Nicolas Mendez lived the first 17 years of his life on his father's farm near a backwoods village called Dos Bocas. His early years were spent studying at the local primary school and working on the farm. Once he finished the sixth grade Nicolas worked full time with his father.

As the farm was surrounded by rainforest, wild animals and birds of all kinds were an integral part of Nicolas' everyday life. Like everyone else in Dos Bocas, he hunted, mostly paca and peccary, to supplement the family diet. But he hunted other animals too. One day while chopping weeds in a pasture his hunting dogs ran into the forest barking at an animal. From the way they were barking Nicolas could tell they had something cornered.

Following the sound of the barking dogs he arrived at the spot to find that they had cornered a margay cat (about twice the size of a large house cat and spotted like a jaguar,) between two large boulders. He killed the beautiful cat thinking that he would tan the pelt and hang it on the wall in his house. Later, looking at the dead cat, he felt bad about having ended the life of such a beautiful animal. The experience affected him so much that he decided to quit hunting and do his best to protect the wildlife instead.
At the age of 17 Nicolas was offered an opportunity to travel to Canada. He moved to Toronto where he worked for seven years. He recently returned to Costa Rica to visit his family and see if he can make a life here for his wife Ruth and their son Daniel who are still living Toronto. He hopes to bring them to Costa Rica soon.

Nicolas has a soft spot in his heart for the margay cat and hopes to see another one some day. His favorite tour is the Night in the Jungle. He was so involved with the rainforest during his early years that he is certain he could survive in the rainforest with only his bare hands. “The jungle produces plenty of food,” says Nicolas. “You just need to know what you can eat and where to find it.” His dream is to teach the people of Dos Bocas how to make a living taking visitors to see and learn about the rainforest and the wildlife. By offering an alternative for making a living he figures he can convince them to protect this fascinating habitat rather than destroy it.