Yes, I’ll admit it. I’m a tree hugger. I’m almost 42 and I still climb trees – I’ve been called “Monkey Girl” more than a few times – and yes, I hug them if I’m invited. I’ve been known to cry at the sight of a magnificent old redwood being ripped from her roots. And ever since I can remember, I’ve fantasized of living in a tree house.
So when I finally make it to Costa Rica, land of forest, jungle, woods, thickets, groves, parkland, trees – and tree-hugging howler monkeys, I will stay at the Costa Rica Tree House Lodge nestled inside a wildlife refuge on the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.
Built with a mindset of preventing impact on the environment as well as integration with it, The Tree House Lodge actually consists of a few “houses” ranging from a beach house to a tree house, all solar powered and made with wood from fallen trees deep inside the jungle, recycled materials, bamboo and natural paints. Not one live tree was cut to build the tree house. That’s groovin’ with the woowoo!
After I step out of my shower, built in and around a 100-year-old Sangrillo tree, I will make myself a coffee with some of those famous dark roasted Costa Rican beans. I will sip slowly in the hammock, taking in the aroma of the unique botanical garden below, and the sights and sounds of hundreds of exotic birds, and yes, the howler monkeys, not named howler for their speechlessness.
After a nap, I’ll mosey down the jungle path to Punta Uva Beach, one of Costa Rica’s most beautiful. There, I’ll rent a kayak and paddle peaceful rivers to the sea. Perhaps, if I’m feeling social, I’ll head down to the cultural hub of Puerto Viejo for some rice and beans and a beer in a local joint.
When I return to my tree house, after another nap, I’ll take in a free iguana conservation tour because the Iguana Verde Foundation is right in my own front yard and when I make an arrangement through the Tree House Lodge, I get to help save green iguanas from extinction.
When the moon shines above the darkened canopy, I’ll fall deep asleep in my mosquito-netted bed to the white noise of the jungle, and when the creatures of the night finally settle down, I’ll be breathing with the trees and dreaming in green.
Indeed, livinging in the trees without cutting down any trees? Sounds amazingly eco-ironic, which combines two of my favourite things…i’m in. Unlike you though my next trip to Costa Rica will inevitably involve scuba diving with those howler monkeys and taking my coffee at night so i can try to find some harmony in voice with the night creatures of the jungle. To prepare I’ve been frequenting the grunge scene after a heavy night of jazz fusion. Seems to lend itself to that sense of wildness with a misty humid warmth. See ya there?