~ By Vicky ~
The Road to Monteverde
For years we talked and dreamt of international travel. Our passports were renewed and hot off the press with our married names. We had a list of possible places from France to Thailand to Scotland, and a small itch for South America (Ecuador, maybe?). We had tens of thousands of Alaska Airline miles. There was no good excuse, but for years we waffled and hemmed and hawed. S was fortunate to have talked with a birder who recommended Costa Rica having been there twice, so that seed was planted and left to unwittingly germinate while we did local birding and weekend trips. It was while wallowing in our sorrows of the loss of Tule Lake and learning of the insane fight over water rights at Lower Klamath Wildlife Refuge that the seed of Costa Rica finally took root. We had enough Alaska Airlines miles to get the flight for both of us dirt cheap, and so after some down and dirty basic research into logistics the flight to San Jose CR was booked.
To bird with a guide or not, that was the question. Neither of us have ever hired a birding guide. As a once shoestring-budget traveler to Europe, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia in my twenties, I found myself now in my forties with some more money in the bank, and so the thought of spending money to hire a guide was not unpalatable to me now. That said we still wanted the freedom to explore and spot birds on our own. So the compromise was to hire a guide on our first day of birding at each of the new locations, and spend the remaining time birding on our own. This in theory would tune our eyes to seeing Costa Rican birds. In practice we were to find that the plan worked out marvelously, and we easily settled into a rhythm of delightful discovery with each hour birding in the field.
Our uneventful flight landed at Juan Santamaría International Airport a little before 9 pm. I had reserved our first night at the Berlor Airport Inn because it was cheap, but most importantly within 2 miles from the airport and next door to Adobe Car Rentals. So efficiency and economics. We were forewarned about taxi scams from the airport and to only take the licensed orange cabs who charged a standardized rate. When we stepped out of the airport, men with lanyard tags and men with signs and men with rushed voices jostled for our attention to use their cab service. Not sure how it worked, we asked for "orange cab" and got back "yes, orange cab". Finally a staid looking man said to wait and got on his radio. He didn't seem too determined to help us. And after about 10 minutes of waiting, and being told to wait more, we had no choice but to stand around and observe. We came to the conclusion that efficiency and economics in getting a nearby hotel worked against us: our fare was too low to be worth the taxi-men's time. They were hustling for the big fares going downtown or to nearby Eco-lodges and didn't want to risk losing that by taking us 2.6km away for a measly $5 USD! After an interminable wait, we did finally get our taxi. Berlor Airport Inn gave us mixed feelings: clean but kind of sleazy, as in do men take prostitutes here? But in the end, the place pulled through for us as we saw in the morning other foreign travelers. And with the ease of the car rental agency being just next door, we'll probably use the place again.
Adobe Car Rentals turned out to be an excellent local company to rent from. We rented a Hyundai SUV as SUVs were recommended for the rough roads of Costa Rica. I was of course nervous to drive in a foreign country. I've only ever driven in the Netherlands. And I've been driven around in enough other countries to know that the belief in kismet leads to terrifying drivers. I wouldn't say that drivers in Costa Rica are as crazy as, say, Thailand (where they drive as if no one else is on the road) and nowhere as kismet-crazed as Turkey (which is where I first heard the word, from the cab driver who responded with "it's kismet!" when I remarked that they drive like there's no road rules). The road mentality of Costa Rica is completely opposite to the USA. There, the more vulnerable beings (pedestrian, bicyclist, small car, dog, etc.) are lowest on the yield-to ladder and therefore are the ones responsible to watch for, yield to, and generally save their own skins when on the road.
Our first stop, Monteverde, was in the Central highlands which separates the Pacific coast from the Caribbean coast. We planned to stay in Monteverde for four days at the Vista Verde Eco-Lodge. The road there, Route 606, gains elevation quickly. Within thirty minutes of steep snaking road we found ourselves trotting along beautiful vistas of contiguous volcanic-formed hills. I had my hands full steering the twisty turns and dodging the many pot-holes. Sumalee was navigating as second eyes for on-coming cars and the odd iguana sunbathing in the road. Despite a few pull-offs to glean the views, we didn't see many birds on the way to our lodge that first day. Our first real spotting was the Black Guan that S. happened to see jumping amongst the branches on the way to the lodge. Studying the guidebook paid off, because we knew it was a Guan-type bird, and were able to make a sure, in-the-field identification. Once at the lodge, "Cloud Forest" became a manifestly apt term as the lodge and the dirt road to the lodge were enshrouded in the clouds by the time we arrived. Those clear blue skies, and miles-long views were a thing of the dry lowlands.
