Walking The Trails
The fifteen-kilometre trail from La Leona to Sirena runs almost entirely along the beach. You can only walk its full length at low tide, and if you do get stuck, the only thing to do is wait for the water to recede. If you can avoid problems with the tides, you should be able to do the walk in five to six hours, taking time to look out for birds. The walking can get a bit monotonous, but the beaches are uniformly lovely and deserted, and if you're lucky you may spot a flock of scarlet macaws in the coastal trees - a rare sight. You will probably see (or hear) monkeys, too. Take lots of sunscreen, a big hat and at least five litres of water per person - the trail gets very hot, despite sea breezes. The really heroic walk in Corcovado, all 25km of it, is from Sirena to San Pedrillo - the stretch along which you'll see the most impressive trees. It's a two-day trek, so you need a tent, sleeping bag and mosquito net, and you mustn't be worried by having to set up camp in the jungle. Fording the Rio Sirena , just 1km beyond the Sirena puesto , is the biggest obstacle: this is the deepest of all the rivers on the peninsula, with the strongest out-tow current, and has to be crossed with care, and at low tide only (sharks come in and out in search of food at high tide). Get the latest information from the Sirena rangers before you set out. The trail across the peninsula from Los Patos to Sirena is 20km long. You may want to rest at the entrance, as this is an immediately demanding walk, continuing uphill for about 6-8km and taking you into high, wet and dense rainforest - and after that you've still got 14km or so of incredibly hot lowland walking to go. This is a trail for experienced rainforest hikers and hopeful mammal -spotters: taking you through the interior, it gives you a reasonable chance of coming across, for example, a margay, or the tracks of tapirs and jaguars. That said, some hikers come away very disappointed, having not seen a thing. It's a gruelling trek, especially with the hot inland temperatures (at least 26°C, with 100 percent humidity) and the lack of sea breezes. The El Tigre area, at the eastern inland entrance to the park, is gradually becoming more developed, with short walking trails being laid out around the puesto . These provide an introduction to Corcovado without making you slog it out on the marathon trails, and can easily be covered in a morning or afternoon.
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