Jack Deal

When I was a teenager, I thought that adventure was going to places like Fez, Chiapas or Vancouver Island. Well, I went to those places and had adventure but over the years I learned that going thousands of miles from home to a completely alien culture and language is not the only route to adventure.

Before I was 20 I was a veteran world traveler that pushed the limits of adventure and was ready for more.

The day trippers going up and down California Highway 1 often miss the fun of a side trip to Moss Landing Harbor. It's a good stretch, a quick walk on the beach and maybe some seafood if you aren't paranoid about the mercury or whatever else may be inside those ocean critters.

Actually Moss Landing is no longer just a speed zone by the big power plant and the Little Baja trinket shop.

In the very dim early morning light I hear a large truck pull up just down the beach from us. I look out the tent window and see men with guns getting out of the back. Either these are bandidos, the Zapatistas invading Quintana Roo or the Mexican Army. Fortunately for us, it's the latter.

We get out of the tent and they stop by for a chat.

Simply put, Costa Rica is awash in natural beauty and one of the prettiest places on the planet. It boasts the second largest barrier reef on Earth. Cocos Island, of Jurassic Park fame, is one of its best known landmarks. For its size, it is one of the most bio-diverse spots in the world.

With only .03% of the Earth's land mass, Costa Rica has 3% of the world's biodiversity.