Tiputini... Almost

Birds were calling very early this morning and the hotel was quite as I walked around the grounds. Common Squirrel monkeys were around the hotel no doubt waiting for the breakfast food to be handed out.

Saddle-backed Tamarin

Along with the monkeys these were also frequent that morning:
Smooth-billed Ani
Spotted Sandpiper
Blue and White Swallows
Wren sp.
Snowy Egret

Great Egret

Great Egret
Saddle-backed Tamarin

The boat for the research station arrived and walking down the stairs to the boat my mother missed a step and her ankle dislocated and broke. People were very helpful and leaving our bags at the hotel we got into an ambulance and went to the hospital in Coca. This was definitely an experience to say the least. I think I know enough Spanish to get by in other countries but when I needed it most (because nobody spoke a word of English) it all disappeared from memory. After multiple X-rays an army doctor comes in. He is very nice and tries very hard to communicate with actions and simple words. He pops the dislocated ankle back into place and more X-rays show that the break is serious and needs surgery. They can't do it in Coca and say the only place is Quito but she will not be able to move for a month and couldn't fly out for at least a few weeks. We opt to take a tonne of last minute flights to get back to Ottawa for the surgery. Seven flights later we are home and I am glad she is having the surgery in a hospital with running water.

We never got to Tiputini Research Station but we will be back to finish our trip some day.

Coca

Saying goodbye to Cuenca we headed for Coca today on a LAN flight and then a Tame flight. Coca is our way into the Amazon rainforest and Tipuntini research station. We took a quick taxi to La Mision Hotel. The hotel is quite touristy but has mostly local people. There are three pools, a bar, disco, restaurant and a view of a brightly lit up bridge over the river. The bridge kinda ruins the view of the river and stands out very awkwardly.

We did see Blue and White Swallows and Spotted sandpiper from the pier. The hotel has domestic peacocks and a chestnut fronted macaw that talks.

It's not a bad place to stay but I am glad we are only here for one night just because it isn't quite my type of place. Coca also has a bit of a reputation for not being the safest place and walking around outside of the hotel grounds with my camera equipment that night just didn't seam like a good idea.

Las Cajas

Santa Monica Hotel had a lovely breakfast and the view of the city was amazing from the restaurant.

The noon bus to Cajas from Libre station got us to Cajas much later than I wanted to get there but it seams like most places do have shuttles for a fee that can get you there early in the morning. Thinking back this would have been a better option. The park entrance was free which is impossible to believe because the paramo scenery is so breathtaking. Alpine vegetation, seeping ponds and shallow lakes throughout the mountains... This is one of the most beautiful places I have seen in the world!

So excuse the EXCESS of scenery shots...

There are a lot of trails to walk and most are quite long hikes for people who camp overnight there. The trails are not that well marked and it is possible to get a bit mixed up if you don't pay attention so I'd advise giving yourself extra time. We chose trail 1 because it goes down the mountain and is much easier than going uphill.

This is the highest elevation I have ever been and it was definitely cold and windy compared to Mindo. The high elevation means that Las Cajas is home to a lot of endemic plants and animals. I could spend years researching the wildlife here. The plants alone would take a lifetime for sure and there were many interesting flowers in bloom this season.

Despite our late arrival we still saw some nice birds including:

Southern Yellow Grosbeak
Yellow-billed Pintail
Andean Rudy Duck
Variable Hawk

Tawny Antpita

Tawny Antpita

Glossy-black Thrush
Paramo Ground Tyrant

Black-billed Shrike-Tyrant
Black Flower Piercer
White-throated Tyranulet
Andean Coot
Bar-winged Cinclodes

Bar-winged Cinclodes

Bar-winged Cinclodes

Although not as colourful or common as birds in Mindo the scenery and open space was pristine and wonderful to walk through.

We BARELY caught the last bus (5pm) back along the road and might have gotten a bit lost and walked through some private property to get to the road where we waved at it frantically. Thankfully it pulled over for us because it was a 40minute bus ride back to Cuenca. It was sad to go. I could spend a week just exploring Las Cajas and would love to go back and camp or volunteer there.

For our last night in Cuenca we went to Tiestos. It was the best meal we have had in Ecuador. For only $30 we had bread, chicken curry and chicken in mushroom and bacon sauce. The meal came with rice and many different sauces to try everything with. It was fantastic and the service was impeccable. The chef was friendly and greeted all of the guests personally. The art and atmosphere was very nice and all of the plates were Edward Vega! If only we had known about it our first day there we would have eaten there every day.

