Dispatches
Central America Expedition 2010: Day 2 – Rios Tropicales, Costa Rica
March 5, 2010
What do a local school, an Internet cafe, a snake exhibit, a butterfly garden, reforestation, a waste management center, and a sustainable tilapia farm have in common? They’re all projects that Rios Tropicales, one of Costa Rica’s leading river rafting companies, is supporting or developing in the community of El Tigre, located at the top of the Pacuare River Gorge.
We visited El Tigre on Day 2 together with Rafael (“Rafa”) Gallo, the founder of Rios Tropicales and a pioneer in sustainable and ecotourism since long before they became buzzwords. Unfortunately someone forgot to tell the weather gods that it’s supposed to be the dry season in Costa Rica, so it rained just about the entire day, slowing us down and making it difficult for us to visit some of the projects Rios Tropicales is supporting. Nevertheless, we had a busy day of filming at several sites, beginning at the local school, where Rios Tropicales has been helping to improve the facilities. Next we headed down the road to the house of Javier Mora, sustainability manager for Rios Tropicales and a community leader in El Tigre. With support from Rios, Javier is building an Internet cafe as a source of income for his wife, Patricia, and daughter, Helen.
We also visited two tourist attractions that Rios Tropicales is helping to develop: the Serpentarium, where Rob got a kick out of handling a smallish boa constrictor, and the Pacuare Butterfly Garden, where Mario Achoy Vega has created a peaceful oasis around his two passions, butterflies and plants. Rafa and Rios Tropicales hope that El Tigre will become a replicable example of sustainable community development; in fact, Rios Tropicales is currently working with the country of Bhutan on developing similar projects there.
By the time we had visited the butterfly garden it was getting late in the afternoon, and Rafa wanted to make sure we had time to hike down through the jungle to the Rios Tropicales lodge before it got fully dark, so we headed downhill through lush rainforest along a well-maintained trail. Although no wildlife crossed our path, it was quite an experience to hike through the darkening forest. 
Just as we could no longer avoid turning on our headlamps we emerged at a suspension bridge across the Pacuare River. Crossing over we arrived at the ecolodge, where the scenic riverside setting, comfortable rooms, good food, and the constant sound of the rushing Pacuare River made for an excellent night’s sleep.
