Golfo Dulce is a gulf in the Pacific Ocean which separates the Osa Peninsula from the mainland of Costa Rica. The Golfo Dulce is considered to be a tropical fjord. Most of the gulf and the coast around it is protected with very little development. There are two towns on the gulf – Golfito on the mainland and Puerto Jiménez at the end of the peninsula – both with around 1,000 residents. We arrived by road and departed from the tiny airport at Puerto Jiménez.
The gulf has several species of whales visit to use its warm calm waters as a breeding ground and a nursery.
We went on a boat trip to see the two species of dolphin who are year round inhabitants; the bottle nose and spotted dolphins. We saw a group of over 100 spotted dolphins who group together against predators as they are small. The bottle nose are larger and generally found in groups of two to four. We saw several groups very close to our boat, at times swimming under the boat or in its wake. Our guide explained that they approach to boats as they are curious and they enjoy surfing the wake.
Shilli-Fully Travels 