Our lodge was serendipitously picked. There were the popular eco lodges in the main towns of either Monteverde or Santa Elena, but the prices were prohibitive for us. Using Google Maps I happened to look at a lodge about 8 km north of the Santa Elena. Vista Verde Lodge's website had inspiring photos, and an intriguing description. A small family run eco-lodge with a waterfall that powers their electricity, and they had their own coffee plantation. The road there had us driving past the highly touristy Santa Elena with its many lodges and hostels. Once past Santa Elena the road was once again our own, and Vista Verde Lodge was nestled and secluded in the hills, which we greatly preferred. The lodge was run like a well-oiled machine by the owner Eulogio's niece Karina, a wonderful and talented hostess and jack-of-all trades in the hospitality business. She had her hand in everything: concierge, cook, manager, bartender, waitress, and mother as she raised her daughter at the lodge. The rooms were basic and clean, with breathtaking views of Lake Arenal. Breakfast was included in the fare, and guests could choose from a traditional Costa Rican fare of pico de gallo, eggs, fresh fruit, rice and beans, and fried plantains, or pancakes, or just toast and eggs, and all of course served with a large pot of their incredible coffee! Of which I enjoyed mine with warmed milk, and S. pure and black. We both chose the traditional breakfast, and, except for our first morning when we woke too early for breakfast time of 6 am, this hearty meal fueled us for the entire day until dinner. We also found that, because of the twenty minute drive to Santa Elena where the restaurants were, we preferred to end our long days at the lodge to have its economically priced and delicious dinners, and relax with a bottle of South American wine we'd bought at the grocery store.
Our second spotting was the Common Chlorospingus seen through the window of our room. And again, study paid off. There was much familiarity of its distinguishing features- the white triangle patch behind the eye, the olive green body. It was like a name on the tip of the tongue; we just couldn't quite name the bird. The names of all the groups and families were so exotic that we at first had trouble finding it in the guide. Then for whatever reason, I had a flash of remembrance and found our bird.
Birds seen thus far...
1. Great-tailed Grackle
2. Magnificent Frigatebird
3. Black Vulture
4. Black Guan
5. Common Chlorospingus
Early Morning Birding at Curi-Cancha Reserve with Walter our birding guide
We had chosen to visit Costa Rica in the month of February. This, supposedly, was the milder season. Let me say how it really is in the highlands: each night the wind comes howling in and the rain deluges. During the day it either rains or it doesn't. This is the normal, healthy weather cycle that allows for lush jungle and the incredible biodiversity of life. It is also why we made it a point to get back to the lodge before dark so as to avoid driving the windy dirt road in the inevitable fog and storm.
That first night at the lodge I slept poorly for several reasons, but the main one was due to the raging storm that had me feeling like we were in an oceanic squall on the rugged Pacific Coast. Our birding day was to start at 6 am to meet Walter our birding guide, and here I was awake in bed at 3 am listening for the wind to die down and worrying if we could bird in a storm. At 5 am I made a What's App call to Walter to ask if he thought we would see anything in this weather. He couldn't give any reassurances that the storm would stop, but he also didn't seem too concerned about it, so off we drove down the cloud-soaked road to the Curi-Cancha Reserve!
