Last Update: 08-OCT-2023
We arrived on Sunday to take advantage of the Non-Stop Southwest Airlines flight from Baltimore. Arrival to International Airport and transfer to our hotel located 30 minutes away. The flight was easy although delayed due to storms over the northern Florida area. The flight home would not be as easy.
Here is the GPS path from BWI to SJO
Departure of BWI. Beautiful day. Various views of the Maryland.
US-301 Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge between Maryland & Virginia
Cobb Island Maryland in the center of the photo
West Point, VA in the center with the Pamunkey River (left) and the Mattaponi River (right)
Southern end of the Everglades near Ingraham Lake
Flordia Keys - Long Key to Conch Key
Key West Area
Now we are over Cuba. This is the resort area around Varadero Beach, Cuba.
Southern Cuba. Cayo Ciprey, Cayo Campos & Cayo Boca de Alonso.
Looking west along the coast of Honduras. The inlet is Barra de Caratasca
The border area between Honduras (north) and Nicaragua (south). This is the Rio Coco River
Our flight was on time to Juan Santamaria International Airport and a easy transfer to Bougainvillea Hotel which was appx. 9 miles and 30 minutes east of the airport.
We were impressed with the hotel & grounds. Our room was on the second floor and offered views of the gardens but I think if I come back here again (Planned in spring of 2024) I will ask for a southern view as it will give me a view of downtown San Jose and the mountains. The hotel garden is home of Lesson's Motmot, Blue-and-White Swallow, Rufous-naped Wren and others.
The elevation of the hotel is 3,800 feet.
Parrots on the grounds
Costa Rica has a variety of wasps. This was a nest on the grounds. I would check it out every day we were here
Red-billed pigeon
Western Wood-Pewee
Good cell service here as the tower was right across the street from the hotel.
Variegated squirrel
Heliconia rostrata, the hanging lobster claw or false bird of paradise, is a herbaceous perennial plant native to Peru, Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, Costa Rica, and Ecuador. Other heliconias grow in an upright position (e.g., Heliconia bihai), their cup-shaped flower bracts storing water for birds and insects. This plant, however, has downward-facing flowers, the flowers thus providing a source of nectar to birds.
The hotel had considerable rock collections (in Spanish) as the founder was into rocks
Lunch menu. At the time it was 550cr to 1 us. Around $11.50 for a sandwich and you generally do not tip anything for a meal in CR
Yellow-headed Caracara
Lightning arrestor? On a tall antenna for the hotel radios?
Hotel from the street
In the garden they had a observation tower. Looking SE at the cell site over some of the gardens. The green building right of center was a school and they made lots of noise every day.
Various views
Jabuticaba Tree - Its flowering now but will produce purplish-black, white-pulped fruit that grows directly on the trunk of the tree. It is eaten raw or used to make jellies, jams, juice, or wine.
Nice pool and we would spend some time in the pool in the coming days
Jad Vine (Strongylodon macrobotrys) is a species of leguminous perennial liana (woody vine) endemic to the tropical forests of the Philippines. Its local name is tayabak. A member of the Fabaceae (the pea and bean family), it is closely related to beans such as kidney bean and runner bean. Strongylodon macrobotrys is pollinated by bats.
Strange sign. Woman with big ass, old man and handicapped.
Hot peppers growing in the flower gardens. I think they were just growing wild
Dinner at Bougainvillea Hotel. I like the "typical Costa Rican dish" simple and they offered it most everywhere we went. Mary had fish.
This was another extra day so in addition to exploring the hotel gardens, we wanted to walk to a large supermarket appx. 2km away. This was a 30 minute walk each way. In the daily GPS track you can see the path we took. Walking in Costa Rica is safe as long as you look for missing manhole covers and large amounts of dog poop. We had no issues.
The supermarket was called Auto Mercado Santo Domingo, Heredia Province, Canton de Santo Domingo, Costa Rica.
We discovered that a nice market was 1/2 the distance called El Sesteo Tropical which we visited the next day where Ken found his favorite CR sugar cookies.
Various garden views. The elevation of the hotel is 3,800 feet.
Hoffman's Woodpecker. We would see this woodpecker many times throughout our trip.
Rufous-naped Wren
Monarch Butterfly
Back wall at the Bougainvillea Hotel. The area behind the hotel was not developed
Looking at downtown San Jose from the hotel gardens
Our included breakfast at Bougainvillea Hotel. Buffet so you could try different things.
