Birding the world on a budget!
Nov. 30 to Dec. 3, 2018 After much research about how best to access the Valle de las Ánimas (Valley of Souls), we decided we wanted to hike up the main canyon. Looking at satellite images from Google, it looked to be the widest canyon with best views. At least that's what the plan was. …
Nov. 27 to 29, 2018 Once we settled back into Arica (the northernmost city in Chile, right on the ocean) from our time in Lauca National Park, and returned the rental car, we started planning our next move: Bolivia Bolivia loomed in my mind like a great impassable mountain. Both with its unparalleled beauty and …
Feb. 8 to 12, 2020 Every country that has unique or endemic bird species has a few Holy Grail species. The ones that everyone wants to see. They usually are spectacular birds with a reputation for being hard to see, or at the very least, are only from a small area that's hard to get …
Continue reading "Guatemala’s Holy Grail Birds: the warblers"
Feb. 6 & 7, 2020 The city of Cobán sits in the foothills along the eastern edge of the Guatemalan highlands. With the highlands acting as a natural barrier, the eastern foothill's cloud forest is isolated from the cloud forest along the western slope of the highlands. This means there are a few bird species …
Continue reading "The cloud forest of El Biotopo del Quetzal"
Feb. 3 to 6, 2020 With our 3-night stay in Tikal behind us, Stephanie and I looked forward to the rest of the country. We were only one week in to our 8 week trip in Guatemala, and we had many more adventures ahead of us. The next one being Semuc Champey. Semuc Champey (pronounced …
Continue reading "Guatemala’s Hidden Paradise: Semuc Champey"
Jan. 26 to 28, 2020 Even before we returned home from South America in the spring of 2019, we were planning our next trip: Guatemala 2020.We chose Guatemala for a number of reasons: cheap flights (because it's closer to the US), it's a smaller country so we will spend less time on buses, cheaper cost …
Feb. 22 to 26, 2019 If you Google “Patagonia" and "Chile” together, 19 of the first 20 images that come up are of Torres del Paine National Park. It’s on the cover of Lonely Planet’s travel guide to Chile, and has claimed to be the most visited national park in South America; and with good …
Feb. 21 & 22, 2019 The Ruddy-headed Goose is one of 4 species of Sheldgoose in the genus Chloephaga, all from southern South America. Of the 4, it has the smallest distribution and population, with less than 1000 individuals living on the mainland of the continent and 80,000 birds on the Falkland Islands. Most of …
Feb. 18 to 20, 2019 Our plane landed about 7pm, the sky was the kind of gray that reminded me of dreary winter days in Montana. Light rain and some wind. Overall, not the most pleasant weather but I couldn’t have been more excited! Birding at the end of the continent was something I wanted …
Nov. 14, 2019 Northern Chile is home to an endemic and critically endangered species of hummingbird. The Chilean Woodstar. Naturally, this is a bird we both we wanted to see. As it turns out, there is a sanctuary devoted entirely to protecting this species of hummingbird. In the tiny town of San Miguel de Azapa, …
Will Travel For Birds 