Dive Review of Jinetes de Osa/Mirador Lodge in
Costa Rica/Cano Island

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Jinetes de Osa/Mirador Lodge, Dec, 2004, by Eruk Williamson, AK, USA . Report 1526.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$	N/A
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Over Christmas break, 2004, our family of 4,all certified divers went to Drake Bay, on the Osa Peninsula, in Southwest Costa Rica. We stayed 12 days in Mirador Lodge, a rustic family operation setting on a hillside overlooking Drake Bay. Two rooms cost $37 per person per day, including meals. Mirador Lodge, turned out to be just what we wanted at a price far below other nearby lodges. It is located at the edge of a small village. People who lived there were very friendly and willing to converse despite the language barrier. I chose Drake Bay because of its proximity to Cano Island, one of the more accessible scuba diving areas in Costa Rica. It turns out that this biological sanctuary has only five designated dive sites. We dove three sites two times each in three days. Only one of the sites, El Bajo de Diablo is world-class although we saw white-tip sharks on every dive. The highlight for me was the schools of jacks and snappers drifting in lazy spirals. Some snappers looked to weigh 100 pounds! There are at least 5 Scuba and snorkel operators trying to dive these sites everyday. I wonder how long the sharks will stick around… Jinetes de Osa is a lodge with dive operation who we went with. It seemed that they were having internal problems. The dive master was capable but distracted. Their equipment and safety protocol was fine. After we complained about crowded boats and disappointment with some dive sites, they attempted to appease us. We had planned to dive 4 days but cut it to 3, as it seemed we would dive the same sites a third time on the 4th day. The day hikes through the jungle were fascinating, especially with a guide to recognize the sights and sounds. Drake Bay is adjacent to Corcovado National Park, the largest protected low land jungle area in Central America. We found crowding problems there, as well. On some days, dozens of boats are trying to access one trailhead at San Pedrillo. You can't expect to see the major wildlife when 40 people have been down the trail that morning already. We also did a horseback ride, I highly recommend. A day on a sportfishing was a bust, although sailfish hit the teasers twice without getting hooked. Other parties caught dorado. The canopy tour by zipline was exciting, but no way to view wildlife. Our sons went boogy boarding quite often. We had to bring our own inflatable boards as they are not available anywhere in Drake. All in all a great trip, but I don't recommend it as a full on dive vacation.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	51-100 dives
Where else diving	Hawaii, Roatan, Belize, Cozumel, Cabo san Lucas, Abaco, FL, AK
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	surge
Water Temp	82-86°F / 28-30°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	60-120 Ft/ 18-37 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	Depth limits, time were discussed prior, but noone scolded afterwards.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	Schools	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	None	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's	N/A	Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	[None]

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Dive Review of Jinetes de Osa/Mirador Lodge in Costa Rica/Cano Island

Jinetes de Osa/Mirador Lodge, Dec, 2004,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Jinetes de Osa/Mirador Lodge in
Costa Rica/Cano Island