Story: The Way Things Were: Drake Bay, Costa Rica, 2002

Nowadays, Drake Bay, Costa Rica is a very popular tourist destination, chock full of resort hotels, condos for purchase in gated communities, cafes, restaurants, you name it. This distant part of Costa Rica’s southern Osa Peninsula is now easily accessible via daily flights from the capital, San Jose. However, just a few years ago – 2002 to be precise – things in Drake Bay were very different.

Back in 2002, the most recent guidebooks to Costa Rica contained so little information on Drake Bay that my friends and I hadn’t so much as considered going there… until one day when we met a backpacker who told us that Drake Bay contained the most spectacular beaches she had ever seen, with nary a tourist in sight, other than herself. We promptly decided to go.

Getting to Drake Bay in those days was a bit of a challenge. We took a bus southward from San Jose for approximately seven hours until we reached the small town of Palmar Norte. From there, we convinced a local to drive us (for a nominal fee) to the tiny village of Sierpe, located along the bank of a river bearing the same name.

After spending the night in a cabina (a basic and cheap Costa Rican hotel) in Sierpe, we made our way to the Sierpe River, where our boat was waiting. As we motored along the Sierpe, it expanded from a narrow, slow moving river overhung with palms and lined with mangroves, into a broad, fast-moving body which poured into Drake Bay.

The bay was spectacular: a vast stretch of shining sandy beaches containing nothing but palms, which stretched down to touch the bright turquoise waters of the bay. No buildings could be seen on the shore, and there was not a soul in sight. We had found the ultimate tropical paradise and it was ours entirely!

Soon we arrived at our destination, Cabinas El Mirador Lodge (http://www.mirador.co.cr), one of the few hotels located in Drake Bay at the time. El Mirador was located atop a steep cliff just a few meters back from the shore, giving its rooms a spectacular view of the bay.

We spent only four days in Drake Bay, relaxing on the beaches, wading up jungle streams, hiking along rainforest trails, and exploring the tiny community. Additionally, Cabinas El Mirador Lodge offered horseback riding, dolphin watching excursions and more. We didn’t want to leave; our time there was definitely too short.

Drake Bay of 2002 is definitely one of my favorite travel memories, and I long to return. Unfortunately, just a few minutes with Google are enough to show me that my Drake Bay exists only in my memories. But what lovely memories they are…