Raleigh Costa Rica and Nicaragua: Phase 3

Friday, 28 November 2008

Phase 3 - Allocations

Alpha 1 - San Lucas Island

VMs - Pedro, Cam, Rose for first half to be replaced by Roly
Annabel Roberts
Natalia Guzmán
Valerie Crasemann
Niall Mullan
Ross MacPherson
Holly Winser
Vincent Skiller
Georgina Thomas
Jamie Buttery
Mick Van Oorschot
Juriaan Boogaard

Alpha 2 - Macho Trek

VMs - Stu, Stevo, Nic/Rachel/Anna

Noud Louwers

Joanne Miller
Asher Murphy
Shona McGuigan
Scarlett Storr
Christophe Thomas
Lyan Suárez
Ka Ming Lee

This trek will start at Raleigh International’s fieldbase in Turrialba and proceed through the Rio Macho Forestry Reserve for the first week passing through Tapanti National Park. After climbing up to nearly 3,000 metres the group will then follow the ridges of the Fila de Bustamante towards Cerro Dragon. From here the group will aim for Cerro Turrubares before heading down to the sea at Playa Hermosa where the groups will spend a couple of relaxing days at this beautiful beach, famous for its nesting turtles.

Alpha 3 - La Cangreja

VMs - James, Libby, Viv

Emily Waterhouse
Andrey Vasquez
Jennifer Lane
Nathan Evans
Harriet Cottrell
Alastair Burgwin
Matthew Evans
Margaret Cameron
Rosemary McGinley

La Cangreja is one of Costa Rica’s newest National Parks which owes its name to the striking 1,305 metre peak Cerro Cangreja. The park has a mixture of Tropical Humid forest and Pre-Montane forest with a number of species of plant found nowhere else in the world which makes the area important for research purposes and for conservation. The park is also blessed with amazing waterfalls only to be found through exploring the forest. At present the government is developing the facilities in the park and during the expedition Raleigh venturers will continue the trail for wheel chair users to allow all visitors the chance to enjoy this stunning tropical forest.

11 comments:

Anonymous28 November 2008 at 17:38
dear Emily ..missing you dreadfully but looking forward to seeing your new muscles (though not much evidence on photos). We look forward to scouring the photos daily. (hope this message gets through as others haven't love dad.
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Anonymous29 November 2008 at 02:48
OMG!!! - Mud, bits of bamboo, string, canvas - Home Sweet Home - Jennie you will never complain about a lumpy mattress again!!!!
Looks fantastic - hope the weather holds off. Make sure you are high enough off the floor from the jumping spiders!!!!
Lots of love
Dada
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Anonymous29 November 2008 at 04:28
Hello Joanne, Jack Frost was busy all day yesterday and today...I'm sitting at the computer with a wooly hat on! I hope you're enjoying your new project. I was speaking to Chen Jing yesterday and she sends her love to you too. Loads and loads and loads of love, Felicity xxx
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Anonymous29 November 2008 at 10:45
Hey Noud,

Nice surprise to hear your voice so unexpectedly today. Good luck with the blisters: just focus on these unforgettable days in the wilderness. Nice that you can assist the crew and the group as the Hispanic middleman for Alpha 2 now.

Only another 14 days of endurance to go. At the end of journey the beach is waiting for you...

¡Buena suerte con viaje!

And don't forget to enjoy every minute.

Love,
the Louwers gang
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Anonymous29 November 2008 at 10:47
hi anna,

just a wee note to say love the new look website, the countdown is a fab idea. Just noticed for the first time that ross is in the photo of the foam party, didn't recognise him, what have you done to me wee boy - he's a man!!!!
Anyway just a wee thank you for keeping me up to date, think the blog is a great idea and certainly has made me feel great logging on and seeing the photo's and reading their progress.

Fab job, well done you
luv
June (ross's mum)

x x x x
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Anonymous29 November 2008 at 11:09
Hiya Jen
Just finished work and looking forward to a nice g and t !
I like the look of your shelter.
Plenty of poles and lots of string.
Hope the weather has improved for you.
Cant wait to see some more pictures.
You are in a smaller group this time so I hope its not very hard work.
Miss you lots...Love Mum xxxxxx
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Anonymous29 November 2008 at 16:14
Hey Mags,
Just a reminder that you better be sleeping in a hammock this phase.
La Cangreja looks abslolutely stunning. Hope the weather keeps up so you can keep your tan topped up. You know 90% of it is dirt right?lol.
I'm having a chilled out weekend, saving energy for the ceilidh next week. Wish you were here for it, but will take hunnerz of piccies.
SPk soon sweetie, Love you lot's.
Gillz xxxx
P.S Anna, the new look site looks fantastic. xxx
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Anonymous30 November 2008 at 14:46
Hi Hattie Bol !

