This is a reduced price tour that will be offered in conjunction with the Redwood Region Audubon Society. Please click on the button to navigate to a more detailed description and maps of the locality.

Click Below for Past Tour Reports:
December 2010
January 2011

Day 1 (July 31, 2011): Arrival in Cali and birding at Finca La Araucana
Arrive in Cali’s International Airport, where I will be waiting for you, in the morning. We will drive through a picturesque section of Cali and soon head up the Western Cordillera of the Andes Mountains. We will go to the hotel in Km 18 (Hotel el Faro) to freshen up before our first afternoon of birding. We will spend the afternoon birding from the balcony at Finca la Araucana (Chris' family farm) and return to Hotel el Faro for dinner and rest.

Day 2 (August 1, 2011): Km 18
Next morning we will bird nearby, along a dirt road that passes through fragments of cloud forest with good mixed-flock activity. Birding here can be very productive and we will search out two endemics, Grayish Piculet and Multicolored Tanager. A paradise for tanagers, we also may observe Purplish-mantled, Metallic-green, Saffron-crowned, and Golden-naped, as well as Blue-winged Mountain-Tanager. Other birds we might see in this area include Bronzy Inca, Fawn-breasted Brilliant, Scarlet-fronted Parakeet, Crimson-rumped Toucanet, Fulvous-dotted Treerunner, Streak-capped Treehunter, Scaled Fruiteater, Green-and-Black Fruiteater, Yellow-headed Manakin, Chestnut-breasted Wren, Black-billed Peppershrike, Chestnut-breasted Chlorophonia, Greenish Puffleg, Montane Woodcreeper, Red-faced Spinetail, Spotted Barbtail, Rusty-winged Barbtail, Streaked Xenops, and Nariño Tapaculo. It should be easy to see the hyperactive Cinnamon Flycatcher and a delight to listen to the Andean Solitaire. An impressive show of hummingbirds including Purple-throated Woodstar, Brown Violetear, Green Violetear, Speckled Hummingbird, Wedge-billed Hummingbird, Long-tailed Sylph, and White-necked Jacobin can be observed at a private house along the road. The night will be spent at Hotel el Faro.

Day 3 (August 2, 2011): Bosque de San Antonio
The next morning we will bird at slightly higher elevations, in the Bosque de San Antonio. After a day of birding we will head to El Queremal, where we will stay at Hotel El Campanario, a quiet and lovely hotel just outside of town.

Day 4 (September 19, 2011): El Queremal to El Danubio
We will rise early and be birding in Colombia’s most famous birding location within a minute after we depart the hotel. We will be on the recently-paved but lightly-traveled old road to Buenaventura. Chris likes to call it The Waterfall Road as we will pass more than 100 waterfalls along the way. More than 300 species have been observed along the road. We will stop at various birding hotspots along the road as we descend through subtropical foothill forest to the Pacific Lowlands. Pallid Dove, Tooth-billed Hummingbird, Lanceolated Monklet, Summer Tanager, Silver-throated Tanager, Chocó Woodpecker, Spot-breasted Woodpecker, Esmeraldas Antbird, Pacific Antwren, Club-winged Manakin, White-crowned Manakin, White-headed Wren, Chestnut-headed Oropendola, Scarlet-rumped Cacique, Yellow-green Bush-Tanager, Scarlet-browed Tanager, and Gray Seedeater are all possible. We will spend the night in El Danubio, on the banks of the Anchicaya River.

Day 5 (September 20, 2011): El Danubio
We will spend all day birding near El Danubio. The Chocó Bioregion is known for being one of the wettest places on the planet. We will bird along dirt roads, where we may come across Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, Collared Araçari, Black-tipped Cotinga, Blue Cotinga, Rose-faced Parrot, Blue-headed Parrot, Blue-whiskered Tanager, Emerald Tanager, Palm Tanager, Dusky-faced Tanager, Rufous-winged Tanager, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Ocellated Antbird, Bicolored Antbird, and Long-tailed Tyrant among many others. We will spend another night in El Danubio.

Days 6 (September 21, 2011): El Danubio to Buga
Our last day in El Danubio we will rise early and bird our way back to El Queremal, have lunch there and then head to Buga (3.5 hours). Buga is a lovely town with a lot of character, and we will be staying in a colonial style Hotel Guadalajara . Those who wish can tour the town or relax at the hotel pool.

Day 7 (September 22, 2011): Sonso Lagoon and Madres Viejas
We will rise early and be at the Sonso Lagoon in ten minutes. The lagoon is one of the few remaining wetlands in the Cauca Valley and one of Colombia’s best wetland birding localities. The wetland is teeming with aquatic birds, so we will search the waters for Wattled Jacana, Anhinga, Little Blue Heron, Cocoi Heron, Striated Heron, Snowy Egret, Bare-faced Ibis, Glossy Ibis, Fulvous Whistling-Duck, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck,Snail Kite, Black-necked Stilt, and Neotropic Cormorant. Rare species we might come across include Pinnated Bittern, Apical Flycatcher, Roseate Spoonbill, Ruby-topaz Hummingbird, and Horned Screamer. Along riparian areas it is possible to see Southern Lapwing, Greater Ani, Ringed Kingfisher, Crested Caracara, Yellow-headed Caracara, Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet, Mouse-colored Tyrannulet, Yellow-olive Flycatcher, Ruddy-breasted Seedeater, Blue-black Grassquit, and Cinereous Becard. In nearby oxbows (called madres viejas in Colombia), we may be able to observe the attractive Jet Antbird, Orange-crowned Euphonia, and Slate-headed Tody-Flycatcher. After a long morning of birding (potentially in hot weather), we will have lunch at a nearby restaurant that has some of the best sancocho (typical Colombian soup) in the valley. We will have the afternoon to enjoy the pool in Buga before heading out on the three-hour drive to the Otún-Quimbaya Sanctuary, where we will spend the night.