Tropical mockingbird
More garden views at the Bougainvillea Hotel. Very well maintained. We will be back here in 2024
Monkey Puzzle Tree - monkey tail tree, pinonero, pewen or Chilean pine, is an evergreen tree growing to a trunk diameter of 3.3-4.9 ft and a height of 98-131 ft. It is native to central and southern Chile and western Argentina. It is the hardiest species in the conifer genus Araucaria. Because of the prevalence of similar species in ancient prehistory, it is sometimes called a living fossil. It is also the national tree of Chile. Its conservation status was changed to Endangered by the IUCN in 2013 due to the dwindling population caused by logging, forest fires, and grazing.
Coffee growing along the walk to the supermarket (3 photos combined)
We are close to LA
Clay-colored thrush - We saw and heard this bird every day at the hotel. It is the National bird of Costa Rica due to its strong and melodious song that always comes during the start of the rainy season. In addition, unlike many of the forest songsters of Costa Rica, the present bird has been familiar to the general population since the country's early history, thanks to the species' tendency to live near houses.
Mottled Owl is a common, large owl of tropical lowlands and foothills. Found in forests, woodlands, plantations, gardens, and towns. Roosts during the day at all levels in dense cover of taller trees, but at night it often hunts from low perches such as fence posts and road signs. Note the rounded head, brown eyes framed with whitish crescents on either side of the bill, and overall brown plumage that is streaked below. Varied gruff hoots can suggest a dog barking.
The wi-fi was good here. I have ATT and connect to the CR cell system for $10 a day US for unlimited. The hotel had these extenders all over the place.
Cool rabbit vase
Mary asked for garden view room. It was not that good as we were on the second floor and a roof blocked our view. Mike K in our group had a city view. Will ask for one of these front rooms next year.
One of the things I like about Costa Rica is the number of insects that you see. This trip was very strange because we saw very few insects at all the places we went. I carry UV lights to look for scorpions and other bugs and we did not identify anything with that.
On the side of our hotel, they had these lights up against white walls and these areas should have been loaded with insects after dark but nothing. Very strange
We arrived on Sunday to take advantage of the Non-Stop Southwest Airlines flight from Baltimore. Most of the group arrived Monday and Tuesday. We gathered for an orientation meeting and welcome dinner this evening.
Had to see if the Mottled Owl was in the same area. It was.
Baltimore oriole female
Our first look at the Rufous-tailed Hummingbird
Crimson-fronted parakeet
The Crested Caracara looks like a hawk with its sharp beak and talons, behaves like a vulture, and is technically a large tropical black-and-white falcon. A common subject of folklore and legends throughout Central and South America, the Crested Caracara is sometimes called the "Mexican eagle."
We saw 3 different species of Motmot. Lesson's motmot
It was strange as while we were watching the motmot came up with some food from someplace.
Blue-gray tanager - Common and widespread powder blue-gray bird of open and semi-open areas with larger trees and hedges, towns, villages, and gardens in tropical and subtropical regions. Mainly feeds at mid-upper levels in trees, eating fruit, and perches readily on phone wires. Rather plain but distinctive appearance, with beady dark eye and stout bill.
This would be fun to climb. Tropical Spikey Tree Trunk
Unknown spider. We saw very few insects on this trip.
Looks like the same ones we have around here
rufous-napped wren or rufous-backed wren - Noisy songbird, widespread but often local large wren with pronounced geographic variation in appearance. Usually in small groups, less often in pairs. Mainly found in thorn forest and dry scrubby habitats. It is a resident breeding species from southwest Mexico to northwestern Costa Rica.
Resident Mottled Owl
I picked up a Canon R5 camera for this trip.
The R5 is a full frame (meaning that the image sensor is the exact same size as a 35mm film camera) and mirrorless (meaning that you see what you are shooting at & the camera can be lighter and smaller)
Using the 100-500mm lens and shooting in FV (Flexible-Priority) mode and a high F-stop I had amazing results.
Costa Rica is not the easiest place to take photos as many times you and what you are after is often in shade with considerable vegetation.
At the hotel in full sun, a Shaving Brush Tree Flower and insects flying around it made for a interesting shot.
The hotel was under the airport departure flight path. Many of the flights were going to Panama.
