View of Playa Grande & Cabo Velas from ATV tour

This is a one of the views from the ATV trip that we took up in the hills above Tamarindo. Playa Grande, the nesting site for endangered leatherback turtles is in the foreground. On the other side of Tamarindo Bay is Cabo Velas.

The beach and bay are part of Las Baulas National Marine Park, which consists of 379 hectacres on land, including the Tamarindo estuary, and 22,000 hectacres of the ocean. The Tamarindo estuary lies between Tamarindo and Playa Grande. It contains all six of the mangrove species native to Costa Rica's Pacific coast, 57 species of birds, monkeys, crocodiles, and other wildlife.