PLAYA MALO BAY to PLAYA HERRADURA
A
series of coves and beaches, lines the coast south of Tárcoles,
beginning with Playa Malo, a scenic bay fringed by a scalloped,
1200 foot-wide, white-sand beach. Little fishing boats bob at
anchor and are rare roosts for pelicans. At the south end rises
the headland of Punta Leona, smothered with forest protected
in a 1,831-acre private nature reserve-part of a self contained
resort called Punta Leona, with three beaches: Playas manta,
Punta Leona, and Blanca. The beaches have been off-limits to
the public for years, despite court rulings ordering that public
access be granted. The resort owners never complied, but in
April 2000, a court ordered removal of the fence and guarded
gate on the public road that grants access to the beach (the
club destroyed part of the public road to force visitors to
use it's private road; access costs $20). The reception gate
is roadside, one half mile south of Punta Malo.
South of Punta Leona the
road climbs steeply before dropping down to Playa Herradura.
At the crest of the rise is the entrance to Villa Caletas, a
fabulous resort hotel.
About four and a half miles
from both Tárcoles and Jacó, just south of the
Río Caña Blanca, is a turnoff for Playa Herradura,
which gained attention a few years ago as a film set for the
movie 1492, starring Gerard Depadieu as Columbus. Filming lasted
about 10 weeks and pumped an estimated $8 million into the local
economy. The Pebbly, gray-sand beach is swarmed by Ticos on
weekends and holidays. For now-but surely not for long-marine
turtles come ashore to lay their eggs July-December. Playa Herradura
hit the big time in 1999 with the opening of the mammoth Los
Sueños Marriott Beach & Golf Resort.
PLAYA HERMOSA BEACH
Highway 34 south from Jacó crests a
steep headland, beyond which Playa Hermosa comes into sight
(the view is incredible, but don't get close to the cliff edge);
the beach is 6 miles long and arrow straight with surf pummeling
ashore along its whole length. Playa Hermosa is the setting
for an international surfing championship each August and has
been put on the holiday markers' maps in the past few years.
A dirt road parallels the beach.
PLAYAS ESTERILLOS OESTE and CENTRO BEACH
Playas Esterillos Oeste is
south of Hermosa, with craggy Punta Judas between them. It's
another favorite with surfers and with Ticos on holidays and
weekends (the Ticos leave it littered with trash). The 3 1/2
mile long beach has tide pools at its northern end, where a
sculpture of a mermaid sits atop the rocks. Beware strong currents;
you can swim safely in the lee of rocks at the northern end
of the beach.Here, when the tide recedes, you can delight in
treasures the earth has kept hidden for millions of years: an
ancient mosaic of mollusk fossils embedded in the rock strata.
Leave them for others to enjoy. The National Museum, organizes
educational trips to Esterillos Oeste, a good trip for fossil
hounds.
PLAYAS ESTERILLOS ESTE, BEJUCO, and PALMA BEACH
Playa Esterillos Este, separated
by a river from Esterillos Centro, is identical to its northerly
siblings: miles long, ruler-straight, with gray sand cleansed
by high surf. There's a grass airstrip paralleling the beach
at its northern end, accessed off Hwy. 34. The southern end
of the beach is known as Playa Bejuco, reached via a separate
access road.
Farther south, about 2 miles
north of Parrita, a dirt road leads west from the coast road-Costanera
Sur-and zigzags through the African palm plantations until you
emerge at Playa Palma (also known as Playa Bandera), separated
from Bejuco by yet another river mouth.
Much
of the information on our site as it relates to Costa Rica is:
Courtesy
of Christopher P. Baker and Avalon Travel Publishing.
© 2004 Christopher P. Baker. All Rights Reserved.
Spanish Abroad, Inc. highly
recommends Christopher P. Baker's book: Moon
Handbooks Costa Rica. Click on the image to
visit his website where you can purchase this book or find out
more about the author.
