchery

Saturday we began patrol around 9, which was perfect because the rain had finally stopped and the tides were good for turtles. Laura, Kristy and I headed to the north and during the patrol we got 2 turtles. We had perfect timing so we got to see both turtles dig the nests, lay the eggs and return to sea. However, the best part was the fact that despite there being tons of people on the beach (most likely poachers due to it being the weekend) we didn't have a single poached nest. The boys walked south and didn't get anything, which gave me an idea. It would be better to have 2 patrol times where the north is the focus and the south is checked after. This way we can spend more time working where the turtles seem to be nesting.

Group shot by the pool.

Matt, Victor, Laura and Kristy playing Othella by the pool.

The hatchery chart I made for Costa De Oro.
I am pretty proud of it!

Sunday we all decided to go check out Laguna Mar Hotel since it was the girls last full day on the project. It was really fun we had a couple drinks, played some Othello, swam in the pool and ate a really good lunch. I even got to take a hot shower and call home! After talking with Laura and Kristy, we decided that a trip up to the hotel might be the perfect way for all volunteers to end their time in Costa De Oro.

I had a hard time saying goodbye to
the local kids even though I am
only leaving them for a week.

Last night we tested out our new patrol method and found it to be much better. We were able to put 5 more nests in the hatchery and Laura got to see two nesting turtles her last night on the beach. If we keeping having nights like this the hatchery is going to be filled before we know it.

Then this morning I had to get all packed up to return to San Miguel again and say good bye to another set of great volunteers.

I figured I would share some of the food highlights from this past week. Who know I could cook!

Green beans wrapped in bacon.
Drew's treat!

Lunch at Laguna Mar
Chicken sandwich with bbq sauce, bacon and pineapple.
I was in heaven!

Chicken Tacos

Homemade pizza with sauteed mushrooms, onions and peppers.

Victors grilled veggies with
my homemade onion garlic flatbread

Hatchery, Children, Paint and Turtles

Its amazing how much has happened here in just 3 days. I feel like we have barely stopped moving.

Santi and Jon Carlos helping with the fence

Wednesday, we got out in the hatchery again in the afternoon. The plan was to get the last 9 post in the ground and see if you could close the hatchery up. When we got out there we had lots of Tico help, but we were also 3 posts short. Lotti and Erik couldn't make it back to the beach until the following Wednesday to help us cut the posts. So we were told to wait until then or find driftwood on the beach.  Having worked so hard cleaning the almond wood posts and making sure they were the same heights none of us could fathom just putting some random drift wood in and we sure weren't willing to wait a week to finish the hatchery. I mean there are turtles to protect! So we asked around and I was able to pay a local to come out and help Victor cut the last 3 posts. While the last 3 posts were being debarked, everyone else was helping secure the net. As the sun was setting we were able to get all the posts in place and wrap all 30 meters of net around the hatchery, but it still wasn't ready to put eggs in it. We didn’t have a door plus the net was too low so dogs could easily get in and finally there was no grid system in place yet. So left with hopes of finishing and placing the first eggs in on Thursday night.

A little English homework

While saying goodnight to the local kids they turned towards us and instead of saying "buenas noches" they said "goodnight" and "I will see you tomorrow" This of course gives me an idea. I let them know that there are lots of volunteers here that speak English and if they need help on their English homework we would be glad to help. I said this thinking maybe this could be a weekly or bi-weekly thing when the hatchery is finished. Little did I know they had English homework due the next day they had been struggling with. So 10 minutes later we have 5 kids in out kitchen with notebooks ready for Spanish tutoring. Matt and I split the kids and each helped with a couple of assignments and 45 minutes later we were finally able to eat dinner and head out for patrol.

Wednesday night there were no turtles which in a way made me feel better about not finishing the hatchery, but it still sucks patrolling and not having a turtle or even a turtle track.

Paint scrapping is hard work

Thursday morning the PRETOMA truck came and us all up to take us the big town of San Francisco de Coyote, where there is not one but two grocery stores, where we were scheduled to help paint the school. When we got there we were handed paint scratchers and metal sponges to clean and chip away the paint on a 50 foot long wall. We were met there by 4 other PRETOMA personal 2 of which were research assistants for Playa Caletas. One of them was from Portugal and had worked with turtles in Cape Verde and the other was from California. When I asked which part he said "Davis, its just west of Sacramento." I replied that I knew where Davis was I had graduated from UC Davis. As we got to talking we realized not only did we partake in the same graduation ceremony, but also had taken classes together. Small world and it keeps getting smaller.

