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I'm lumping together the five days I stayed at Bolita Rainforest Hostel. The days are pretty much the same: hike for a while, sit around and read or talk for a while, fix lunch and/or dinner, read a little, got to sleep around 9pm.
The hikes can be 30 min to 5 hours. There are four major trails and six minor ones. You can cover everything in 3 or 4 days. I got about a dozen bug bites and two ticks; not bad for five days in the jungle.
Now for some of the details. Getting there from Panama is a little adventure in itself. You have to go from David, to the border, to Golfo Dulce, to Puerto Jimenez, to Dos Brazos, to Bolita. The hitch comes when you get to Puerto Jimenez: there are only two buses (vans) going to Dos Brazos, one at 11am, one at 4pm. You have to be at the Bolita office in Dos Brazos before 5pm, and it's about 50 min to get there.
So I got up at 4am to catch the 4:30am bus to the border, about 90 min. No one told me they don't open the customs and immigration offices until 7am. Could have slept another hour!
Border crossing time: 45 min! That was easy!
It's now 7:45, or is it? Costa Rica is on Central Time, while Panama is on Eastern Time.
Had to wait about an hour for the bus to Golfito (it was late), then about a 1 1/2 hour ride to the water taxi landing, then wait 45 min for the water taxi to Puerto Jimenez, getting there at 10:40am. A short taxi ride ($2) to the bus stop, and I was on time for the pickup.
There is no refrigeration, or any electricity, at Bolita. They do have gas burners and all the utensils you need. So while waiting for the water taxi, I made a quick trip to a local store two blocks away, and got pasta, sauce and a few other things.
Bolita office right
When you get to the Bolita office, there's an orientation, and you can store your extra stuff in a locked room. I didn't know what I was going to be needing for clothes, so I took most of my stuff with me, leaving the electronics (other than my kindle) and a few other things behind. Now I know: the only things you need are shoes that you can walk in water with, a pair of shorts or swimsuit, toiletries, and food. Bolita campground is about 30 min up a steep climb (feels like an hour) on a mountain. The temps were mild, night and day, for the five days I was there. Clothing is optional (lots of girls walking around in only a teenie bottom). You'd think all that exposed skin would be a feast for bugs, but they are surprisingly few; not a lot of bug spray in use.
The hike up, and especially while lugging your stuff, is the toughest, steepest one; so after orientation, and a shower, most take one of the short hikes, then settle in for dinner and just chillin'.
Not that many animal noises, for being in the jungle. Hard to spot wildlife too, though you'll see from the pics that I saw a few. Maybe it's worth spending the $80 for a guided tour, but that was over my budget (and for those of you who are wondering how I'm doing on that: even with the 'extras' that I've spent on, I'm slightly over at $51 per day. I can live with that!)
The camp area has three buildings: one separated into four private rooms with double beds; another for staff and volunteers (sleeps about 8); the main building is open downstairs, where the kitchen, hammocks (4), and dining tables are, and upstairs is divided into three rooms with walls separating them, one has a double bed, another has 3 double bunks, the last has 2 double bunks, with all the outside walls open (no windows, no screens, but each bed has mosquito netting). So total occupancy is 18 guests and up to 9 staff: makes for decent group dynamics.
The owner, Ron, is very easy going and accommodating; he spends about as much time at the campsite as he does his house across the road from the office and is continually improving both properties.
There are more hammocks spread around the area, so plenty of room to just hang out when you're not out hiking. Plenty of peace and quiet too: the day I took the five hour hike, two or three other groups took the same trail, and I never saw any of them; though three people not from our camp passed me, and I caught up to two older people from somewhere else toward the end, and I passed by a gold miner! That's this area's claim to fame: big gold mining area at one time.
So, other than hiking, there's nothing to do but chill.
My camera quit on me on the fourth day, so I decided to go to San Jose (the largest city in Costa Rica) to find someone to fix it. No luck with that. Electronics in Costa Rica have a high import tax, which makes them about 40% more than in Panama, so I'm heading to David to look for a new camera.