The green iguana also known as the American iguana is the best-known species of iguana. It is native to Central and South America. In the United States, it exists as feral populations in Florida, Hawaii, and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
It ate all the flowers on this shrub
Our room view. The distant clouds are over Poas Volcano National Park. Like I said before, the second fllor garden view was not that good.
Looking up the street from the hotel
Pale-vented Pigeon
Another Motmot
Hoffmann's woodpecker
The plan for the day was Departure after breakfast for Monteverde area, birding along Guacimo road for dry forest species like Brown-crested Flycatcher, Tuquoise-browed Motmot and Double-striped Thick-Knee. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant, arriving to the lodge later in the day in time to walk the grounds hoping to catch the late afternoon activity where we might see Northern Emerald Toucanet and Golden-browed Chlorophonia among others.
So we left the hotel and went a few miles NE of the hotel along a dead end dirt road listed on google as C. Rinconada Heredia, Santo Domingo
The elevation here is similar to the hotel at 3,800 feet.
Great Kiskadee's were all over the place.
This species of magnificent flowering trees belongs to a showy group of legumes known as coral trees.
Cecropia or trumpet tree, native to Costa Rica - Cecropia fruit, known as snake fingers, are a popular food of several animals, including bats like the Common Fruit Bat (Artibeus jamaicensis).
Ants, Coffee, and various views along the road.
So we are on a dead end dirt road and we saw these signs. "No Sexual harassment (Acoso sexual)" & "no to child labor". Strange
The second signs were "do not throw garbage on the ground" & "let's protect water sources" These make sense considering the back road.
"Stop Private Property" & "no bicycles or individuals prohibited entry" & "Entry is at your own risk."
More views along this dead-end road
So, we went back to the Bougainvillea Hotel for breakfast. Mary took some photos of the gardens in front of the hotel.
So we checked out and drove across San Jose and visited a site just south of Las Palmas, Provincia de Alajuela along a road called C. Rincon Chiquito. We were only 2.4 miles west of the Juan Santamaria International Airport so lots of air traffic here.
Lots of hummingbirds here. one is a Cinnamon Hummingbird.
Interesting as they were outbound & inbound on the same runway within minutes of each flight
Social Flycatcher on prickly pear cactus
old architecture with lots of cacti
Crossing the deep gorge southeast of Atenas on RT 27. And passing the Atenas exit. We have rented houses in the Atenas are three times over the past 9 years.
So, we stopped at Mega super Orotina for a bathroom break and snacks. Its funny as Mary and I have been here a few times on our adventures.
We continued west and got off RT27 onto C Loros Road. We went appx. 2 miles and stopped and the critters below were in this area. The elevation here was around 700 feet.
Orange-fronted Parakeet-- Parakeets are small parrots, usually with a relatively long and somewhat pointed tail. This species is common in tropical lowlands, mainly in semiopen areas with scattered trees, woodlands, and locally in towns and suburban areas. Often in small flocks or in pairs. Note the bright orange forehead and yellowish eye ring. In most parts of its range, no other parakeets occur.
Ferruginous pygmy owl - Widespread and generally common little owl of tropical lowlands, often seen and heard during the daytime. Favors open tropical woodland and edge, second growth areas with trees (including towns, even cities with wooded parks), tropical pine savannas. Persistent whistles and mobbing bands of small birds often draw attention to pygmy-owls, which can be perched up on open snags or buried deep in cover.
Old waspnest
Another Motmot
The locals watching us run along the road watching birds.
Double-striped Thick-knee - Large and bizarre shorebird of lowland dry grassland and savannas, usually found in pairs or small groups. Active mainly at night (note the big, yellow, owl-like eyes). During the daytime, usually seen standing or sitting quietly, often in the shade of small trees or bushes. Note cryptic, overall pale sandy plumage, double stripes on the head, and long yellow legs.
Tropical Kingbird-- One of the most common sights in Central and South America, the handsome Tropical Kingbird sits on utility lines, fences, and exposed trees seemingly everywhere.
Squirrel Cuckoo - Very striking and long-tailed bright rusty cuckoo, widespread in tropical lowlands and locally up into foothills. Occurs in a wide range of wooded and forest edge habitats. Mostly forages stealthily at mid-upper levels in trees, where can be surprisingly difficult to see. Often seen swooping across roads and eliciting a 'wow' reaction.
We backtracked and went a few miles down RT34 and ate lunch at the Los Congos Restaurant. Which was very good. I had chicken and Mary had fish.
