Bahia Santa Elena, Costa Rica (pre-lightning)

By Nicole

When we were cruising British Columbia, we’d often go a week or more without seeing another boat.  We relished the solitude of these remote, beautiful anchorages knowing that it wouldn’t be long before we’d be sharing an anchorage (and trading stories over cocktails) again soon.  For one or two nights, we even got an anchorage in the Sea of Cortez all to ourselves.  But that hadn’t happened for a very long time – until we arrived in Costa Rica, that is.

Bahia Santa Elena, just over the Nicaraguan border, is an exceptional place.  It’s part of the Santa Rosa National Park, which protects some of the last remaining tropical dry rainforest in the world (and explains why we saw cacti and rattlesnakes along with palm trees and parrots).  After spending 6 weeks in El Salvador where deforestation and trash are enormous problems, the lushness and natural beauty of Bahia Santa Elena was a welcome change.

The bay is alive with sights and sounds and smells – parrots and other tropical birds chitter-chatter in the trees, howler monkeys hoot to one another, butterflies in blue, yellow, orange and black flit by, fish swim and splash all around the boat, the fragrant smell of plumeria blossoms wafts down from the hills and at night, twinkling fireflies compete with the stars. 

Just outside the entrance to the bay are some fantastic snorkeling grounds, and jungle-lined trails beg to be explored.  All in all, it’s a perfect spot to spend a week or two relaxing, hiking, bird watching, swimming and snorkeling.  And that’s just what we did.

Early morning tranquility

Cactus fields forever

Dinghy exploring (love those dinghy wheels)

 Spiky tree

Gorgeous views out the entrance to Nicaragua

I like long walks on the beach and piña coladas

Hiking the trail to the (tiny) waterfall …

… when the trail is actually a stream.

Sweet-smelling plumeria blossom

 Off on a snorkeling adventure (and to check out the cool stratigraphy)

 Snorkel time

 Aaron contemplates the decision to have a beer or a rum & Coke for happy hour

Bella Star at anchor in Bahia Santa Elena.  Aaron joked that it was so calm it was like we were in the boatyard.  Awesome.

Nice.  Very nice.

The peace was broken, however, with the arrival of another boat.  It was Panache!  Yay!  Zack decided to take a scenic detour on his way to the Marquesas with a stop in gorgeous Costa Rica.  Never mind that we’d accidentally absconded with his point-and-shoot camera and he needed to retrieve it … Oops!  Now that the three of us were back together, it was time to have some fun …

(Want the full story on the camera incident and Zack’s thwarted attempts to leave El Salvador? Check out SailPanache.com.)