ISO A YEAR OF COSTA RICAN NATURAL HISTORY 



steepness, and the upper parts of these commanded mag- 

 nificent views. On a morning in the rainy season, before the 

 daily clouds rolled up, the panorama included the hills south 

 and west with Barba showing through a gap between Irazu 

 and Carpintera, the huge expanse of Irazu itself, the Car- 

 tago slope and at our feet the Agua Caliente Valley with its 

 shining river, while to the east lay the beginning of the Re- 

 ventazon Valley with Cachi nestling among the coffee farms. 

 The roads themselves, particularly through the second- 

 growth woods, were exceedingly pretty because of the abun- 

 dance of flowering trees and bushes. On February ii we 

 especially noted red and pink Melastomes, tree composites 

 with large yellow flowers resembling sunflowers, many other 

 less woody species of the same family, the beautiful blue 

 sage or "Jalacate," the red and orange orchid {Epidendrum 

 radicans) and lantanas similarly colored, Bryophyllums 

 and long sprays of blackberries just turning from red to 

 black. At this time many of the trees had young leaves or 

 buds most brilliantly colored in red and yellow-bronze, 

 quite equal to our autumn tints. Some of the fields on the 

 Jocosal seemed to be abandoned entirely to the Santa Lucia 

 in its most exquisite colors. 



On February 28 we rode over the highest part of the Jo- 

 cosal (according to our aneroid 5250 feet while Agua Ca- 

 liente was 4460), following a winding road which was now a 

 wide and well-beaten track, then a narrow footpath and in 

 general grew less distinct as we descended on the other side. 

 It was soon evident that the horses were on unfamiliar 

 ground and P.'s decidedly objected to the descent, for the 

 road degenerated into a slippery zigzag down a steep hill- 

 side. We knew there must be a river at the bottom and 

 presently we heard it, but it was a long time before we could 

 see it, for the second-growth woods were thick on both sides 

 of the trail. On the lower parts we saw tree-ferns and here 