The wind calmed down considerably by the time we arrived at Stella's coffeeshop, and my anxiety turned to anticipation. While at home planning our trip, we had arranged to hire Walter on the recommendation of our host Eulogio. We had no expectations of what to expect from a guide. But in our need to be assiduous birders we worried about relying too much on a guide to spot our birds. In the weeks leading to the trip we were studying The Birds of Costa Rica, 2nd edition with the focus of students preparing for a final exam. Our hearts were keen to see such exotically named birds such as Montezuma Oropendola, Lesson's Motmot, Keel-billed Toucan, Euphonias, Trogons; and all the rich nomenclatures for hummingbird types - Mountain gem, Emerald, Woodstar! In the parking lot Walter found us immediately and greeted us enthusiastically. He was like an excited school-boy at the start of a long anticipated outing, and in one breath he went over the morning's itinerary. I have yet to write my piece about the gear that we bird with, but suffice it to say that when we bird, we bird fully-loaded. I shyly had to let Walter know we needed some time to get our gear on. Several minutes later I was strapped with my camera and telephoto lens, 12x50 binoculars, and camera bag with a 24-70mm lens and other camera accessories. S. had on her 10x42 binoculars, and backpack with water and rain ponchos.
We were favored by blind fortune in hiring Walter because he turned out to be an excellent birding guide, naturalist, and spotter. He was a birder who could bird by ear, so right at the start he was identifying birds for us. And he had a keen eye and knew where to look, so he was always shouting "there, do you see it?!" while pointing into a tangle of tree branches or deep into the overgrown jungle. And we'd be looking up or around feeling like dullards not spotting a damn thing. Walter's words of advice would always be "look for the movement!". And each time he said this I wanted to kill him, because in the thick wet jungle with the slightest wind and thousand water drops falling, there is nothing but movement.
As a gear junky, I was a bit positively biased in assessing Walter as a person of quality when I saw his Vortex binoculars and Swarovski 60mm spotting scope. However, I was not prepared for the skill and speed in which he could set his tripod down, level the legs, point the scope, focus, and have the bird in sight for us to look at. From our introductions in the parking lot, we did not ease into our birding day. We went into chase mode from the start, scrambling around the hilly landscaped lawn of a local business looking for a warbler that Walter could hear. S and I were glad to sight a familiar bird, the Wilson's Warbler, one of just a few birds on this trip that we knew from home. This was our cadence for the duration of our outing, and with the adventurous pace he set we spotted new bird after glorious new bird.
Our eyes learned where to look in the jungle thickets, but still, I was in constant awe and admiration of how fast Walter could set the scope up for us. At one point we were walking the trail of Curi Cancha Reserve gaining some elevation and getting away from the crowds. Walter stopped and excitedly said "There's a Sabrewing here". He walked a few paces off the path searching for it. But after a few minutes he gave up, and we moved on. We continued to see birds both new and ones already seen. On the way back, Walter stopped at about the same place where he previously heard the Violet Sabrewing. He took a few astute glances into a particular spot in the jungle, set up his scope, and, like a magician revealing the prestige, produced in the scope's viewfinder the Violet Sabrewing sitting on a branch. S and I took turns looking, simply gloating in such a find. The lighting was poor due to the overcast sky and low light of the dense jungle foliage, but I could see the the shape of his distinct sabre-curved bill. I looked over the scope sights to see if I could see where the bird was with my eyes, but could not. Finally, I had to ask, "How deep in there do you think the bird is?" Walter replied, "about twenty meters". Twenty meters! and just like that he could find him through the scope! I looked again, and even with Walter trying to point where the bird was sitting on a small branch, I failed to see him with just my eyes. The Violet Sabrewing is about 4-6 inches in size, and is considered a large hummingbird. But still, trying to see a 4-6 inch creature at about fifty feet away in dark, dense vegetation and trees is nearly impossible.
The first half of the day was spent at Curi-Cancha Reserve where we ran around in bliss of new discoveries. At 11:00, we broke for lunch, Walter going home, and S. and I eating a bagged lunch at the Reserve entrance. While soaking in the sun's momentary presence and eating, a Keel-billed Toucan flew overhead and into the jungle canopy. S. and I looked at each other with the same thought writ large in the looks on our faces - how can we ever leave this place?
And seen thus far...