Not sure about the look of the sleeping arrangements.......makes your room look like a palace! So wonderful to hear your voice the other day with all your news.UCAS has finally been sent and I shall track it for you. Enjoy every moment.....I am desperately proud of you but then I always am!
Keep safe 'cos I miss you and love you madly,

Mumsywumsy x
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Anonymous1 December 2008 at 08:36
Hi Hats,

Went to pick Millie up from the kennels as was away at the weekend and had to take her scarf as it is that cold!! Bet you are not and hope the rain has stopped. I hear you have a flight on the 22nd so Xmas & N Y should be brill in Buenas Aires!! Keep well away from those scorpions ! You've got a malteser advent calendar this year so I am eating them for you ! Well you should be toned up after all this excercise ! Tom is home this weekend as he is missing me and also Everton are playing !

You are always in my thoughts and I send you all my love and hugs,

Tinkly Terror x
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Anonymous2 December 2008 at 01:46
Hi Jungle Jack AKA Ali

Happy birthday - hope its a memorable one - sure it will be out in the jungle.

Hope the trail is getting longer and that the tropical forest is amazing.

Have bought you an advent calander - is it OK if we start to eat the chocolates?

Have a really good day

Lots of Love Mum, Dad, Jenny & not forgetting Dolly
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Anonymous2 December 2008 at 05:09
Hi Ali

We woke up to snow on your birthday - very festive

Hope you got all the cards/notes etc

Have Loads of Fun

Lots of Love

Mum, Dad & Embo X
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Raleigh Lingo

Copy that?

Sometimes our Raleigh technical terms can be a tad confusing so we've put together a glossary for you blog followers. This will appear as a quick-reference section on the right-hand column so you can translate our Tico-terms into something a bit more palatable. And for those keen to brush up their Central American Spanish, we've included some handy translations. Here's a few to get you started...

Alpha, X-Ray and Zulu groups
(Grupos Alfa, X-Ray y Zulu)
The official name for project groups during the phases of CR&N 13A. Alpha will be out on project from 3rd to 23rd February, X-Ray from 24th February to 15th March and Zulu from 17th March to 5th April. Project groups are allocated during induction

Basha
Jungle ‘bed’: consists of a tarpaulin for shelter, a hammock and mosquito net. A basha is hung up between two trees and supported by rope, bamboo and canvas straps

Bodega
A Spanish word meaning store or warehouse

Bravo
A term of endearment for our hard-working Land Rovers. The four vehicles are officially, and imaginatively named Bravo One, Two, Three and Four

C.A.T.I.E.
The agricultural and development research institute on whose campus Fieldbase is situated. Find out more at http://www.catie.ac.cr/

Changeover (Cambio de Fase)
Two day period where all staff and Venturers return from their project sites for some respite before they are all reallocated and sent off to do it all over again...

Chicas, Chicos
Spanish term meaning girls (chicas) or guys (chicos) or both (chicos aswell). As in “Vamonos chicos!” or “Let’s go guys!”

Craic
A way to gauge how people are feeling, usually measured from 0 to 90. If your ‘craic’ is high, you’re pretty happy. If you announce a low craic, people will probably fix you up with an energy bomb and a nice big hug

CR&N 13A
Costa Rica and Nicaragua expeditions 13A

Day Leader (DL) (Líder del día)
Every day on project, one of the Team is designated DL – they are in charge of the day, including organising the day’s briefing, keeping group morale up, dealing with any problems, sticking to schedule and de-briefing at the end of the day. The DL role rotates round the whole group so everyone takes a turn

Energizer (Actividad Levanta Muertos)
An activity to gather the group together and raise energy levels. Can be used at the beginning of the day, or whenever a quick pick-me-up is required

Energy bombs (Explosión de azucar)
A trekking treat – mix together oats, raisins, condensed milk and chocolate powder and roll into little balls of gooey goodness to power you through the day

Fieldbase (FB) (Campo Base)
Refers to the Raleigh ‘office residence’ which is where the Fieldbase staff eat, sleep and work, whilst organising the expedition, manning the radios round the clock, supporting the projects, planning transport and logistics, keeping tabs on the finances and much, much more

Field Base Volunteer Managers (Equipo Logístico Voluntario del Campo Base)
Volunteer support staff for the expedition. The team looks after the ‘behind the scenes’ of the expedition and ensures everything runs smoothly. This consists of three permanent staff members - the Country Director, Country Project Manager and Country Expedition Manager - plus a team of volunteer staff including the, Medic, Photographer, Administrator, Finance Officer, three Logistics (logs) team members and the Communications Officer

Gallo Pinto
A traditional Costa Rican dish of rice and beans (yum!)

