We left Hotel Bougainvillea after breakfast and headed for our first birding stop of the trip – Casa Dowii. This little restaurant/bird-viewing spot is known for its great views of Tanagers and the Buffy- crowned Wood Partridge and Buff-fronted Wood Quail. The distance was only 52km but it took 1.5 hrs because of the mountainous, twisty roads. Generally we were traveling at 50-60kms. We arrived at Casa Dowii as another group was leaving so we had the whole viewing area to ourselves. You pay $20/person to see the birds whether they arrive or not. They even had a wall of windows in the bathroom so you would not miss a bird while on the toilet! Of course I also must mention the “weird” thing about bathroom etiquette in Costa Rica. No toilet paper in the toilet! It is deposited in a covered bin beside the toilet. A bit of getting used to as we are programmed to drop it in the toilet and a bit of an “eewwww” factor but like anything else you get used to it. Jerry has suggested we implement it at home to “save” our septic system but I’m saying NO very strongly on that one.
Within minutes of our arrival they restocked the feeders and the Tanagers arrived. Spangled-cheek, Silver-throat, and Flame-coloured Tanagers entertained us as they came in and out to feast on the fruit. It was lovely to get great views of these birds with them being so close.
We added more lifers as Common Chlorosphigus, Yellow-thighed Bushfinch, Chestnut-capped Bushfinch and Mountain Thrush also visited the feeders.
We waited for an hour or so, had a hot chocolate when we had taken enough pictures and kept waiting hoping for the Quail or Partridge. Nothing, even though we kept the windows closed and were absolutely quiet. Early mornings, of course, are best to see these species but you can only be in one place every early morning so this will likely be a recurring story of our trip.
We went and walked the small trail next to their building where we picked up another 3 lifers but they were “heard only.” As long as we hear the songs/calls numerous times and identify them with Merlin and ebird help we will add them to our lists now and hope that we see them at some point on the trip. There are many birds in Costa Rica that will prove difficult to see staying hidden high up in the canopies or secretive in the dark shrubbery at ground level and so our list will likely have a number of heard only birds this trip. Jerry is already finding it a challenge to get on birds that are not coming to a feeder. It is frustrating to not see a bird that is singing so beautifully and apparently close but we are constricted to trails and the birds are not.
Unfortunately, the Partridge and Quail did not make an appearance after we walked the trail so on to our next destination just another 30 minutes away.
Casa Dowii 14 more different species seen 12 of them lifers
We were a bit early for checkin so we drove a few kilometers further to check out Quetzals National Park. We spent only about 15 minutes in the parking lot and managed to add a couple of lifers – Wrenthrush (HO), Black-capped Flycatcher and White-throated Mountaingem, a hummingbird. We drove back down the road and checked in to Paraiso Quetzel Lodge. The staff were so friendly and welcoming. We had a small cabin with a view over the gardens and cloud forest. It was lovely.
The first time I have been in a hotel that offered hot water bottles! It does get cold in the cloud forest at 9,000ft. The forecast was for 5C overnight! and there was only a small table heater to take the chill off. When I checked the bed I was surprised to see 4 fleece blankets on our bed too!
We settled in and then headed out to the hummingbird deck for the event of a lifetime. The birds were whizzing past, almost landing on us, circling around us and allowed us to be inches from them without stopping their feeding. I took way too many videos and Jerry took many, many pictures. The Fiery-throated Hummingbird was fantastic to see with its colours showing.
Once we had most of the hummers Identified, six lifer species, we turned our attention to the forest around us and suddenly Jerry yelled Quetzal, we both watched this iconic large bird land quite a distance away but not far enough to not recognize that very long green tail. Jerry managed a few poor record shots and just like that we had a Resplendent Quetzal without going on the tour we had booked for the next day. So much for a hunt LOL. I had read stories on FB about people trying for days on end and not seeing any.
We birded along the forest trail for a bit and then made our way back to our room for a quick beer but were interrupted by seeing birds in the garden so ran down the paths to see them better and take pictures. The beer sat for another hour while we followed the many birds until a light rain shower chased us back to our porch. We added lifers with Sooty-capped Chlorospringus, Large-footed Finch, Black-billed Nightingale Thrush, the Black-and-Yellow and Long-tailed Silky-flycatchers, and a favourite, the Slaty Flowerpiercer. This bird uses a hook on its beak to pierce the flower at its base to suck the nectar out of the flower.
Dinner was included and a varied menu was offered only we were asked to decide our dinner during the day and the time we wanted to eat so when we arrived at the appointed time our meal was quickly brought out. The food was even better than the last hotel. It had gotten chilly once the sun went down and we were happy to have the little heater going and the extra blankets. I opted not to use the hot water bottle. We were plenty warm with the extra covers.s
We were up at 4:30am and before we put the lights on I saw this dark spot on Jerry’s pillow when I sat up. I kind of did a swipe at it to brush it off the pillow, not really thinking it was a bug but of course it WAS! and it jumped down beside his body instead of the way I was swiping – away from him. He jumped up, I jumped up. It wasn’t in the bed but it was down his tshirt! We were no longer quiet now, as we scrambled around in the dark. He danced around while quickly taking off his T-shirt and ended up shaking the bug outside the room. UGGGH! We never saw it close up to see what kind of bug it was which was probably a good thing! We had a good laugh about it all but Jerry insisted that I should not try to “save” him by swiping at anything on his pillow in the future LOL. I have no idea why I tried to brush a bug off like that – call it “not quite awake yet” as I would never do that at home! I’d be on the other side of the room.
