There is something magical about where forest meets the sea. The 11-kilometer coastal trail from Drake Bay to Corcovado, on southwestern Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula, passes by towering giants surrounding rocky points pounded by Pacific waves. Broken only by wild beaches of all sizes, two small rivers and countless small streams, the trail is completely free of roads and cars. As you hike along the narrow path toward Corcovado, you walk back in time, and hopefully catch a glimpse of the future.
Walking is a way of life here. There is no pavement of any kind, although some muddy sections sport stepping-stones. There are two small footbridges, one hanging bridge across the Río Agujas, and one tiny span over a nameless rushing stream. The rest of the trail is stone and earth, blanketed in leaves of a surprising variety of colors.
With each step away from Agujitas town in Drake Bay, the forest becomes thicker. The sounds of people fade away and are replaced by a concert from the forest and the sea. The scarlet macaws, whose population here is one of the largest on earth, can be louder than any car alarm, the sound of the crashing surf more powerful than that of a passing bus or train, the roar of the howler monkey stronger than any neighbor’s thumping bass.
I am Jeff Clark, founder of Internet Brothers, publisher of Meanderthals, and a passionate hiker. I live in western NC near the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains. Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests are just out my doorstep, so the content will focus on these areas, but let me know what you would like to see on the site. 
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