Costa Rica Birding Holiday - February 21 to March 5, 2007

February 22

San José

We had this whole day available, so planned a full day tour. Since our birding tour was going south to the Pacific slope, we chose a tour that did the opposite. It was called the Highlights Tour.

We were picked up at our hotel at 6:15 am and spent the next hour touring San José, as we went to various hotels to pick up other clients for the tour, all the while being entertained by our tour guide, Ricky.

Coffee Plantation

At the foothills of the Poás Volcano we stopped for breakfast at a beautiful mountain lodge, surrounded by coffee fields, tropical gardens and spectacular views of Costa Rica's Central Valley. After breakfast, we sampled many of the fine coffees produced there, and had a tour of the operations.

Volcan Poas

Then it was on to the cool summit of the Poás Volcano at 2700 m. in the cloud forest. Apparently it was rare to have only sunshine, not mist and clouds, up here. After a short walk through the forest, we came to the crater with its steaming, sulfur lagoon at its center. We lingered for quite a while, enjoying the marvelous view and the lush vegetation.

La Paz Waterfall Gardens

Then, back on the bus to continue on our route past high volcanic towers and deep canyons. We stopped at the beautiful La Paz Waterfall Gardens and checked out the bird feeders and the butterfly garden. This was followed by the hummingbird gallery, where they had dozens of feeders, and a nice lunch in the attached restaurant. After lunch, we had some free time for the snakes, hummingbirds and other feeders. Then we toured the orchids, frog house and on to the waterfalls, featuring the 250 ft. high San Fernando Waterfall. Our bus picked us up at the foot of hundreds of stairs past the waterfalls. We were grateful to not have to climb back up.

Tennessee Warbler	Common Bush-Tanager

	Magnificent Hummingbird

Purple-throated Mountain-gem	Green Thorntail

Bananaquit	Violet-headed Hummingbird

Violet Sabrewing	Purple-throated Mountain-gem

Silver-throated Tanager	Blue-gray Tanager

We then drove on to Caribbean Plain with its warm tropical weather and vegetation. En route we saw Howler Monkeys and Coati Mundi.

Mantled Howler Monkey	Coati Mundi

Sarapiqui River

We boarded a covered boat for a one-hour tour down the Sarapiquí River in this remote area near Nicaragua. We saw caimans, monkeys and many birds. There were children playing in the river and natives fishing along the banks.

Spectacled Caiman	Green Kingfisher

Anhinga (f)	Long-nosed Bats

Mantled Howler Monkey	Little Blue Heron with Cattle Egrets

Passerini Tanager

Finally, as darkness was falling, we returned to San José through the deep jungles of Braulio Carrillo National Park, a protected area of almost 500 square km. The truck traffic along this spectacular jungle road was incredibly heavy, as fruits and other goods were being shipped to markets all over the world.