[AGL] Back from the tropics

[Kathy]

Thanks for sharing parts  of fine adventure with us. It sounds so  
wonderful. Good thing you are both in great shape.  Love the pictures  
-What amazing birds. They look so magical in all their colors and   
variety - I had no idea.
Kathy
On Jul 4, 2007, at 1:06 AM, Connie Clark wrote:


> It was sad leaving Quito. My last view through the

> window in the clear blue-sky day was the dazzling

> snow-capped volcano that is the backdrop of the city

> nestled in the Andes Mountains. But, I was happy, as

> on this birding eco-tour we were more successful than

> I dreamed, with a bird ID count of more than 250,

> including nearly 50 species of hummingbird.

>

> Ecuador is a birding mecca, and birding/wildlife

> tourists are catered to.  They say there are more bird

> species within this small underdeveloped country’s

> boundaries than any other tropical country, and the

> birds are not too hard to find.  The Ecuadorians are

> learning that there is a way to make a living in

> ecotourism while at the same time preserve the natural

> beauty that they are so proud of.

>

> Our tour group, organized by my cousin Gary (the

> birder) and his wife Kathy (the photographer) numbered

> 8.  Five of the group are serious nature

> photographers.  An Ecuadorian birding guide was

> arranged, and he with a driver and a nice

> large-windowed van met us at the airport and stayed

> with us throughout the ten day tour, leading us right

> where we needed to be to ‘get’ the top birds on our

> list.

>

> There is much ecological diversity in Ecuador but for

> this trip, we stayed in the northern Highlands of the

> Andes, birding the east slope, then over to the west

> slope.  We never got lower than 6000 feet, starting

> out in Quito at 9000 ft. Traveling within that range

> we were in rainforest, cloud forest and paramo (Andes

> tundra).  Another trip to Ecuador might be to bird the

> Amazones along the Rio Napo, or go to the west coast,

> and catch a boat out to the Galapagos. Each of which

> would provide a different birding or wildlife

> experience.

>

> The roads were awful, and we much admired our driver,

> Wilson, for his great skill in negotiating them as

> they wound around and around the mountains.  The

> landscape is vertical.  On one side of the van the

> view was straight up the side of the fern, moss and

> bromeliad draped mountain, on the other side of the

> van was the long drop down, and vistas across to peaks

> and numerous linear waterfalls spilling water

> thousands of feet to turbulent river waters below.

>

> The whole trip was full of adventure, but I have two

> favorite day-trips I want to share.  On our first day,

> we drove an hour or two from Quito out to the Antisano

> reserve (elevation around 13,500 feet) and really did,

> surpisingly, while stopped along the side of the road

> to give the photographers a chance to take silky

> pictures of flowing water, we did see the Andean

> Condor.  Two adults overhead and one juvenile

> (perched).  To tell the truth, they looked a whole lot

> like turkey vultures, and it really was hard to

> appreciate the 10-ft wingspan,of a bird soaring so far

> up in the vast sky.  But we did see them and it was

> exciting. But this isn’t my favorite story.

>

> Our first overnight stay in the rainforest at about

> 6,500 feet was at the Guango Lodge. We were on the

> east slope of the Andes, and it was the beginning of

> the rainy season.  Lodge owners within the ecological

> reserves hang hummingbird feeders around the lodge to

> bring the hummers from the forest close in for

> birders’ enjoyment.  At Guango we saw 14 species. They

> were right there to enjoy while having tea. The

> photographers in our group set up their tripods and

> got to work.

>

> After breakfast, Juan Carlos Calvachi, our very expert

> birding guide, gathered me, Gary and Randy into the

> van with Wilson, and set out to find more birds.  We

> drove at least an hour and a half, all the time it

> rained.  It was easy birding along the road as we

> stopped occasionally to look at various unique and

> really cool birds.  We were climbing in altitude on

> this road into the Cayambe Reserve. The road ended

> where we rolled up and parked amongst radio towers.