Cuenca

This morning after the basic complimentary breakfast I was stretching in the garden trying to get out all the kinks and pains from sitting on so many buses and planes the day before. While stretching I was able to watch a Sparkling Violetear feeding on a large trellis of fuchsias. It wasn't bothered by me as all and the Andean Slaty-thrush also wandered around the garden while I watched and stretched.

Sparkling Violetear

Sparkling Violetear

Orchids have always been my favorite flowers and going to Ecuadors largest orchid business was definitely a must do on this trip. The business has two locations in Ecuador. The one in Cuenca for growing the high elevation/ cold loving orchids and one at lower elevation by the coast for the warm loving species. The property in Cuenca had over 10 large greenhouses, a pool and a suspension bridge over the river. To get there we took the local Santa Barbra bus for $1.30 from the Terrestrial bus station and the driver even dropped us at the front door after we asked.

It is very common for tourists to visit Ecuagenera and you can pay to have a tour of the property. Since timing worked out for the Montreal orchid show we managed to buy orchids and have the brought to Montreal for pick up in March without needing our own permits. If you buy from them like this then you can get them to waive the tour fees (but don't expect your flowers to arrive potted or with any flowers on them as they usually need to get rid of any soil and the flowers usually fall off in transit). This wonderful fragrant Stanhopea is by far our best buy that we found that day.

Stanhopea Orchid

Back in town for the afternoon we saw the true celebration of valentines day. Ecuador is one of the main places where roses are grown and the streets were full of vendors with roses and valentines gifts. Restaurants were packed and there was a long wait to get any food for lunch or dinner.

Stores in Ecuador are for the most part owned by the person working in them and you can even barter in the store. I fell in love with Ecuador wools and pretty much all the souvenirs I got were scarfs and sweaters.

Mindo- Cuenca

This morning we missed the 6:30am bus and were forced to take the 1:30pm to Quito. This actually worked out better because it gave me a chance to get more organized and do a bit of last minute birding around town.

Smooth-billed Ani

Black Phoebe

The 1:30pm bus to Ophelia station got us there just in time to grab a taxi, get plane tickets and go through security before our flight to Cuenca at 5:20pm. The flight was very foggy but occasional glimpses of mountains peaked through. Cuenca is very old and our hotel is along Lamar. We are very close to good shopping areas and can walk to the centre of the city. Macundo is a very nice hostel with gardens and a kitchen you can use for making meals yourself. The nicest rooms are definitely the garden front or garden view. After seeing those I don't think I could stay in any other room in the hostel.

The Funny Hummingbirds

Brown Violetear and White-necked Jacobin

This extra post is dedicated to two crazy hummingbirds that I took about 20 photos of. In ALL of them they were doing the exact same thing.

Brown Violetear and White-necked Jacobin

Brown Violetear and White-necked Jacobin

Brown Violetear and White-necked Jacobin

I was really amused when going through my photos. Hope you are too!

Silanche Reserve

Silanche Preserve was another must hit place for any birders visiting Mindo. We saw over 50 species in the one day. So here were the highlights. Overlooking an open pasture that the trail borders on we saw this watchful Grey Hawk.

Grey Hawk

 In yet another open area this Plumbeous Kite sat on top of a tall palm tree. I was lucky enough to have a nice view from a hill.

Plumbeous Kite

But other than the really amazing birds of prey... Today would be the day of Trogons! These are among my favorite birds (you can't really have just one favorite with so many to choose from). 

Black-throated Trogon

 Today we were lucky enough to get great views of three species of Trogons: Black-throated, White-tailed and Choco. The White-tailed Trogons were paired off and we were often able to find both males and females nearby.

White-tailed Trogon Female

White-tailed Trogon Male

Choco Trogon

On the road back to Mindo via Los Bancos we saw more of the usual things plus a nice looks at a Bat Falcon. Stopping at Sachatamia Lodge in hopes of seeing a Toucan Barbet wasn't successful but we did see a lot of tanagers including the Blue-winged Mountain Tanager that thrilled everyone by coming in close at a feeder.

Blue-winged Mountain Tanager

Brown Violetear

We spent our last night in Mindo relaxing and preparing for our long trip to Cuenca the next day. 

Milpe Road

This relaxing morning after watching the hummingbirds over breakfast we walked  down Via al Cinto Saloya. It quickly turned from a wet to sunny day and the birds were all about. The roads were muddy but as we tracked through the mud down the roads we saw a few nice birds. But our short morning walk could not compare to our afternoon!

Squirrel Cuckoo

White-necked Jacobin

In the early afternoon we met up with a local bird guide (Irman Arias). He was absolutely amazing. He took the time to get you a good look at the birds and was great at finding them. Even on our way to the Milpe Road he spotted this well camouflaged bird from the car. This was a spectacular way to stay our tour and a new lifer bird for me!