We were eating across the street from where I have bought gas a few times as RT34 runs all the way to Panama along the Pacific coast
Our next destination is Monteverde which was appx. 2 hr. and 56 miles. We stopped for a break at Cafe Monteverde Coffee Shop and there were several monkeys (did not get a photo) and coatimundi in the grassy area.
The roads from San Jose to here were excellent. In 2014 when we were in CR on two, two-week trips to research if we wanted to retire and relocate here we were told it was almost impossible to drive here. Not sure if it was a tour guide story to keep people from coming to places like Monteverde on their own but I would have no issues come here in any vehicle.
People were putting cupcakes out for the monkeys. I must say after riding all day these looked very good
We checked into Hotel Fondavela for the next two nights This hotel was in a number of different buildings and they grouped us all into one of them not far from the Restaurant. The elevayion here is 4700 feet.
It was time for a walk
Large trees with the moon
Central American Agouti - The Central American Agouti (Dasyproctidae) is a mammal native to Central and South America, and is a member of the rodent family and has a long, slender body with short legs and feet. The fur is reddish-brown in color, with black stripes running along its back. Its head is round with large eyes, ears, and nose. Its diet consists mainly of fruits, nuts, seeds, leaves, roots, and small invertebrates. It lives in tropical rainforests where it can find plenty of food sources, and is an important seed disperser for many plants in the region as it helps to spread their seeds across the forest floor. They also play an important role in controlling insect populations by eating them as well as their eggs or larvae.
Another Motmot
Brown jay
Brown-hooded parrot. Ken saw this one and Jose had not found it.
The sunset from our room which was a bit intense.
Some background on where we are now in Costa Rica. We are appx. 19 miles east of the Gulf of Nicoya at an elevation of 4,700 feet. Normally this is a cloud forest but the weather here was great. The temp was in the 70's during the day and low 50's at night.
You can see the gulf an then the mountains of the Nicoya Peninsula. The Pacific Ocean is 50 miles to the west. This was taken from in front of our room.
Sunset from the room area. No green flash
Amazing sunset here. Taken from the restaurant area. The covered area was the pool that we did not have time to enjoy.
Amazing colors - Venus
Chicken cordon bleu served on slate slabs. Was very good.
Back by the room. Looking west at Nicoya Peninsula. City lights and towers.
This would have been a great place for astronomy photos but we were too tired. A quick hand held shot of Venus.
Monteverde was originally founded by Quaker families who moved from Alabama in the 1950's, seeking for a peaceful place to live and carry on with their lives. As part of their vision, they protected the cloud forest on top of the mountains, forests that later became all the reserves found in this area. We will spend the day visiting 2 different reserves in search of highland specialties, being the Resplendent Quetzal perhaps the most representative of this group! Other species include specialties like Three-wattled Bellbird, Collared Trogon, Magenta-throated Woodstar, Chiriqui Quail-Dove and more.
The Monteverde cloud forest alone is home to hundreds of species of birds (some 400+) and more than 750 species of trees, which is as many as occur in the entire United States. And the U.S. has a landmass almost 200 times larger than Costa Rica.
Monteverde is home to the continental divide, where the rain on the eastern side drains into the Caribbean, while on the western side it drains into the Pacific. In these central mountains, hot air from the Caribbean rises and collides with cold air, condensing to create the namesake clouds of this unique forest.
Today we would stay in the Monteverde area. Breakfast at Hotel Fondavela. Lunch at Stella's Monteverde - Restaurant and dinner back at the hotel. We did a morning walk at Curi-Cancha Reserve and after lunch we did a afternoon walk at Cafe Colibri to look at many humming birds. We also went on a long walk on the hotel grounds.
Curi-Cancha Reserve Curi Cancha Wildlife Refuge is a private wildlife refuge in the central part of Costa Rica, and protects cloud forest in the Cordillera de Tilaran near Juntas.
The refuge entrance is about a kilometer before the famous Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. The lower portion is drier, with few epiphytes, but the upper portion is cloud forest. While the forest is not quite so pristine as Monteverde, the most spectacular birds are much easier to see. The refuge is particularly good for the resplendent quetzal, the most sought-after bird of the cloud forest. The refuge is also a good place to find keel-billed toucan, Lesson's motmot, orange-bellied trogon, and three-toed sloth, as well as monkeys.
The elevation here was around 5000 feet.
Lots of trails and even more rules.
Hummingbird sitting on a nest in a coffee plant
Ox-eye Bean which is is used in traditional medicine.
