27/6 Finland and Russia, getting there.

Having decided to join Sabrina from Taiga Spirit, in Finland, on a trip to the White Sea in Russia we agreed to meet up at 6.00. am for our 10.20 flight to Kajaani via Helsinki. A phone call at 5.45 was David who had lost his car keys and was going to get DC up to bring him up. So a half hour later than planned we set off in my car for Heathrow. The M25 was moving, although slow with lots of stop/start waves for no reason which meant that we made it to the checkin desk with about 2 minutes to,spare. It was a very quick checkin though.
Another slow but moving queue through security and we were in!!
We had a 5 hour wait over in Helsinki so we had a meal and a drink and caught up with some sleep. A message from Sabrina told us to expect a taxi and to let ourselves into her house ready for an 8.30 breakfast and 10.30 exit for Russia.



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5/3 Day 15 Heading Home

We had a more leisurely get up this morning before meeting up for breakfast. The hotel was in an urban area of San Jose but there were trees and patches of greenery around. A Variable Squirell was feeding on the pods of a tree.

We arranged to leave our luggage at the hotel until we had to go to the airport and set off for some exploring in the grounds of the University. We were told about a sloth that usually lived in the trees but we were unlucky, although some lads swore that it was around. We wandered round the grounds checking out various trees and bamboo groves before making our way up the road to another campus which was supposed to be good for Prevost's Sparrow. On the opposite side of the road was one of the large spheres, created by ancient Costa Ricans for unknown reasons and an interesting wall sculpture depicting life through the year.

We didn't see a great deal but it was very pleasant  and saved sitting around the hotel until it was time to go to the airport. We stopped for a last ice-cream on the way back to the car, returned to the Hotel, finished our packing and made our way to the airport in plenty of time for our flight home.

4/3 Day 14: Back to San Jose

Our 6am walk following tea and coffee took us along the road and up a track to an area that looked out across the valley. The view was great and we could see the layout of the lodge. The sun was bright and warm as we scanned the hillside. Luis soon found a Yellow-bellied Siskin male and a couple of females among the ever present Rufous-collared Sparrows. Blue-and-White Swallows zipped around the hillside and a pair of Acorn Woodpeckers were investigating a hole-riddled tree trunk. A Red-tailed Hawk flew along the skyline before we decided it was time to return for breakfast.

After breakfast we checked the trees and had good views of Sulphur-winged Parakeet and Long-tailed Silky Flycatcher before we took another trail along the river up to an area with lots of 'Morros' - Blackberries. We had several stops to check flocks with Streak-headed Foliage Gleaner among the Ruddy Treerunners and Wilson's Warblers. Further along the track by a huge boulder a Red-headed Barbet could be seen feeding, giving good views although it was about 50 feet up in the canopy.

We followed the trail as it climbed up the hillside with a clear area covered in what the Costa Ricans called Moras - Blackberries, which Luis enjoyed eating. A steep descent brought us back to the original trail and we made our way back with myself taking a wrong turn across a bridge and finding myself above the lodge on the other side of the valley.

Retracing my footsteps I paused to admire an Ochraceous Wren before being re-united by the bridge. Following the trail back to the lodge we admired the many small tents being setup for a cycling race that was coming through later in the day. There were several Blue-and-White Swallows sitting on the porch roof to the dining hall and disappearing into the gaps under the corrugated roofing and a Clay-coloured Thrush was building a nest in he be good of a support beam.

We went back to our rooms, collected our luggage, packed the car and then went for lunch, enjoying a last minute look at the feeders before setting off back to San Jose.

We stopped a couple of times on the way out, looking for Black and Yellow Silky Flycatcher but no luck but lots of Long-tailed Silky Flycatchers and a few hummers in the flowers. We stopped the second time to admire Sooty Thrushes. Along a track DW found Large-footed Finch and Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush and across the clearing was a Black-capped Flycatcher. We also noticed that the van had overheated again and was leaking water. Luis filled it up from a gallon bottle and a man from across the road let him fill up more. We set off for the main road passing a few of the early cyclists on their way down.

We stopped at Kilometer 71 but the weather had deteriorated and so we decided not to wander out but to head on back to our hotel in San Jose. We arrived around 4.30, settled in, had a wander round the limited gardens where we saw nothing before all meeting up at the bar for a drink.

Luis had booked a table at Lukas's where we had a nice meal and toasted our trip before walking back to the hotel.






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Location:Folkestone,United Kingdom

3/3 Day 13: La Quebrada and Waterfall Trail

We were up for our usual 6.00am start around the feeders, a walk round the grounds, across the lower bridge and back in at the entrance for breakfast. We saw the usual birds as well as a lovely Tufted Flycatcher, Ruddy-capped Nightingale Thrush and Yellow-thighed Finch.

After breakfast we drove up into the oak forest, La Quebrada, in a jeep which was funded by not going into Monte Verde, a wise decision. On the way up we saw Solitaires, including a nesting bird. Glancing up I noticed a Lichen Katydid on the strap about 6 inches from my face, which was really smart but unexpected.

