Sky High and Sugar Sweet

Lilies

Another day, another adventure (or two)…

The morning began with a misty trek to the Life Centre, a small outpost used for wildlife viewing and butterfly research. The walk took about twenty minutes — just enough time to admire the shifting moods of the forest. Today’s weather couldn’t have been more different from yesterday’s sunshine. Rain fell in gentle bursts and the cloud canopy draped itself dramatically over the trees, as though the forest had decided to wear a veil.

After the obligatory animal and bird spotting outside, we entered the Life Centre where we learned about orchids and butterflies. The main research focus at the moment is the owl-eye butterfly, a large and beautiful species with unmistakable markings (no prizes for guessing how it got its name). Malcolm, however, has a lifelong aversion to moths and flying insects. Let’s just say he opted for outdoor appreciation while I took one for the team indoors.

He didn’t mind though — after all, this is the man who voluntarily attended a 6:30 am birdwatching session (while I focused on my zzz’s). and now has a newfound appreciation for binoculars. The Life Centre had a mama of all binoculars powerful enough to spot birds across the valley — a birdwatcher’s dream, or our case a necessity for our guide to show us what he could spot!

The outdoor viewing area

Greedy Agouti - cousin of the popular capybara. This little dude came back for bananas at least 7 times!!

Woodpecker. That's not Woody...

Flame-rumped tanager. Male and female arguing like any good couple. Female on the left and male on the right just in case you were wondering...

That's the big mama. Small but mighty

The orchid is tiny! The smallest species here is only 2mm big!!

My mother would love this place

More orchids

At first glance it looked like roots

Um...they're all caterpillars!

Caterpillar eggs

The various caterpillar stages

Part of the research area

Where they hatch. That yellow pool is the liquid from the wings. It takes hours to dry before they can fly

Guess what this is

When they open up the inside were a different colour!

There were other species but they were fast and hard to capture

I forget what this one is called. My brain could only retain so much!

Sometimes you get lucky and they stay still right next to your feet!

Returning to the lodge for lunch, we were greeted by the arrival of four busloads of American tourists, about thirty of them, whose combined enthusiasm could rival a stadium crowd. (Apologies to my American friends, but volume levels do rise exponentially with group size!)

I digress! The afternoon’s main event was the Sky Bike, a contraption that looked very much like something invented by a mad scientist: two seats, a bicycle mechanism, and a zipline stretching across the canopy. What could possibly go wrong?

Getting there required another 20-minute uphill slog. Our usual exploration pals (an elderly British couple were fit, but today’s group included a few less energetic participants. Our pace resembled a cardio class done in slow motion.

The “biker” at the back does the pedaling, you go across the canyon, turn around at the station and pedal back. The man who never does leg days went first. We decided it was fair to take turns with gender equality and all that modern crap, and that I would pedal back. It all looked and sounded easy until you’re midair, legs burning, and beginning to suspect the forest is expanding before your eyes. Eventually, our guide, perhaps sensing our slowing momentum, gave us a discreet “assist.” Suddenly pedaling became suspiciously easy, and I decided not to test what would happen if I stopped altogether...

The view from above was surreal — Beautiful, yes, but 

The mystical setting invoked a variety of emotions. On one hand, it was almost surreal - floating among clouds, with the forest floor lost somewhere far below. On the other hand, it could also be slightly terrifying for those with imaginative tendencies. One half expects a pterodactyl to swoop out of the mist for a snack. Not being able to see the forest floor also had a practical component for those leaning towards anxiety with heights (not naming names...).

We’d hoped to see sloths that had been spotted earlier, but they’d moved on, leaving us with the consolation prize of black howler monkeys, their calls echoing through the fog.

It turned out to be leg day after all. Our guide suggested we visit the nearby observation tower while the other guests had their turn on the sky-bike. The observation tower was a never ending series of stairs giving as a view of...clouds. So back down we went. By now the guide had recognised that the other guests would take a lot longer to complete the sky bike and so he sent us back to the lodge as well as another guide to come meet up along the road to make sure we didn't get lost. 

If you really look, there are many birds right at the resort. This one was the female collared trogon. Yesterday we saw the male

Sky-bike. We didn't get eaten by pterydactyls

Off we go blending into the surrounds...

This looked safe?

In the clouds - so surreal

My turn to pedeal

Our final evening was one of relaxation. We had booked the Spirit of the Rock couples treatment: a 60-minute hot stone massage followed by a full-body exfoliation. The massage was heavenly, the perfect mix of pressure and flow. The massage bed was also super comfortable with an amazing face rest. (the spa at Aulani still holds the gold standard, but this one came close.)

Then came the honey-based scrub, a mixture of honey, orange juice, and coarse sugar. The actual rough exfoliation felt great…until it came time to wash it off. Let’s just say we may have done a finger-lick test or two to ensure we weren’t still sweet enough to be mosquito magnets. Verdict: sticky but radiant. I even got my armpits exfoliated. A first.

Sadly, tomorrow we leave this incredible place. Mashpi has been pure magic - immersive, educational, and adventurous in all the right ways with comfort and luxury thrown in. Knowing that our stay contributes directly to local conservation and community projects only sweetens the experience.

If you ever get the chance to visit Mashpi Lodge, don’t hesitate. Don’t pass Go. Don’t think twice.
Just do it.

Day 5: Sky-biked, sugar-scrubbed, and skin as smooth as a baby's butt