Resplendent Quetzel male showing his long tail. (Because of where they were in the tree and lighting this was not an easy subject to shoot)
Female Resplendent Quetzel
Another Resplendent Quetzel male
Coppery-headed Emerald. Endemic to Costa Rica
Amazing how many people were in the Resplendent Quetzel area.
Resplendent Quetzel trail area.
We saw three different species of Motmot. blue-crowned motmot or turquois browed-motmot. They are very tolerant of people looking at them and we saw them everywhere. These are Ken's favorite birds in Costa Rica as they will let you get very close to them.
Brown Jay
We are at the rest area in the center of the reserve. They had some rather nasty restrooms but they were useable. From here, you could see across to the Nicoya Peninsula and looks like a big fire up on the mountains. We are around 5,000 feet in elevation here.
Blue-crowned chlorophonia
Golden-browed chlorophonia
Jose finding the good critters
Two birders and a strangler fig. Chilly here as Ken is wearing a coat.
Now we are at Lunch at Stella's Monteverde - Restaurant. Like most places that we ate lunch on this trip, they had feeders at the rear of the restaurant.
Northern Emerald-Toucanet - The Emerald toucanet (Aulacorhynchus prasinus) is the smallest and shortest-billed toucan in Costa Rica, the only one with green body.
Squirrel of some type
Another Blue-gray tanager
The feeder area was very active here.
Yellow-throated Euphonia is a tiny finch of tropical lowlands and foothills, mainly in humid areas. Found in forest canopy, adjacent clearings with trees, gardens.
Central American Agouti active under the feeders
White-eared ground sparrow
We are now at the hummingbird feeders at Cafe Colibri. This was our highest point at Monteverde at an elevation of 5,300 feet. Still sunny and no clouds. Also, we are only 10.5 miles by air from Arenal Observatory Lodge yet tomorrow it will take half of the day to drive that distance on the roads.
Variety of hummingbirds
Magenta-throated Woodstar
Lesser Violetear
Bronze-tailed plumeleteer
Lesser Violetear
Violet Sabrewing - Very large, spectacular, and aggressive hummingbird of humid evergreen forest in highlands and foothills. Feeds at all levels at flowers and at times in canopy of roadside trees.
Very busy
Purple-throated Mountain-gem female is on the right.
Back at Hotel Fondavela
Masked tityra male is a handsome, mostly silvery gray bird of tropical and subtropical forest and adjacent semi-open areas with taller trees. Usually found at mid-upper levels of fruiting trees, sometimes in small groups. Identified readily by pinkish base to bill and pinkish 'mask' around eyes.
Another Motmot
Northern Emerald-Toucanet is a medium-sized, grass-green toucan of humid tropical forest in foothills and highlands; also, very locally in lowlands. Usually in pairs or small groups, moving through the canopy or feeding at fruiting trees. Also known as blue-throated Toucanet and he has a black and yellow colorful bill.
Another one of the Hotel Fondavela buildings with the cell tower behind it on the hill. We had excellent ATT cell service here.
Leafcutter ants
bananas growing close to 5,000 feet up.
Jose took us on a long hike as it was starting to get dark. I think it was a bit much for some. I stayed in the back to make sure everyone made it.
Another great sunset but no green flash
Today we are driving from Monteverde to Arenal which is 66 miles and close to 3 hours. When you look at air miles is only 10.5 miles from lodge to lodge.
Departure for Arenal area visiting a Hummingbird Observatory along the way. (See endemic Copperyheaded Emerald plus others such as Green-crowned Brilliant and Purple-throated Mountain Gem) Lunch enroute. In the afternoon we'll bird La Peninsula Road for unique species like Keel-billed Motmot, White Hawk and Long-tailed Tyrant . At the end of the afternoon, we'll drive to our lodge located at the base of Arenal Volcano. Dinner will be at the lodge.
We enjoyed our stay at Hotel Fondavela but did not like a few things. This was laying on the ground in front of the restaurant for the 3 days we were here.
The bathtub shower drain was very slow. We did NOT drink the water here.
Besides the plumbing, the room was nice. Mary packing out.
We stopped for a bathroom & snack break at Pali Supermarket in Tilaran. As always, I have to see if they have and FUD or ZAR. They did. And it was on sale.
In the bathroom they had the longest handled toilet plunger I had ever seen.