We had booked a guided tour to see the Quetzal on a private farm and we assumed we would have better views then yesterday. It was a very chilly 5C and I had not brought particularly warm clothing – I had a fleece jacket and just my birding clothes. Jerry suggested I wear my Pj’s underneath! What a great idea! I pulled pants, shirts and jackets over my pjs so I looked a bit like a puffball but I was warm. We heard Dusky Nightjars singing as we walked to the meeting spot – another lifer but one we do not expect to see as it is nocturnal. It was a small group of 10 with the guide and we arrived at the farm just after 5:30am. Within minutes we saw the male Quetzal as it flew in to the calls of the guide. The views were still distant but better than we had the day before. Over the next hour we moved as the Quetzal moved and to be honest, I started feeling bad for the bird. It was reminiscent of the Owl chases in Ontario. This bird and its mate had just started nesting and here we, and another 2 tour groups were moving up and down the hills trying to get views of it wherever it perched. I know Costa Rica tries to find the balance between tourism and ethical wildlife management but I was a bit uncomfortable. The nest site was staked out as well, but at a distance and the birds have nested there 3 years so they appear unbothered by humans. We were lucky to see another male arrive in the area so the two males were acting a bit territorial. The guide was telling me that there were often 200 people a day visiting that nesting site.
Once we had seen the Quetzals and taken pictures I turned my attention to the other birds around and really would have liked our guide to listen and tell us about other birds but the other people on our tour were not birders and clearly only interested in seeing the Resplendent Quetzal. I feel we had the possibility of adding a few more lifer birds if we had a different guide on this tour but it is what it is.
We arrived back in time for breakfast and then headed back out to the trails to bird.
I had originally intended to bird at the National Park just 6 km away and maybe visit another well know lodge but we were finding our energy level low and the thin air made hiking up and down trails slow. Or we are just plain OLD! We opted to stay and do the lodge trails and see what else we could find on our own. The bird I most wanted to get before we left was the Golden-browed Chlorospringus, a fantastic neon coloured bird. One of the guides had suggested the area to check at the lodge and so we headed there. We moved around a bit and then came back past the spot and suddenly a male and female flew in. Only a few quick looks before they flew off but what stunning colours!
We added a few more lifers through the afternoon, Ruddy Treerunner, Flame-throated Warbler, Ruddy-capped Nightingale Thrush and took a quick nap before heading back out for a last birding walk before dinner. We walked up the back road and added Yellow-winged Vireo before heading for another delicious dinner.
In the morning we managed to add another lifer on our early morning walk – We heard the continual calling of a Northern Emerald Toucanet. This is a bird we absolutely want to see at some point but it will go on the list now. After a hearty breakfast and a last stop with the hummingbirds we drove off to our next destination at a bit of a lower altitude.
About 10 minutes away from the lodge I suddenly had a thought that I had not seen my little Apple wallet that attaches to the back of my phone. Why this came into my mind I have no idea but thankfully it did. I did a quick look in my pouch were I had my passport and money stashed, the wallet and those items had been in the safe in the room since we arrived. The wallet was not there. I questioned Jerry as he had taken everything out of the safe. He said he had and had ran his hand over the bottom – nothing was in it. We pulled over. I quickly went through pockets and bags but I knew it had been put in the safe and I had not used it the two days we were there. I insisted that we had to go back. I texted the lodge and let them know we were on our way back and what i was missing. We were so lucky that we were not far away. I went back into the room and checked the safe and there was my wallet stuck to the side of the safe! Its magnetic of course so it probably flipped up from the bottom when Jerry took stuff out. In all fairness to him, the lighting was not great in our room either to really look into the safe. Whew! a lesson learned early, and with no repercussions. Safes will be checked carefully the rest of the trip.
I highly recommend Paraiso Quetzal Lodge for any birders heading to Costa Rica. The service was wonderful, the lodge is lovely, rooms are basic and large with fantastic views out over the cloud forest. Our room faced west and the sunset was beautiful. This was also one of the most reasonable priced places -two nights with breakfast and dinners for $286US. The Hummingbird experience alone is worth going but the gardens and trails have lots of birds to see as well and it was not far off the main highway compared to other lodges in the trip. It is only a short distance to Quetzal National Park and the road to the San Gerardo de Dota birding area. Our room was up off the reception area and I would probably take a cabin a bit further into the garden next time as we sometimes could here kitchen staff talking during the day but not an issue as we were not in the room for the most part and it was quick to the parking lot and the restaurant.
Paraiso Quetzal Lodge 29 more species added with 24 of them Lifers!