Day 8 (September 23, 2011): Otún-Quimbaya
We will rise early in the morning and start birding in the Otún-Quimbaya Sanctuary at the doorstep of our hotel. We will be received by the sounds of howling monkeys and the endangered, endemic Cauca Guan, which is relatively easy to see here although believed to be extinct until a population was discovered in 1990. Birding along the dirt road should be productive for finding forest skulkers such as Chestnut Wood-Quail (endemic), Stiles’s Tapaculo (a recently-described endemic), Moustached Antpitta, and Russet-crowned Warbler. We will spend another night at the reserve.

Day 9 (September 24, 2011) Otun-Quimbaya to Rio Blanco
We will rise early again and first go in search of Torrent Duck. Then we will hike along a dirt road where mixed groups assemble into a birder's dream. Plumbeous-crowned Tyrannulet, Rufous-breasted Flycatcher, Inca Jay, Marble-faced Bristle-Tyrant, Variegated Bristle-Tyrant, Andean Motmot, Black-billed Mountain-Toucan, Andean Cock-of-the-rock, Red-ruffed Fruitcrow, Golden-fronted Redstart, Blue-naped Chlorophonia, Orange-bellied Euphonia, Glossy Flowerpiercer, and Masked Flowerpiercer all can be seen here. We then will head to Rio Blanco Reserve near Manizales (a three-hour drive).

Day 10 (September 25, 2011): Rio Blanco
Manizales is in the center of the famed Coffee Triangle and is a great city from which we can visit several reserves that hold some of Colombia’s rarest and most threatened species. We will be staying at Rio Blanco, where the accommodations are rustic but very clean and comfortable and the hospitality is beyond comparison, for four nights. The reserve is managed by Aguas de Manizales, the municipal water company. Three endemics – Brown-banded Antpitta, Bicolored Antpitta, and Rufous-fronted Parakeet – are found here. Along with these endemics, this area boasts many sought-after species that include Tyrannine Woodcreeper; Dusky Piha; Black-chested Mountain-Tanager; Buff-breasted Mountain-Tanager; Grass-green Tanager; White-capped Tanager; Chestnut-naped Antpitta; Rusty-faced Parrot; Powerful Woodpecker; the hard-to-see Ocellated Tapaculo, Blackish Tapaculo, and Spillman’s Tapaculo; Plushcap; Mountain Cacique; and Golden-plumed Parakeet. We will devote two full days to birding the reserve.

Day 11 (September 26, 2011): Rio Blanco
The reserve boasts well-maintained trails and hummingbird feeders that attract various species including Tourmaline Sunangel, Buff-tailed Coronet, Collared Inca, Mountain Velvetbreast, the tiny White-bellied Woodstar, Long-tailed Sylph, and Sparkling Violetear. Another bonus is the ingeniously-installed antpitta feeder that attracts the two endemic species of antpitta and another two rare, hard-to-see species.

Day 12 (september 27, 2011): Nevado del Ruiz
Today we will head to the Nevado del Ruiz, following a road through patches of forest that give way to páramo (tropical grassland above treeline). The scenery is magical, with velvety frailejón plants adding a touch of surrealism. Temperatures will be cold, and we will reach elevations upwards of 14,000 feet. We will seek out high-elevation specialists that include Bearded Helmetcrest, Rainbow-bearded Thornbill, Viridian Metaltail, Stout-billed Cinclodes, Brown-backed Chat-Tyrant, Golden-crowned Tanager, Black-backed Bush-Tanager, Glossy Flowerpiercer, and, along a two-km stretch of the road that passes through elfin forest, the endemic and very-hard-to-find Rufous-fronted Parakeet. Also fun to watch is the Tawny Antpitta, which is very tame in this area. We also will be able to bird near a glacial pond called Laguna Negra, where it is possible to see Many-striped Canastero, White-tailed Hawk, Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle, Andean Tit-Spinetail, White-chinned Thistletail, Andean Teal, Sedge Wren, and Pale-naped Brush-Finch. A bonus is the variety of finches in the páramo, including Plumbeous Sierra-Finch, Páramo Seedeater, and Plain-colored Seedeater. At this point we will treat ourselves to some empanadas, which in Colombia are made of corn and potatoes and are revered as some of the tastiest in the world. We will return to Rio Blanco to spend the night.

Day 13 (September 28, 2011): Manizales
We will spend the morning birding at Alcazares City Park, which offers amazing birding opportunities within Manizales city limits. Targets here include Red-headed Barbet, Flame-rumped Tanager, and the endemic Bar-crested Antshrike. Other birds we might encounter include Bay-breasted Tanager, Emerald Toucanet, Golden-olive Woodpecker, Golden-faced Tyrannulet, Yellow-bellied Siskin, and Streaked Saltator. For lunch we will have ajiaco, a typical Colombian soup made with potatoes and chicken and garnished with capers and cream…..delicious! Then we have a four-hour drive back to Cali, where we will spend the night in Hotel El Obelisco. We will have dinner and drinks at a nearby restaurant to recap on the good times we had during the trip.

Day 14 (September 29, 2011): Cali and suburbs
We will have a morning tour of the Dolmetsch Arboretum with the Director, Alvaro Calonje (Chris' father), followed by lunch there. The arboretum is one of the largest in Colombia and boasts a collection of 2200 species of plants from around the world. It also offers great birding opportunities. We will have the afternoon to bird at Finca la Araucana again. We will have dinner and drinks at a restaurant in Cali to recap the good times we had during the trip. Night at Hotel Obelisco again.

Day 15 (September 30, 2011): Depart Cali
Guests will be taken to the airport from Hotel Obelisco to catch flights.