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| Our cabin |
Our next stop was Selva Verde Lodge in the Caribbean lowlands where we stayed
for four nights. The grounds were extensive, with covered walkways to allow birding in any weather. The flora gorgeous. The
cabins were simple but comfortable. The food was hearty (rice and beans with every meal).
Our local guide, Gilberto, was truly accomplished. He would identify the bird
by call, imitate the call to attract the bird to us, and then call out the page number in our bird book where this bird
was described. He was also expert at plant identification.
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| Braulio Carillo National Park |
Day 1 - Braulio Carillo National Park
Our first day trip was a true rainforest experience. Due to the constant
rain, only eight birds appeared on the same trail where our guide saw 110 two days earlier. We made the best of it though.
In the afternoon we chartered a boat to take us on the Sarapiqui River that
runs through Selva Verde Lodge.
Day 2 - La Selva Biological Station
We spent the entire day here. It rained on and off but we saw lots of great
birds.
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| La Paz Falls |
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| Emerald Toucanet |
Day 3 - La Virgen and Cinchona (middle elevation)
We birded the road at La Virgen and caught a glimpse of the
Ornate Hawk Eagle - our guide's excitement was contagious.
We drove up the road to a Vera's place in Cinchona for coffee, homemade
tortillas, a fantastic view, and an abundance of colorful birds and hummingbirds at the feeders.
On our last night at Selva Verde we were entertained by a marimba band.
Albert (an intern in the ecotourism program) taught us the Cumbia.
The next day we left for Monteverde and stopped to admire some iguanas along
the road.
Monteverde (The Cloud Forest)
We spent two nights in Monteverde at a hotel with a fantastic view of the
distant Gulf of Nicoya.
We spent a day birding in Monteverde Cloud Forest Preseve with our local
guide, Bernal. The morning featured an excellent view of a two-toed sloth active during the day. In the afternoon we saw an
Orange-bellied Trogon, which only appears in Monteverde. During our trip we saw five different Trogon species.
Click here for more Monteverde photos.
Villa Lapas
Our last birding stop was Villa Lapas on the Pacific Coast.
The grounds included an extensive trail system, with skybridges to get you
into the canopy.
We spent the morning in Carara Preserve led by our guide, Santiago. He
was also our driver for the entire trip. In the afternoon we hiked the Skywalk trail that was much more rugged than we expected.
The next morning we took a boat ride in the mangroves at the mouth of the
Tarcoles River. We saw more than 40 species of birds plus other assorted wildlife.
We returned to San Jose that evening for an early flight home the next day,
January 13th.
For the trip Team Toucan recorded a total of 253 different bird species.
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| Banana flower |
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| Skywalk bridge |
Click here for more Villa Lapas photos.
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