The beautiful gardens of the Hotel Bougainvillea welcomed us with a wonderful rainbow and a Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl singing from the top of a small tree and hummingbirds, tyrant-flycatchers and wood-warblers mobbing it. We enjoyed views of a pair of Rufous-naped Wren, a vocal Rufous-browed Peppershrike and the unmistakable Lesson’s Motmot.
After breakfast, we took the road to Cartago, where a little productive grassland allowed views of few birds. Then, we ascended the Pan-American highway, and after reaching a higher elevation, we noticed a sudden change in vegetation and humidity, and it was because we had entered the cloud forest. A wonderful lunch was accompanied with excellent views of the territorial Fiery-throated Hummingbird and other allies including Talamanca and Volcano hummingbirds.
Continuing our birding activities after lunch, we decided to take our chances to explore the highlands, to the antenna road. Reaching the pre-paramo is always a challenge, because the weather can change dramatically in few minutes. But, despite the wind and the humidity, we enjoyed very close views of Volcano Junco. Later, a Peg-billed Finch showed up for seconds and, for a grand finale we had a striking encounter with the Timberline Wren.
The above is just a brief of the very first part of our tour. Enjoy the images of this amazing journey that also took us to the Braulio Carrillo national park, the lowlands of Sarapiqui, La virgen del Socorro road and Poas volcano.