After a few hours of paint scraping and lunch a local restaurant, we are taken back to Costa De Oro and were back to work on the hatchery. Victor's job make a door. Matt's job paint the sector numbers on the beach. My job with the help of the locals is to finish wrapping the second net around the posts to make it so dogs can't jump in. Well with all the local help it turns into me supervising while the men nail the net up. Afterwards, Kirsty, Laura (English volunteers) and I make the grid system. We calculate we have enough room for a pathway town the middle and about 115 nests. Once again, we work until sunset, but decide it was worth it because the hatchery was finally ready to put eggs in!

We ate dinner and were all anxious to begin patrol. When we got outside we realized the storm was a brewing and we all turned back around and changed into clothes better fitting for the rain. As we walked it is raining so hard its nearly impossible to see two feet in front of you, but we did end up finding a track in the last sector of the beach. As Matt and I looked at the nest bed (which is nearly washed away) we started guessing where the eggs might be. After a bunch of pointing around and a bruised ego (I usually quite good at finding eggs in the first couple tries) we determine d there were no eggs and walked back to the house.

Since turtles like the rain we decided to head back out at 4:00AM to see if we could find some eggs to put in the hatchery. So Matt walked to the south and Victor and I to the north. As we walked we noticed a lot of people on the beach; they too know its good turtle weather. Victor and I walked quicker in hopes to beat them to any possible eggs. Well when we got to the track from the night before I see a guy, his two dogs and a machete pointing around. Victor and I decided to play up the research so he started measuring the track and I took the data book up to the nest bed and started taking notices. We asked  if  there were eggs and he started digging and pulling out eggs. It felt like someone had kicked me. Not only did we have this nest before, this would have been our first nest for the hatchery and I get to witness it getting poached. I couldn't believe I couldn't find it. I just watched silently as he was tossing the eggs out of the hole and into the sand next to him…

He had pulled out maybe 50 eggs before he looked at me and said well aren't you going to put them in YOUR bag. I was stunned, he was giving me the eggs. I thanked him and introduced myself and told him these are the first eggs for the new hatchery!  We walked away with 100 eggs as I replayed the night before in my head and vowed to never make that mistake again. I can't believe how lucky I am.

We radio ahead to the house and woke the other girls up so they could be part of just a momentous occasion. When we got to the hatchery everyone was waiting and cameras were out (one plus to getting the eggs during the morning was we could really document). Everyone looked at me and said "Its your nest, you get to do the honors!"  

Almond Posts and Nesting Turtles

Carrying a bucket of sand like the
Costa Ricas.

The last couple days have been crazy. I had been hoping to put the first nest in the hatchery on Monday night, but unfortunately it's still not finished.

Monday afternoon with the help of a lot of locals we were able to finally fill the hole completely with sand. When it was full it was so surreal that it was actually over. I thought that the next portion would be quick maybe and hour or two and that we could have the hatchery up and running Tuesday night. But once again I had my hopes set  just a little too high.

Tuesday, we went out to the hatchery and measured it and mapped out the posts on the computer.  I thought it would be easy. We would just dig the holes for the posts and place them in. Then dig a trench and place the net in. I figured 2 hours tops. Well I was wrong!

Erik, Andre, and other locals
showing off hatchery posts.

The first problem we ran into was Victor found a beautiful almond tree that had been cut down. So he and Erik went and cut 8 foot posts, but all the posts had bark on them and bark houses bugs which we don’t want in the hatchery. So Victor and a few locals spent Tuesday afternoon debarking 22 post with machetes and axes. While some of the local kids, volunteers and I went looking for small pieces of drift wood to use a stakes to hold the grid in place.

Hatchery Tuesday evening- Posts and some fencing in

By the time the sunset we had 13 posts debarked and in the ground and the first part of the fence placed on one side of the hatchery. Today we will hopefully finish the hatchery and be able to put the first nest in before I switch back to San Miguel on Friday.

As for turtles we didn't have anything last night, but I think it might have been my fault.  I think we should have patrolled later; the tide was still pretty high when we went out so the turtles may have come later. The big challenge on this beach is going to be figuring out what time to patrol since we only have 3-4 hours of patrol on a beach that is almost 5km compared to the 5-6 hours on 2.5Km San Miguel beach.

Me digging the first nest of the year in Costa De Oro.

Monday night we had on false crawl to the north and one to the south of the station house, but no nesting turtles. Sunday night we had two nesting turtles and we saw them both. The first was huge and she was just reaching the water when we reached her. She was beautiful and laid 137 eggs. The second was just beginning to dig her hole when we approached. She was super close to the house, so I ran back to the house and got the Victor and Kristy who had patrolled to the south so they could see her too. The turtle laid 101 eggs and we moved both nests near to the house so we could keep an eye on them.

