It’s very early, barely light enough to see, but our day is about to start. Moving away from the barns, we head down along the dirt road. It rained overnight, so the trails are still a bit slippery and we have to watch our footing.
Some of the overnight visitors have left their tracks for us to find. Here a large cat crossed the pasture during the night. A young male jaguar has been making the rounds of the local farms.
A lot of the locals are very nervous for their livestock, but this hunter was on the trail of an Agouti.
We make our way to our first farm. A couple of the young boys come out and load pineapples, mangos and guanabanas into the cart. We continue on, stopping for fresh vegetables and fruit at each small farm along the way. The road up to the main house is uphill- the cart gets heavier and heavier as we go along, but we take our time and enjoy the views. As the cart gains weight we decide to leave six footprints instead of four. Once in a while the distant peak of Turrialba shows through the trees. Some days the mountain is angry, smoldering and smoky, but today all is quiet.
The overnight rain pushed the river up closer to our road, and a Sunbittern creeps along the bank, trying to keep out of sight.
Halfway up the hill there are a couple of social obligations that we complete each day. We take a short detour to Casa Abajo, the house below the Rancho Naturalista Lodge, where the parents of Rancho’s owner live. We spend a few minutes chatting, taking a quick drink of water in the garden and mostly just checking in. We’ve all been at this routine for many years, and each neighbor is a valuable piece of the day’s tapestry.
The Verbena along the driveway is alive with hummingbirds and butterflies. The cast of characters changes every day.
Whenever there’s time, we pause at the tiny cemetery just outside of Tuis de Turrialba. It’s home to friends and family, and I suppose will be home to many more.
A little further along is Wayne’s house. He hears the cart creaking and turns to wave, and we know all is well in his world and he knows the same about ours. Wayne spent years in Africa as a missionary and has stories to tell of days in Ghana and in the east. But today he points to the bushes along his walkway. There’s a White-collared Manakin snapping his wings, displaying for a female buried deeper in the brush.
Our last stops are for cheese and eggs, all carried out from the barns and loaded into whatever open spots can be found in the small cart.
The lodge at Rancho Naturalista relies on local farms for most of the food it serves to its guests. People come from different parts of the world, hoping to glimpse the wildlife that we take for granted, but locally sourced food is also a big hit with everyone.
Birders have found more than 400 species of birds here on the property. Some of these are very difficult to find anywhere else. Tawny-chested Flycatcher is one of those.
Chon stops and gazes off at one of the foot trails to the side. Today is a workday, though. No time to wander away to see what deeper secrets the forest will reveal.
Some of the food that we have in the cart will be on the tables at the main house today. Every day the guests can see the fresh deliveries being made as we climb the hill.
For us, the best part of arriving at the lodge is knowing that the rest of the trip is downhill! The staff loads some bags of compostable scraps, and we begin the journey towards home.
It’s darker now along the road, and the morning crew is making way for those who prefer the low light of late afternoon.
Even though it’s getting a little darker, soon enough we’re seeing the landmarks telling us that we are nearly home.
We pull up to the barn and remove the cart straps. Time for a long drink and a longer brushing. I scratch my neck on my favorite corral post, worn smooth by earlier generations, and head off into the small pasture while Chon’s wife comes down from the house with a cool drink for him. Tomorrow will come before we know it.
All of the places and characters are real- there is a Chon and a Pancho, and a Wayne and I met them all when I was at Rancho a few years ago. Much of the food at the lodge comes from local farms, but the story of how it is delivered is the way I imagine it to be.
THE DAILY BUCKET IS A NATURE REFUGE. WE AMICABLY DISCUSS ANIMALS, WEATHER, CLIMATE, SOIL, PLANTS, WATERS AND NOTE LIFE’S PATTERNS.
WE INVITE YOU TO NOTE WHAT YOU ARE SEEING AROUND YOU IN YOUR OWN PART OF THE WORLD, AND TO SHARE YOUR OBSERVATIONS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PURPOSE AND HISTORY OF THE DAILY BUCKET FEATURE, CHECK OUT THIS DIARY: DAILY BUCKET PHENOLOGY: 11 YEARS OF RECORDING EARTH'S VITAL SIGNS IN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS