La Gamba is a village in the Guaycará District of Golfito canton, which is part of Puntarenas Province of Costa Rica. Village inhabitants are employed in agriculture and in jobs offered in cities such as Golfito and Rio Claro. This village was developed in conjunction with different projects that were started and ended during the last 50 years in La Gamba; including the arrival of the United Fruit Company in the 1950s, the implementation of the Austrian Esquinas Rainforest Lodge. Developmental projects were also started in collaboration with organizations from La Gamba, the Costa Rican government and the Austrians. Geography and climate The village is in Puntarenas Province on the south-west side of the country, a few kilometers away from Panama and is reachable by the Pan-American. From the Villa Briceño (km 37) 3 km separate the Pan-American from the center of the village that is easily reachable. Rio Claro and Golfito are the closest cities and are the centers of services such as banks, supermarkets and drugstores. Piedras Blancas park is nearby. The park is little known and serves mainly for biological research. The weather is tropical; the temperature varies between 21 °C and 39 °C and the region receives roughly 6000 mm of rain per year. There are two seasons: the winter (May–December) and the summer (January–April). The summer is the dry season while the winter, which stretches on a longer period, is the rainy season, and the greener period of the year and there is plenty of drinking water. This season is characterized by strong thunderstorms, floods and unstable weather. Population In the village, there are roughly 700 inhabitants separated into 150 families. Half of these families live around the center of La Gamba, while the other half are spread out along the roads leading to the center of the village, in Rio Bonito and La Bolsa, which are about 30 minutes walking distance from the center. There is a microcredit organization located in the city, which help support two groups of women that produce handcrafted natural shampoos and local artisans. Agriculture Given a decline in the wood and banana industries in the region since the 1970s, most of the workers that chose to stay in the village converted themselves into farmers. The climate of the area is perfect for rice, corn, cacao and palm agriculture. Most farmers also own cows, pigs, horses or chickens. In the