Sunset on Costa De Oro looking towards San Miguel
You can see all the way to Samara.

If you are interested in seeing egg, nesting turtle and baby release count for each beach check the turtle tracker on the side of the page. I will try to keep it as up to date as possible.

Uh-oh this dog is pretty cute and very sweet.
Might have already found a PRETOMA dog for Costa De Oro...

The local kids showed up early Monday morning before school to bring me pictures they had drawn for me.  Most of the pictures were of turtles or the hatchery.

Playing with Fish Guts Again

For anyone who doesn't know I worked for Hubbs Seaworld Research Institute for a couple months after graduation and before returning to Costa Rica. While I was there I was a fish tech for the white sea bass fish hatchery. I learned a ton, but I also had to touch a lot of dead fish. The experience there made me totally prepared for what I did for PRETOMA yesterday.

Friday afternoon we received our first volunteers, Laura and Kristy, to Costa De Oro. So I took the girls on a short patrol to the north and the boys went to the south. We returned to the house 2 hours later without seeing a turtle, but very exhausted after such long day working in the hatchery.  So we all went to bed by 10pm knowing  we would have to get up at 430AM to help measure fish.

Looking across the river at the fishing village.

At 4:30 AM Matt, Victor and I woke up, ate some cereal, drank some cold coffee and were out the door. We had to walk about 3km south to the large estuary, but when we got on the beach we realized the tide was still coming in and it would be nearly impossible to continue without getting hit by waves. We decided to cut back onto the road continue from there. Little did we know the road was going to be as beautiful as it was. It was full of wildlife and flowers. When we finally got back on the beach and to the estuary it was just before 6AM. Right then we got a phone call from Erik, the sustainable fisheries coordinator  from PRETOMA we were going to meet up with, saying he was going to be a little late since the boat got stuck in some rocks.

Fishing boat

Around 7:30 we see the boat coming into the mouth of the estuary navigating through the large surf.  The boat comes and picks us up and minutes later we are across the river where a group of locals are waiting to help clean the fish before they are packaged for market. However our job is to help Erik take measurements of 3 different types of fish Red Snapper, Yellow-tailed Red Snapper and a Jackfish.

They caught an eel too.

Erik pulls out a table and scale and he measures the fish's length and weight. Then comes the fun part. He removes the gonads and determines sex, maturity and then weighs the gonads. Afterwards, all the organs are ripped out of the fish and it is weighed again. All of this is recorded for about 50 fish. While doing this Erik explains that PRETOMA is helping the local fishermen obtain a certificate to become the first sustainable fishery operation in Central America.  With this certificate the local fishermen can gain higher dollar for their fish. Erik also explains all the fishing is done by hook and line, not net, so its much safer for turtles. After 2 hours of working with the fishermen they give us some of the by-catch and we are taken home in the PRETOMA truck.

At 1 AM we went out on patrol, Victor, Laura and I went to the south and about 500m from the house we see a turtle track. We collect 96 eggs and continue on our patrol without seeing another nest. When we get back to the house we place the eggs out in front of the house because the hatchery isn't ready yet. We head back to bed feeling a sense of accomplishment finding the first official nest at Costa De Oro.

Photo credits to Victor Maisano since my camera is broken again!

The Big Move

Front Porch of the new place

My new bedroom.
Yes it is a full sized bed!

Tuesday afternoon, Maddie and I flipped a coin to see who would be the first to go to the new house in Costa De Oro. After it landing on heads, which meant Maddie was staying, I began writing a list of everything I had to do in the next 24 hours to get ready to switch beaches. Luckily Maddie and I have the "master bedroom" at each location so I could take only what I really needed.

Beautiful watercolor drawing done by
one of the most amazing volunteers.
She gave it to me as a going away gift.

Wednesday afternoon all of the volunteers , Matt, Victor and I loaded into the white PRETOMA truck to head over to Costa De Oro to do a little more hatchery filling.  After a couple hours and a lot of help from the locals we made another slight dent. This feels like a never ending job! My goal is to put the first nest in the new hatchery on Monday night. Wish me luck!!!

Hatchery coming along slowly but surely.

At sunset everyone left and Matt, Victor and I had the house to ourselves. We made some basic pasta and went to bed early because we were walking  the beach at 4:00 AM to get a feel for the new location. During the patrol we saw one false crawl (turtle walks onshore and returns to the ocean without a nest attempt) and saw a few people walking the beach.  Overall the morning walk was beautiful as we watched the full moon disappear as the sun rose.