6. Gray-headed Chachalaca
7. Crested Guan
8. Chiriui Quail-Dove
9. Squirrel Cuckoo
10. White-collared Swift
11. Lesser Violetear
12. Purple-throated Mountain-gem
13. Magenta-throated Woodstar
14. Violet Sabrewing
15. Coppery-headed Emerald
16. Stripe-tailed Hummingbird
17. Blue-vented Hummingbird
18. Mottled owl
19. Respendent Quetzal
20. Collared Trogon
21. Lesson's Motmot
22. Northern Emerald-Toucanet
23. Keel-billed Toucan
24. Hoffman's Woodpecker
25. Brown-hooded Parrot
26. White-fronted Parrot
27. Silvery-fronted Tapaculo
28. Spotted Barbtail
29. Masked Tityra
30. Olive-streaked Flycatcher
31. Common Tody-Flycatcher
32. Mountain Elaenia
33. Mistletoe Tyrannulet
34. Tufted Flycatcher
35. Yellowish Flycatcher
36. Dusky-capped Flycatcher
37. Great Kiskadee
38. Boat-billed Flycatcher
39. Social Flycatcher
40. Tropical Kingbird
41. Lesser Greenlet
42. Brown Jay
43. House Wren
44. Rufous-and-white Wren
45. Cabanis's Wren
46. White-breasted Wood-Wren
47. Gray-breasted Wood-Wren
48. Black-faced Solitaire
49. Mountain Thrush
50. White-throated Thrush
51. Clay-colored Thrush
52. Elegant Euphonia
53. Yellow-crowned Euphonia
54. Yellow-throated Euphonia
55. Golde-browed Chlorophonia
56. Chestnut-capped Bushfinch
57. Rufous-collard Sparrow
58. White-eared Ground-Sparrow
59. Montezuma Oropendola
60. Baltimore Oriole
61. Melodious Blackbird
62. Great-tailed Blackbird
63. Black-and-white Warbler
64. Tennessee Warbler
65. Chestnut-capped Warbler
66. Golden-crowned Warbler
67. Slate-throated Redstart
68. Summer Tanager
69. Blue-gray Tanager
70. Palm Tanager
71. Silver-throated Tanager
72. Yellow-faced Grassquit
73. Butt-throated Saltator
We Continue at San Luis Finca Ecológica
At noon, we regrouped at the San Luis Finca Ecológica Reserve. This one-hundred acre family owned farm turned reserve hosts an incredible amount of biodiversity in its primary forests. The cost to enter the grounds was steep at $25 USD per person. But like addicts, we did not hesitate to pony up the cash for the high of the continued chase.
There were several short trails weaving throughout the reserve that allow visitors to sample various primary and secondary jungle growths, woodland areas, rivers edge, and planted fields of banana fruits and avocado trees. One of the main draws was a nicely landscaped hillock with a covered shelter overlooking what is essentially a large bird feeder made out of tree branches with spikey air-plants still attached. The owner filled the feeding platform with fresh plantains, and this attracted several lovely birds: Blue-gray Tanager, Montezuma's Oropendola, Red-headed Barbet, Melodious Blackbird, Buff-breasted Saltator, Euphonias, and I'm sure many others. We spent a good hour at the shelter enjoying the spectacle of these feasting birds. Even hot-footed Walter, who for the whole morning couldn't stand to stay in one spot for longer than a few minutes, wasn't hurried to rush off because of all the activity right under our noses.
At the end of our first day as we looked over the eBird list that Walter had compiled and shared with us, many of the birds that he spotted for us were called out so fast, that in honesty our sighting of them were so ephemeral leaving us only with a trace recollection of them. Thankfully, as we ventured forth over the next six days, we re-acquainted ourselves with many of the birds with repeat spottings of them. Sadly, some of the birds we only could see at Monteverde as they belonged to those hilly, perpetually wet, and cool highlands. This was why our first foray of birding in the ecologically diverse country of Costa Rica had us sampling the different regions. Looking ever forward to the species found uniquely in specific habitats, we proceeded onward through Costa Rica: to the Pacific coast and the Carribean lowlands!
The Bird list grows...
74. Groove-billed Ani
75. Rufous-tailed Hummingbird
76. Short-tailed Hawk
77. Red-headed Barbet
78. Lesser Greenlet
79. Yellow-hroated Vireo
80. Yellow-crowned Euphonia
81. Chestnut-sided Warbler
82. Black-throated Green Warbler
83. Scarlet-rumped Tanager
84. Palm Tanager
85. Plain Tanager
I was in it from beginning to end and it was immensely interesting. Didn't want it to end. In fact, I can say with assurance that none of your fans wanted it to end either. Congrat!