8/23/2023 Wednesday
We had another 5:00 start, but this time with packed bags as we were heading to a new town and hotel.
Getting out of Bogota was once again a task. We headed east up and over some significant mountains. Apparently this highway is a popular and challenging road biking course, so in addition to the cars, heavy trucks, and motorcycles, there were hundreds of bicyclists testing themselves on the ascent. Some were in organized groups with trailing vehicles to block for them, while others seemed to be going it alone. Just a bit more chaos on an already chaotic road!
We stopped at a gas station/market to pick up sandwiches for lunch, along with big bottles of water and a few snacks for the next couple of days.
We arrived at Chingaza National Park at 6:40. This was high altitude, roadside birding. It was cool and breezy, but unlike the previous day sunny. The sun is really intense on the equator at this altitude of 11,000+ feet!
We started out with some very nice birds.
It is amazing that at these high elevations we still find hummingbirds. In fact, some species are found only in these zones. The Glowing Puffleg male was especially nice and you can see the big white leg "puffs" that give it part of its name.
As we moved up in the elevation and the day warmed it got quiet, and Daniel decided that the sunny, windy conditions were not in our favor at these high elevations. So we backtracked a bit down to a lower elevation road to explore some more sheltered areas.
On our way down we spotted a Tawny Antpitta. Antpittas are generally secretive and hard to see, but this one cooperated nicely. Perhaps because it was carrying a nice breakfast?
As planned we ate our lunch in the field. It was cool, sunny, green and a lovely spot to enjoy.
After lunch we headed to Observatorio de Colibres (Hummingbird Observatory) at Finca Muchareja, arriving at 3:30. This was the home and gardens of a successful local artist. She has hummingbird feeders hanging throughout the garden, and allows visitors (for a fee!).
There was a warning sign regarding the dog that got our attention!
Avoid physical, eye, or voice contact with the dogs. Yikes! We never saw a dog, so we were safe...
Our main target here was the Blue-throated Starfrontlet, a species of hummingbird. It seemed that every part of their body showed some color of iridescence. Just amazing.
The gardens were very nice, with plenty of different hummingbird species to see.
Some had long tails, others long bills.
We saw the second largest hummingbird in South America, the Great Sapphirewing, which is about 7" long. And we saw the tiny White-bellied Woodstar, which is only 2.5" long.
And a few more "ordinary" hummers as well.
We saw lots of great hummers and got plenty of pictures, finishing up around 5:00.
We then drove to the small town of Guatavita and checked in to Hotel El Dorado. Small and simple, but nice.
The hotel restaurant had closed down since Daniels last visit, so we ended up walking a couple of blocks to one of the few open places. It advertised itself as being a “fast food” hamburger and pizza place. Teri and I each ordered a personal pizza thinking that it would likely be a frozen one, but it was fresh and surprisingly good.
The elevation was quite high (8800') and the night was very cool. There was no heat in the room but good blankets and we slept fine after our busy day.
Next - Up, up we go.
Beautiful pictures of hummers.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you are both enjoying these wonderful adventures!!!
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