12 12 12 eBook compressed quality V 3 PDF file April 15 2026 - Flipbook - Page 89
DAY 5 MATAPALO
Matapalo, at the remote tip of the Osa Peninsula, does not
ease you in. Not on any day, and certainly not on Day 5
when our own fatigue was just starting to accumulate.
We’ve been coming to Cabo Matapalo for years and it still
manages to overwhelm in the best way. |is place stacks
wildlife on top of wildlife and dares you to keep up. It’s as
if every species we’ve encountered elsewhere on the Osa
decided to throw a reunion party all in one spot.
|e drive to Matapalo from our place is an adventure in
itself, along a narrowing dirt road nanked by thickening
jungle. With each kilometer, the rainforest seems to lean in
a little more, green arms trying to pull you back or maybe
welcome you home. By the time we arrived at our usual
trailhead, the morning sun was oltering through palms and
vines at a low angle, and the air was already hot and loud.
The point of Matapalo at the tip of the Osa Peninsula.
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