Profundidad de navegación: Principal / Descripcion de los Programas

Neotropicourses - Extended Term

Ecology, Community and Adventure: Camping Experience

Description of program activities

- Lecture “Corcovado National Park Travel Behavior and Expectations”: due to the special peculiarities of visiting Corcovado National Park, participants will receive a lecture about the characteristics of Corcovado National Park, standards of behavior and safety during the trip.

- Visit to the “Golden Jaguar Project”: on the edge of Corcovado National Park there is a community of gold panning called Cerro de Oro. Its members have begun to develop a small tourism project in which visitors have the opportunity to participate in artisanal gold panning workshops.

- Camping in Quebrada La Tarde project: located only 5 kilometers from Los Patos, first ranger station of Corcovado National Park, visitors will have the opportunity to camp the first night at a family tourism project before entering the National Park.

- Hike from Los Patos Ranger Stations to Sirena Biological Station: this is the first hike inside Corcovado National Park. It is a 23 Km. hike that will take visitors to the more developed ranger station in the park. This is located in the middle of tropical jungle, allowing people to enjoy the most diverse area in Costa Rica in terms of biodiversity.

- Ups and Downs Debriefs: Throughout this experience participants will have the opportunity to debrief their time in the program. These sessions will help to bring out the positive and negative aspects of the field visit in order to maintain the quality of the adventure and participants´ team spirit.

- Hike in Ollas and Rio Claro trails: near the Sirena Ranger Station there are many interesting places to visit. These trails will allow the participants to observe one of the most pristine areas in the park. Additionally, visitors will enjoy the river to cool down.



- Hike in Los Naranjos and Guanacaste trails: another opportunity to explore the rainforest around the Sirena Ranger Station. On this occasion, participants can visit the Sirena river and participate in a sighting of crocodiles and alligators.

- Night Walk: there will be a short hike around the airfield of the station to observe nocturnal wildlife and try to find one of the most striking of local species, the tapir.

- Hike to the La Leona Rangers Station: this hike of approximately 16 km long from the last ranger station visited, will take participants to enjoy a good time at the beach.

- Hike to Carate: a final walk approximately 3.5 km long to reach the town of Carate, followed by a truck ride that will take the group to the main shopping district of the peninsula, where they will have lunch and have time to call home and do some shopping. They will share with the community and will have the chance to learn some basic steps from the main tropical rhythms


Itinerary

Day 1
Arrival to Costa Rica.

Day 2
Talk: Introduction of Neotrópica Foundation
Transfer to Center of Studies and Community Empowerment Alvaro Wille Trejos (CEEC-AWT)
Talk: Introduction to the Program and time to meet the Environmental Educator
Lecture: "Corcovado National Park: Adventure and Expedition Behavior, expectations for the trip".

Day 3
Visit to Jaguar de Oro Project (Gold Panning Community Project)
Visit to Ngöbe Indigenous Reserve.

Day 4
Visit to Corcovado National Park (8 or 9 hours hike 23 km or 14 miles)
Arriving to Sirena Ranger Station and set up Camp.
Talk: “Community and Biodiversity in the Osa Peninsula”
Defrief “Ups and downs of the day”.
Asigment of dutties at the camping site

Day 5
Cooking Group:
Hike to Ollas and Rio Claro trails, time to see the most pristine section of the Corcovado National park and swim in the river.
Walk to Los Naranjos and Guanacaste Trails, visit to Sirena River.
Preparation for next day hike
Night walk

Day 6
Packing camping equipment
Hike back to La Leona Ranger Station (6 to 7 hours hike, 16 Km or 10 miles)
Defrief session: “Ups and downs of the day”, what did I learn in this session of the trip?.

Day 7
Hike to Carate (3.5 Km or 2.1 miles).
Travel to Puerto Jimenez Return to CEEC – AWT

Day 8

Community Service at CEEC or El Campo Community
Dance lessons
Talk: Introduction to the Program “Community and Biodiversity in the Osa Peninsula”
Soccer game with El Campo community members
Lecture: “Sustainable Tourism in the Osa Peninsula: A Paradox?”

Day 9
Visit to Playa Colibri
“Green Blue Golfo Dulce – Ecological Tour”. Traditional Fishing workshop with local fishermen Lecture: “History and Cultural Diversity in Osa”

Day 10
Departure to San Jose for next day departure.





The EP are programs designed to promote transformative and experiential learning.

These programs don’t just provide the participants the opportunity to see exotic and unique places, but also put them in close contact with the social-environmental realities of the areas visited. These programs are “tailor made” and they are adaptable to the academic needs of the group and they will be designed according to te goals and objectives of the visiting group. These programs include visits to the South and North Pacific Region, and the Central Caribbean of Costa Rica.


The proceeds of these recreational/educational activities are funneled directly to small rural community tourism operations and sustainable tourism ventures that have been thoroughly evaluated by Fundación Neotrópica’s team (with 25 years of experience in environmental work). The percentage going to Fundación Neotrópica supports the work of its Centers for Studies and Community Empowerment to improve the community conservation options and the social wellbeing of the region you are visiting.

Etiquetassss: Programas, Educacion ambiental, Ceec-awt, Península de osa

Fecha: 02/06/2011