Icebreaker (Rompe Hielos)
A getting-to-know-you game

Longdrop (Letrina)
The camp loo. Literally a deep hole in the ground, it is one of the first tasks to complete when setting up jungle camp for obvious reasons! Short drops are similar, normally used for overnight stops when a shallower trench will suffice

Longs (Pantalones)
From 6pm onwards, we all don long trousers and sleeves to discourage the bugs that aren’t deterred by DEET

Maxis
Short for Maxi Pali, the stock-everything shop about a kilometer from Fieldbase where you can buy all those things you forgot/ran out of/lost

Nicas
An affectionate term referring to the native population of Nicaragua

Ninja
A popular game/energizer used by venturers and Project managers alike. Everyone stands in a circle and tries to hit the team members either side of them on the hand via a single ninja movements. Sound effects welcome

POPS
Legendary milkshake and ice-cream parlour chain found all over Costa Rica – perfect for a sweet splurge

Pork and beans (Frijoles con cerdo)
Another staple foodstuff for trekkers: tinned beans with a slightly sausage twang, served cold for lunch. Usually accompanied by dry cracker dust, sprinkled liberally on to the top. If you’re in a hurry, this can be consumed without cutlery straight from the can

Project Managers (PMs) (Guías)
Project staff for the expedition. Each of the groups has at least two PMs who work with the Venturers to develop skills, lead projects and challenge themselves

PURA VIDA!
A very special Costa Rican phrase that means hello, goodbye, I’m great, it’s good, pure life, basically any positive, feel-good thing can be Pura vida!

Radio check (Chequeo de Radio)
As well as a daily SITREP, all Alpha projects are required to complete a second radio call-in each day to check in, receive messages and report any developments

Review (Revisión)
A round-up that assesses how everyone feels, what went well and what needs work. This is sometimes an ‘activity’, sometimes a chat around the campfire, or sometimes just a bit of time to reflect. It’s an important part of everyone’s personal development so we make sure it happens every day

Roadtrip (Paseo Volando Rueda)
The logistics team and some of the Field Base team drive the Bravos on a loop round to each of the accessible project sites once per phase. They deliver kit, supplies, site visitors, messages from the blog and of course the all important post

Ropa Americana
Purveyors of the finest second hand American threads. Perfect for fancy dress/obtaining that long coveted college sports jersey

SITREP (Reporte de la Situación)
Literally Situation Report. A special radio message sent from the satellite project sites back to fieldbase once a day. It follows a certain format and includes all sort of handy information like where they are, what they’ve been up to, what they need and what they’re planning to do next

Tang
A fruity powder that is used to make squash. Jolly useful for taking away the chlorine taste of purified water

Ticos
An affectionate term referring to the native population of Costa Rica

Trangia (Mini Cocina)
A portable cooking stove. Used primarily for trekking, a trangia’s compact design makes it perfect for easy transportation. Literal translation in spanish - mini kitchen. Makes sense

Turrialba
The location of Fieldbase

Venturers (Aventureros)
Participants in the Raleigh expedition. Aged 17 to 24, they come in three varieties: Host Country Venturers (from Costa Rica and Nicaragua), Partnership Venturers (positive young people from disadvantaged backgrounds in the UK who participate in Raleigh expeditions as part of a longer term development programme) and UK and International Fundraising Participants (who work hard to raise money to contribute towards the charities work and expenses in order to take part in the expedition)

Wash up (Revisión Final)
The last few days of expedition, spent debriefing, returning equipment, performing skits, and most importantly enjoying the farewell party (tears alert)

Zero (Cero)
A radio term that identifies the radio controller at Fieldbase. Fieldbase monitors the radios 24-7, listening out on three frequencies for calls from our satellite project sites. When the radio alarm sounds, we might answer something like this: “Hello unknown call sign, hello unknown call sign, this is Zero, this is zero, do you copy, OVER?”