Magical Sunrises On The Osa Peninsula

Magical sunrises on the Osa Peninsula

Magical sunrises on the Osa Peninsula. It is definitely worth getting up for.

One of the first places I lived on the Osa Peninsula was 50 feet away from the Golfo Dulce, or sweet gulf in English. That was over 15 years ago. Every morning, I would have my cup of Costa Rican coffee on the porch. It was still dark; the sun was not up yet. I sat there and enjoyed the quiet. The world was sleeping. To the east, I could see a sliver of morning light. The first thing to wake up was the howler monkeys. Like clockwork, they were the first to howl in the morning. The next thing that would welcome yet another day would be the green parrots. As I sat there, realizing that just maybe I had found a home. It made me feel good in a special way.

Capturing the Sunrise

The night before was spent on cleaning my camera and lens.” I poured another cup of coffee. After grabbing my gear it was a short 50-foot walk to the Golfo Dulce. Looking over the gulf, I knew I wanted to put something tropical in the sunrise. After all, just a photo of a sunrise is just another sunrise. As I looked for a location, one appeared to be perfect, so I set up my tripod so that a palm branch would be in the shot.

Camera settings.

I set up my tripod and secured my camera on it, set my aparture to the smallest F22, and set my iso to the lowest setting. my shutter speed was at 100 of secound.

At F22, my depth of field would be good for landscape photography. Everything would be in focus. Then I waited, sipping my coffee. Daylight slowly started to change the color of the sky. Now was the time to capture another Sunrise on the Osa Peninsula. Looking through the viewfinder, the shot was perfect, and I pressed the shutter that was set to go off in three seconds.

The above photograph was taken in front of my house, where I was living in Puerto Jimenez. Your subject matter is the dock, add a palm branch, wait for the sun to just come up over the clouds.

The location

For this shot. When you are coming into town, the road will curve to the right. If you look to the left, you will see Cabinas Jimenez. Go left past Cabinas Jimenez, and you will come to the spot where the above photo was taken.

The best place to view the sunrise in Puerto Jimenez would be the new dock they just built, if you want to include boats. What works about the new dock is that it extends past all the land points or out crops. The sun will come up right in the center of the Golfo Dulce.

First things first is Coffee. Head on over to the main bakery on Main Street. They open up at 4:30 am. Pick up a breakfast pastry and a cup of coffee.

Getting to the new dock

From the bakery, go to the football field and take the beach road. You will go over the new bridge that the Costa Rican government just finished building. As you walk over the bridge, the road will turn to the right, at which time you will see the new dock. The small green parrots will start flying around in the hundreds.

Scarlet Macaws on your walk.

As you are walking down the road towards the pier on the right-hand side, there will be almond trees; if you’re lucky, there might be some Scarlet macaws eating the almonds. Juan Carlos planted the trees 10 years ago. His nickname is JC. Just another local that has a deep love for the Osa Peninsula.

Sunrise in the middle of Golfo Dulce

When you get to the pier, look to the east, the sun will come up in the middle of the Golfo Dulce, or sweet gulf. I have spent many a morning sitting on the bench at the dock and watching the sun rise to greet another day. By 6 a.m, the dock starts to fill up. Visitors are waiting for the boats to take them to Corcovado National Park, and fishermen are jumping on charter boats to catch their dream fish. at 6.15 the ferry to Golfito leaves for Golfito.

Sit on a bench, enjoy your cup of Costa Rican coffee, and close your eyes, let the first rays of sunshine soak on your face. Forget about everything for a few minutes. Be thankful for another day. It is Pura Vida!