Driving across the dam that creates Lake Arenal
We stopped at the southern end of the dam that creates Lake Arenal. On google maps its listed at Lago Arenal. This is along RT 143. The elevation here was a bit over 1800 feet.
Sign telling you to watch out for critters
A security guy would come every 15 min or so on a ATV and clock in on the fence. Strange the front tires are bigger than the back.
Kingfisher ?
Long-tailed Tyrant is a distinctive flycatcher: long central tail feathers usually obvious, longer in males than females.
From a photo perspective everything was wrong. Too far. shooting towards overcast sun. I cleaned it up the best I could.
The bus we have been using and the group watching the White-nosed coati's
White-nosed coati - White-nosed coatis are small mammals native to North, Central and South America, from Arizona to Argentina. They have strong claws and long, highly mobile snouts well adapted for foraging in crevices and holes for food. Their thick, semi-prehensile tails are used for balance and often held erect above the body.
Locals feeding them and the first time I had seen little ones. Not sure what happens when they run out of snacks.
Very dense and wet here
We ate lunch at Rancho Perla - Restaurant in La Fortuna. Again typical Costa Rican with rice and fries. Elevation here is just under 1000 feet. We are now on the Caribbean side of the country and in the only area on this trip that we are on the east side of the mountains.
At the restaurant there was a sloth adult and baby in the tree. Not sure I can tell what part I am looking at.
Elevation at lodge is 2,430 feet
Arenal Lodge has a deck adjacent to the restaurant and our room and every morning they put fruit out and replenished it throughout the day. The birds they attracted were incredible.
This is the view of the lake from the deck. The weather could be better but this is typical around here.
They have a "Birds of the Deck" sign to help ID some of the birds that are here.
Montezuma oropendola - The Montezuma Oropendola is a colonial breeder and only the females build hanging woven nests of fibers and vines 24-to-70 inches long in trees that are usually at least 90-feet tall. The birds favor trees that bear large nests of wasps, whose stinging attacks deter both potential nasty predators and parasitic insects. Each colony has a dominant male that mates with most of the females following an elaborate bowing display. The "unforgettable" song of the male Montezuma Oropendola is given during the bowing display and is very loud.
The "unforgettable" song of the male Montezuma Oropendola is given during the bowing display, and consists of a conversational bubbling followed by loud gurgles. We heard this song often. It is also a very common bird in parts of its range in Costa Rica.
Crested Guan
Attracts many kinds of birds including tanagers and honeycreepers
Cape May warbler
Green honeycreeper male
One of the few insects we saw during this trip.
It's trying to be a good sunset. A few from our group on the deck.
Left this trip / Right Mar-2017
This was the top of the volcano in 2017. Still smoking. The elevation of the volcano is 5,436 feet.
Clouds a bit higher
Dinner. Ken steak & Mary fish
These red-eyed tree frogs have blue-and-yellow striped sides, orange or red feet, a flash of blue on their thighs, and big red eyes. The bright colors are a defense mechanism.
Black-and-white owl - The Black-and-white Owl is very distinctive and unlikely to be confused with any other Central American Owl. It can be found in both Central and South America. This owl was perched atop a tree at Arenal on the night we went on a walk to see frogs.
Early this morning we will gather at the observation deck where we see Montezuma Oropendolas, Emerald Tanager and Red-legged Honeycreeper. After enjoying our breakfast, we will depart for the nearby Sky Adventures Park for our hanging bridges walk through a spectacular Caribbean foothill rain forest. Here we look for specialties such as Broad-billed Motmot and Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Spotted Antbird, Ocellated Antbird, Black-throated Trogon and Brown-billed Scythebill among others. The trail is a combination of ground trails and hanging bridges, with a total of 8 bridges that take you across river ravines some 120 ft above the ground at the highest. Return to the lodge for lunch and more birding in the afternoon around the grounds.
Elevation at lodge is 2,430 feet. Elevation at Sky Adventures Arenal Park 2300 - 3000 feet
Route that we took from Arenal to Sky Adventures Arenal Park.
Showing how close we are to the volcano at Arenal Lodge.
Where we walked around Arenal. Would have done more walking but the weather was not that good.
Where we hiked at Sky Adventures Arenal Park
Arenal Lodge
Bad shot of a Golden-hooded tanager
The Great curassow walks on the forest floor in search of food such as fallen fruits and sometimes dig for seeds, nuts, berries, fruits, and small animals.
