Hello lovely people no. 39 (no.1 in Costa Rica)

OK: I will get the excuses/apologies over first and quickly. Blogs for the the remainder of Australia (end of the WA road trip, our amazing five subsequent weeks in and around Bowral, Sydney, Canberra, Adelaide); for Japan and for Hong Kong are all yet to be completed. I was and have been too busy since the end of the road trip but do intend to complete and post them this calendar year 

We are now in Costa Rica, a relatively short trip of four weeks (!!), and so far (this is me writing on day three), so extremely lovely

After a night at an hotel near the airport in Liberia we drive and rendezvous with great friends Colin & Annabelle and Caroline & Simon, respectively already in the country for nine and five nights. We meet at an airbnb house perched high on a hill in the region of Monteverde, it is a wooden delight with a wrap around veranda the longest elevation of which faces the pacific and the Nicoya Peninsula. The temperature dropped from 31C to 24C to 19C on the drive up the hill and the wind is strong but the air is clear. The caretaker/manager Walter is charming and oh so knowledgable and his absence of English not at all a problem due to Caroline’s excellent Spanish. Walter walks us through much of the extensive hillside garden, planted with coffee, bananas, oranges, limes, lemons, grapefruit. The views are fabulous and the sunset breathtaking

The following morning is a slow start and then an expedition to Santa Helena Cloud Forest Reserve. The temperature is around 20C and this wind is big, making everything a little cooler. The cloud forest is lush, green, full of moss covered trees, lianas, ferns. It feels very Indiana Jones-esque. We spot some colourful birds and a large Howler monkey, walking high in the tree canopy with her baby wrapped around her, leisurely grazing on fruits and seeds

Today sees us with a 4.45 a.m. alarm to leave at 5.15 a.m. for a 6.00 a.m. start to a guided bird tour. We all feel undercooked and hope we are going to see some birds, the cloud forest yesterday was not teeming . . . . 

Our guide Elberth, the youngest of Los Hermanos Fuentes, is an enthusiastic, knowledgeable, charming, dynamo. He arrives armed with binoculars and a telescope on a tripod. Before we even leave the meeting point – a kilometre from the reserve we are to visit – he has spotted and pointed out to us a good selection of birds including the most beautiful Mot-Mot. He repeatedly moves at speed to set up the ‘scope and encourages us all to get to it quickly to see his finds

After a very welcome coffee – its good here – we head to Curi-Cancha Reserve. It’s still a coolish 19C and the wind is still strong. It is less dense forest and not nearly as mossy, fern filled or damp  as Santa Helena yesterday. There are mango and avocado trees, huge ficus, soft cedar wood. We are repeatedly amazed by Elberth’s skill at spotting birds and enabling us all to see them, by naked eye, binoculars, and telescope. And we realise we must have missed lots yesterday. We see a splendid selection of birds including the most prized of all, the Resplendant Quetzal. We are all very happy!

Elberth is also great at taking photographs for us with our various telephones and cameras, including through the lens of the telescope, which we hugely appreciate

On the last leg of our guided tour Elberth spots two Pit vipers, we could not believe he saw the first, the second had been in the same spot the day before so he thought it might still be there. It is slightly worrying that these poisonous snakes could so easily be just above our heads, invisible to our uneducated eyes

Within the reserve there is an area where several nectar feeders have been erected for humming birds. They are many, and many types, and it is enthralling and to be able to stand so close and watch them fly, hover and feed. They were too quick for my camera skills but I will send independently of this blog  a couple of video clips and now include a couple of stills from them

It was a truly fabulous outing which concluded with the obligatory group shot, taken by Elberth and then a selfie with him

As we left the reserve the weather improved: the wind dropped, the sky became intensely blue and the sun warm, warm enough to tempt us into the spring fed swimming pool at the house

Until next time, hasta luego 

ALISON

PS: due to technical difficulties, namely Andy with a borrowed camera as his has been mislaid by the camera shop after a repair was completed, and no transfer lead being provided with it, I am missing some of his photos, in particular the Mot-Mots . . . .maybe I can do an edit after we are home