Alternative Breaks- Costa Rica

In Spring 2016, I had the opportunity to travel to Costa Rica to perform volunteer work through the Alternative Breaks program at La Tortuga Feliz, a non-profit organization dedicated to endangered sea turtles. It was, perhaps,one of the most difficult volunteer projects I have worked. As participants we patrolled graveyard shifts, walking 6 miles a night in the sand, pitch black in severe rain and wind. In the afternoons, we did beach clean up for 4 miles so we could patrol the beach at night in search of nesting adult sea turtles. There was no electricity and we had to watch for the mosquitoes, crabs, gnats, sand fleas, and scorpions inside the cabins. 

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In these areas, egg poaching is a serious problem. Locals view eggs as an important source of income, and do not realize the magnitude of this, since the turtles come to lay eggs in large numbers. Nevertheless, only a fraction of eggs survive adulthood, and turtle populations cannot recover rapidly since it takes years for sea turtles to mature and reproduce. Hence, it was very difficult to deal with poachers. According to an agreement made between the program organizers and the poachers, if volunteers see a turtle and are working with them, poachers cannot get near them, however, if poachers are stealing the sea turtle eggs, volunteers cannot do anything to rescue the sea turtle. Despite, not being able to rescue some turtles from poachers, I helped release 15 baby turtles into the sea.

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This was an unforgettable experience, and one I will hold on to for a very long time. Being so close to nature and contributing to the conservation of sea turtles made everything worth it!

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