Red-legged Honeycreeper in a fig tree. The red-legged honeycreeper (Cyanerpes cyaneus ) is a small songbird species in the tanager family (Thraupidae).
Scarlet-thighed Dacnis male - Did not see the scarlet thighs.
This is a male green honeycreeper. Very attractive small tanager of humid tropical lowlands. Found in humid evergreen forest edges, plantations, and gardens; at times with mixed-species feeding flocks of honeycreepers and euphonias. Often in pairs, feeding at all levels in fruiting trees and bushes. Note the short, curved bill. Males are a unique green-blue color with black hood and a banana yellow beak. Female resembles female Red-legged Honeycreeper but is larger, brighter, uniform green, with yellow lower bill and grayish legs.
This place is packed. The main area of Hotel Arenal Lodge
We drove over to hike at Sky Adventures Arenal Park
Park map. We did not take the tram but walked across bridge 1 & 2. Went to the Viewpoint El Million and walked up to a restroom. The weather was just not that good.
Classified containers... Interesting...
On adventure with Jose in the front
Rufous-tailed Jacamar is a beautiful inhabitant of forest edges and clearings of Central and South America.
Robber fly (Asilidae)
The Crested guan is a very large, long-tailed game bird of tropical and subtropical forest. Often seen high in trees or flying through the forest canopy.
Chestnut-mandibled Toucans or Swainsons Toucans (Ramphastos swainsonii) are the second largest Toucans in the world - being only slightly smaller than the Toco Toucans (Ramphastos toco). Their most obvious feature is their massive bill. Chestnut-billed Toucans usually make their nests in unlined cavities high in decayed sections of dead or living trees, or occasionally in old woodpecker nests. Since their bills are not suitable for excavating holes, they must rely on existing cavities. It is a resident breeder in moist lowland forests.
` The first of the bridges.
Looking further up the mountain. We are below the clouds.
Looking towards the lake from the bridge
Ken was joking that we were lost so Jose had to use a topo map and sticks to guide us out of the rain forest We ducked under the tree to dry off a bit while he explained the ecological regions and how the mountain ranges divide the country.
Bridge number two
From the bridge you can see the top of the sky tram
Looking back at the lake from the bridge
El Million Viewpoint
Interesting tree by the viewpoint
This was interesting. We found info on the web and nobody is sure 100% what it was. The protective covering of some sort of insect. Hairy yet pliant to the touch, almost like a stale marshmallow (if marshmallows were hairy). I did not want to cut it open and see if anyone was living inside, so we will have to leave this one a mystery.
Rufous-tailed hummingbird
So back to Arenal Lodge for lunch. Here were our choices
Rufous-tailed hummingbird. This one must be common since we saw him 6 days on this trip.
Keel-billed toucan - The keel-billed toucan (Ramphastos sulfuratus ), also known as sulfur-breasted toucan or rainbow-billed toucan, is a colorful Latin American member of the toucan family. It is the national bird of Belize. The species is found in tropical jungles from southern Mexico to Colombia. It is an omnivorous forest bird that feeds on fruits, seeds, insects, invertebrates, lizards, snakes, and small birds and their eggs. I love these birds since even I can spot them in the wild without binoculars.
Black-and-yellow tanager
Variegated squirrels get their name because they can vary widely in coloration between distinct populations and within a population.
Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer is a medium-sized hummingbird, mostly green. But note red feet and bronzy rump.
Piratic Flycatcher
Tawny-capped euphonia male on right, female on left. These photos were a challenge. It was cloudy, getting dark and these birds would not stay still.
Mike and our bus driver looking at photos. The driver was also a very good guide/spotter and helped Mary find things as I had given up.
Even more clouds at the lodge
Nesting area for the Montezuma oropendola
Where we stayed in 2017
I would cut thru this drain to our room. I figured I would be bit by a poisonous snake living in the rocks.
The road / trail back to where we stayed in 2017
Hiding from the rain in the observation tower.
Arenal has one swinging bridge near the main part of the lodge
Our room had a towel flower
Jungle view from the room. It was so humid that we did not sit out on our deck. In fact, these rooms have no A/C they come with a dehumidifier.
Wonderful weather. They have a elevated observation area so you can stay out of the weather. Also, had wifi but the cell system worked very good here.
The meals are very good here. Classy place. And you can learn the Spanish words from breakfast, lunch, and dinner
We had room 1. Close to the action. Still very quiet