> Juan Carlos got out and expressed regret that ‘they’

> weren’t where he expected them to be.  Ok, I thought,

> we’re looking for something up here.  We had long

> sense been driving in paramo terrain of pampas grass,

> puya, short shrubbery plants, and myriad lichen and

> micro flowery moss-covered rocks.  At the radio

> towers, we had reached 14,500 feet.  It was snowing up

> there.  Our tour leaders had advised us to be prepared

> for cold and hot weather, and the early start at

> Guango was cold and wet so I was dressed suitably in

> wool socks with goretex hiking boots, lightweight

> pants with long-handled underwear, a couple

> undershirts and topped it all off with a hooded rain

> parka.

>

> We stood there a second awed at the vastness, when

> Juan Carlos took off upwards on a trail leading off

> into the clouds.  Gary, Randy and I zipped up our

> parkas for the wet cold and eagerly followed, not

> wanting to miss anything. Every few steps we were

> forced to stop, hands on our knees taking deep

> breaths.  There was a little climbing, Randy had to

> pull me up when I started sliding in the mud, but we

> all nevertheless kept up with our guides.  In an open

> space, I was looking out over what appeared to be a

> cloudy abyss, when Wilson crouches and gestures to

> Juan Carlos to look along the edge.  Wilson spoke no

> English but Juan Carlos spoke English fluently, and

> pointed to the object of our search, the Buff-bellied

> Seedsnipe just ahead on a rocky precipice. ‘Yes’ I

> thought to myself, that is one of the birds that I

> noted in the Ecuador birding guide that I really

> wanted to see.  It can be found only in the high

> elevations of the Andes Mountains.  I could see the

> pairs’ profile, but Randy, frustrated couldn’t see

> because his binoculars were fogged.  I told him to

> just look without them, but he was having a hard time

> zeroing in on the little ground-feeding birds. JC said

> we should move closer so Randy can see them and, we

> also need to see the identification marks. So we

> climbed another thirty feet further.  I finally got a

> glimpse of the reticulated pattern on the

> pheasant-like bird’s back just as the spooked pair

> took wing and flew into the clouds, perhaps down to a

> lower rocky ledge.  A strong wind reminded us how

> precarious we had situated ourselves above the clouds

> and we unanimously agreed that we’d better get back

> down.  We stumbled down the path through patches of

> snow, rocks and mud.  Juan Carlos and Wilson playfully

> threw snowballs at each other as we descended to the

> parked van – we were all giddy.

>

> In the link to a photo album you can see the grins on

> my birding buddies faces.  I was the same behind the

> camera.  Unfortunately there was no way to take my

> camera up that trail to photograph the seedsnipe or

> their mountaintop perch.

>

> We got into the warm van and descended the mountain,

> exclaiming how we have got to the get the others in

> the group up on this mountain.  Well, back at Guango

> the photographers didn’t seem much interested.  They

> were working very hard to get the perfect picture of a

> hovering hummer. Later as I saw them review their days

> work, they did in fact make some really good

> photographs.

>

> A photobucket album has been set up for us, and I am

> watching for some of their photos to be uploaded.

> Then I can send a link to my friends and family to

> view.  I made a couple of pictures of hummers with my

> point and shoot – not very good pictures, but it shows

> a couple of the elegant little birds.  Kathy showed me

> how to set my camera for the shot, and suggested that

> I use flash to reveal the  iridescent glow

> particularly of their heads and throats.  Ecuador

> hummers number 174 species.  Other bird species there,

> I believe number around 1400 which is more than double

> the species count in North America..

>

> find some photos at:

> http://picasaweb.google.com/connie3c/Ecuador

>

> I hope to get a chance to send the second favorite

> birding story soon, about a trip to see a very special

> bird, that required us to hike down to a primary

> rainforest jungle to find.

>

> Connie

>

> P.S. In case you were not aware, Roses are a major

> Ecuadorian export, as they are easily grown in the

> fertile volcanic enriched soil and tropical climate.

> Most of the flower shop, long-stem roses in the US

> come from Ecuador. However, I have learned that the

> majority of the growers are irresponsible with the

> toxic pesticides that adversely affect not only the

> environment but the workers health.  There are a

> couple of eco-friendly rose growers in Ecuador, but

> I’m not sure how to find their roses anywhere in

> Houston. So, I just don’t buy any of them.

>

>

>

>

>

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