We had a few days after the project before we had to fly back to Rio so we decided to head for the Caribbean coast in search of Green Turtles which were in full nesting swing and reportedly much more abundant than the Olive Riddly that we’d been trying to spot on the Pacific coast.
Torteguero is only accessed by air or boat which was in itself rather exciting so we arrived shivering on a boat in the middle of yet another tropical downpour. Luckily it didn’t last too long and we were soon able to explore the little village surrounded by the ocean on one side and freshwater water canals and jungle on the other. We quickly booked ourselves onto a boat trip and a turtle tour for the next day. During the boat trip around the waterways, we spotted tucans, sloths, a river otter, bottle nosed dolphin and numerous other water birds. The evening turtle tour was also a success and we saw 5 in the space of an hour. It’s hard to appreciate how big these creatures are until you see one but the Green ones are just over 1 metre long and weigh about 150kg and they aren’t even the largest species. It was lovely seeing them and we watched them lay eggs, disguise the nest with their flippers and walk back to the ocean. Ross and I got covered in sand while she was trying to cover the nest which we thought was fab. Everyone else moved away but we were glued to the spot. It was really amazing being so close to her. Unfortunately, strictly no photos allowed!
The next morning, I woke up early and decided to go for a walk along the beach and see if there were any tracks left from the turtles going in and out of the ocean. There were loads all over the beach. I also saw lots of depressions where there were nests. Sadly, the poachers were also out and I spotted a couple destroying nests in the search of eggs. I was absolutely furious at the brazen manner in which one guy was poaching but also because the whole village is now a tourist hub and the locals are now supposed to make their money from us coming to see the turtles they’re supposed to be protecting. I felt like running at him with a handbag like a crazy old bag lady. Unfortunately, I had neither a handbag nor the necessary abusive Spanish to tell him what I thought of him. The really tragic thing was that he actually had his young son with him and was passing poaching techniques on to the next generation. That made me really sad.
This was our last new destination of the trip. From here it was back to Rio and then next stop Manchester. Hopefully it won’t be the last ever entry on our travel blog though. It certainly won’t be if I have anything to do with it. I can’t bear to say goodbye after a year of updating this site so, to be continued..................................................................
|  | 
|