Long-tailed Potoo

Irman Arias led us around the gorgeous trails around the MCF property to the Mindo gardens. Here we saw Trogons and manakins. No big deal (sarcastic) just that seeing any species of manakin do their amazing breeding display dance was on my list of things I really needed to do before I die. It wasn't quite as cool as the moon-walking display of the Red-headed manakin but the Club-winged manakin was still spectacular. These birds are much more graceful than I can every hope to be.

A trail well named...

Club-winged Manakin

Thanks to you tube someone has posted videos much better than I could get myself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMetl4ekRIQ

Broad-billed Motmot

 Sometimes while traveling you get moments where you are really just in the right place at the right time. At the end of our walk down the road we heard something fall from a branch and birds went crazy. Alarm calls rang through the trees and before we could figure out what it was that fell there were more species of birds than we could count trying to attack the snake. The snake dropped out of sight and a few birds lingered but most disappeared as quickly as they appeared. I have never seen such a display of co-operation between multiple species trying to defend an area or nest. The highlight of this falling snake was the Glistening Green Tanager that showed up to help scare it away.

Chestnut-mandibled Toucans

Green-crowned Woodnymph

The evening brought rain and we went to dinner at a lodge to look at the hummingbird feeders and the ponds. The ponds were fantastic with aquatic floating vegetation providing shelter for many of the calling frogs. The most common were small bright yellow males with females appearing to be light brown. A small waterfall pond had the most interesting find. A medium sized dark frog with warty skin and thin toes. It wasn't calling but the photos make me think that it is a Spring Rainfrog (Pristimantis crenunguis).

Spring Rainfrog (Pristimantis crenunguis)

It was pouring rain by 8:30 at night and a walk around I couldn't find anything other than cane toads and pastures frogs.

The probably incomplete list for the day:
Squirrel Cuckoo
Great Egret
Black Phoebe
Lineated Woodpecker
Blue and White Swallow
Masked-water Tyrant
Blue-necked Tanager
Olive-crowned Yellowthroat
Golden-faced Tyranulet
Western Wood Pewee
Tropical Parula
Green-crowned Wood Nymph
Long-tailed Potoo
Watled Guan
Club-winged Manakin
Broad-billed Motmot
Rufous Motmot
Slaty-throated Foliage Gleaner
Red-faced Spinytail
Slate-throated Redstart
Buff-throated Foliage Gleaner
Slayty-capped Flycatcher
Ornate Flycatcher
Spotted Woodcreeper
Pale-billed Aracari
Maroon-tailed Parakeet
Golden-olive Woodpecker
Yellow-throated Bush Tanager
Beige-headed Tanager
Slate-coloured Grosbeak
Bay Wren
Red-headed Barbet
White-whiskered Hermit
Glistening Green Tanager
Chestnut Mandibled Toucan
Masked Trogon
Bronze-winged Parakeet
Dusky-capped Flycatcher
Golden-faced Tyranulet
White-lined Tanager

White-necked Jacobin
Rufous-tailed hummingbird
Green Thorntail

Female Green Thorntail

Rio de Mindo

The rising sun saw me at a footbridge north along the creek that runs through Mindo. Here were many of the usual birds and quite a nice little walk. It wasn't until we reached the Rio Mindo that things got more interesting.

View of Mindo from a hill

Down a small road near Terra Bambu and el Carmelo we found a Rufous Motmot in someones back yard.
We must have been in the right area because we soon met a large group of birders who we tipped off about the motmot and in turn were told about a Bat Falcon seen at the bridge along Via Al Cinto Saloya. True to their word the bat falcon was at the top of a large dead standing tree close to the river. It was a gorgeous bird and like many birds of prey it completely ignored us beings that are to far away to hurt it and to big to eat. I spent about half an hour just watching it when it suddenly turned its attention to a bold Ringed Kingfisher that had swooped down at it and landed on a lower branch in the same tree. The falcon didn't waver and the kingfisher soon retreated from its attempts to scare him off.

Mindo River with bat falcon on dead tree (top left)

Bat Falcon

Then something happened that made me appreciate this lone falcon even more. A young family with two boys showed up at the river. They were Ecuadoran and spoke no English but I took photos of them by the river and even managed to communicate that I was looking at the bird and let them use my binoculars to see it. The joy in those boys eyes at being able to see it (or many just even to use binoculars for the first time)  was almost more thrilling than finding the bird to begin with but definitely more rewarding.

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird

Later that night there was a celebration in town and people dressed in traditional clothing paraded and danced through the street.That night there were foam fights, water gun/balloon fights and a whole lot of drinking in the town centre. 

Parade through the streets

Spray can foam fights