Phase three drawing to a close (and photos of Alpha three!)

With just four days now until the end of phase three all of our Alpha groups are working their socks off, the community and environment phases to finish all their work on time, and the trek groups to finally reach their beaches! Every day when we hear from the groups, they all sound just so happy and content, but there’s also a real sense of excitement starting to build about coming home and starting on their next exciting adventures.

I’ll start off with the trek groups…

Alpha one are having a very well deserved day off today and are spending it at the stunning La Sirena Ranger Station right in the heart of the Corcovado National Park. They are heading off along some trails around the park in search of monkeys and tapirs and will no doubt also be spending some time at the beach. Tomorrow they have their final day of walking along the deserted beaches to La Leona ranger station.

Alpha two conquered the mighty Cerro Bares yesterday and were rewarded with some stunning views and a magical sunrise. At 8.20 this morning they’d already reached their destination at Delicia and are pushing on towards the coast and the beautiful Playa Hermosa.

Alpha three had a hard day yesterday after we left them at La Lira (photos from the food drop are below). They walked 24kms with lots of ups and downs and did three river crossings. Despite this, they are still a day ahead of schedule and today are heading to El Brujo. The group are aiming to arrive at Playa El Rey on Sunday, where they will meet up for a party with Alpha six and of course have some well-deserved down time and a final chance to top up their tans!

It’s still raining on Alpha four in La Cangreja and this has made it tricky for them to get to their worksite. They’re pushing on though and hope to have the path completed by the end of the weekend.

Alpha five have also had some rain. It’s usually very dry in Guanacaste and so when we originally set up the camp we decided not to put up tarps over our basher beds so we could all sleep under the stars. Unfortunately, the light drizzle that started at midnight last night, had turned into torrential rain by 2am and the whole group ended up wet through and had to sleep in toilet block. Not great fun, but despite this, they’re all still in good spirits and I expect will mostly be spending today drying out! They’re also finishing off the paint scraping and will hopefully be able to start paining the toilet and shower blocks, as well as finishing off the remaining few BBQs, before heading back next week.

Alpha six in Playa El Rey are one of the few groups who have escaped the rain so far. They’re carrying on with clearing the coconuts and also preparing for what sounds like a huge party for when Alpha three arrive on Sunday.

And finally, Alpha nine in Conte Burika have been subjected to thunder and lightening storms every night for the past week. The good news is that they were finally able to pick up the materials they needed to finish the comedor from Panama a few days ago and they have been working hard to complete the roof and windows ready for the grand opening on Sunday.

As promised here are a few pictures from the Alpha three food drop yesterday…

Alpha three ready to head off in the morning, L-R we've got Marvin, Tom D, Wendy, Jo Thompson, Adam McVie, Sean, Fran, Joost, Charlotte, Sophia, Holly, Kuo-Jam, Tom W, Dean and Rob.

Tom W was able to come with us to see his group and was very sad to have to say bye again the next morning...

Tom D, Charlotte and Holly

Dean, Kuo-jam, Sean and Adam as the group prepare to head off

Wendy all set to go...

Jo and Sean, and Rob below, waving us off

The group as they head off towards Savegre Abajo

The stunning views from the road down from La Lira