We spent a bit of time looking around the oaks before starting to walk back down the trail. On the way we saw more Chestnut-capped Nightingale-thrushes and then Luis found a female Quetzal. The bird was very tolerant of us as we spent some time photgraphing it and then a lady coming theother way told us of a male just ahead so we hurried quietly down till we saw it on a branch, unfortunately with it's back to us but stunning.

 We carried on down the track to the lodge for lunch.
Around 3pm we started the 2 Km uphill walk to the waterfall. On the way we saw treecreepers and Collared Redstarts as well as two more Quetzals. At the bridge across the water we saw soething er had been hoping to see, American Dipper, a greyer, slimmer but longer-legged bird than our European one and difficult to photo in the gloomy light. We were back by 6pm,for dinner and then we walked out for a bat check, recording several species.

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2/3 Day 12: Sevegre

We made an early morning start to catch the birds that had learnt to visit the moth sheet. It was quite dim and some were difficult to see but we did get nice views and a few photos.
After breakfast we drove down to 'Mother's' house where we were allowed to stand in the garden by the catails bushes. We had several good views of Snowcap as well as a female Black-crested Coquette and a Swallowtail Butterfly.

We then drove towards Savegre, stopping at a restaurant for lunch with hummer feeders at the windows and around the back where we enjoyed really excellent views of Volcano Hummer, among others. We then drove to an area of the high paramo where we eventually managed to get good sightings of Volcano Junco, Flame-throated Warbler, Sooty Thrush and Timberline Wren.

We returned to the Savegre turning and followed a long, steep road down along a valley to Sevegre. This lodge was set up when a group of young men were exploring on a hunting expedition. They lost their way and had to spend a night in the valley. They were so taken by the area that they returned, carved out a place to build houses, farm and then sent for their families to join them. They explored the use of the river for trout fishing and then a passing group of bird watchers discovered the great variety of bird life, including numerous Resplendant Quetzals and they changed thier focus to birds and the natural world, although they still farm trout. 

1/3 Day 11: Rancho Naturalista

We were up for our usual early morning get up, then we sorted our things out and packed. The Egrets were clustered on their tree and slowly they drifted off to forage. A Manakin clicked just outside the room but didn't make itself visable. Breakfast on the open verandah before a walk round to the hanging bridge to see if there was any sign of yesterdays Sunbittern but no luck. Amazon and Green kingfishers zipped along the river.
We packed up for the drive to Rancho Naturalista. We stopped at the bridge to video the car and spent nearly an hour snapping butterflies and birding the trees nearby. A nesting Green-breasted Mango on the wires was unexpected and a Tityra seemed to be prospecting on one of the poles.

We had one stop at roadside for butterflies but Luis wanted to get on as meals are at set times and they don't keep them for latecomers. There was a long climb up a bumpy track, and we were a little late for lunch due to taking a wrong turn but the feeders were amazing. There were feeding areas all round the edge of the garden with seating areas both on the ground floor and from a balcony. The banana and rice held tanagers, Chachalacas, Clay-coloured Thrush and White-lined Tanager. Within 10 minutes there was a male Snowcap on the Foxtails! It visited the flowers fairly regularly giving realy good views.
After lunch we walked down the entrance track scanning for birds in the bushes. We had distant views of Purple-crowned Fairy in the top of a tree but had to get back for the steep walk down to dipping pools where hummers come to bathe and drink in the late afternooon and evening. We had two more male Snowcaps and a female as well as a much more visible Purple-crowned fairy and then a Tawny-throated Leaf-tosser was found working it's way along the edge of the pools.
We had to be back for dinner at 6.00 before sorting out photos and nptes.  Later on we walked to a site a short way away where the lodge put up a lightsheet for moths. This was the origin of the Rio Naturalista before they become well known for hummers, especially the Snowcap. There was a very helpful chap from the USA who came just to photograph the moths who chatted about the moths and offered to send identification sites and blogs to help with the moths. There was a wide variety of species, some of which looked vaguely familiar and a large moth flopped in, settled for a short rest and then flopped it's way off into the night. We returned to our rooms showing him stag beetle before we turned in.

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29/2 Day 10: |Braulio Carillio

We set off on the drive to Braulio Carrillo which was just us, nice and quiet, but difficult to see anything in the canopy. The path went uphill quite steeply and then levelled out. It was a fairly quiet walk until Luis found a Lattice-tailed Trogon which gave great views. We wandered on with not much other than a Black-thighed Grosbeak which David and Allan got good views of.

We then walked over the road and took the  trail to a river look out with nice views.

 We had lunch at a great roadside cafe which had fruit and hummer feeders with Blue-grey and Palm Tanagers, birds whose photographs don't do justice to them.

Luis had made arrangements with a young artist called Cope to take us to see some roosting crested owls. We met up with him at his house and drove down a lane, parking on the roadside before beiing led along a path through a small wood to a spot where we could see the two owls blinking on a branch. The views were great, although it was difficult to get photos. Cope then took us to where a Common Potoo was roosting on a pole by the roadside.

We then went back to his hummingbird garden with feeders bringing in White-necked Jacobin, Blue-chested Hummer, Long-billed and Stripe-throated Hermits as well Chestnut-backed Oropendulas and a green lizard. We looked through some of his artwork and bought a couple of pictures before heading back for dinner.


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