Back to CR...

I've officially sent in my money for my return trip to Costa Rica in January 2007. I will be there not one, but TWO whole weeks! Some of the same gang who went the first time will be going again this time, so it should be a blast. We'll be seeing different parts of the country, more along the Pacific slope, so the birds will be different for the most part.



The first week of the trip will visit the active Volcan Arenal (pic above) and the Arenal Observatory Lodge. The lodge is close to the volcano and has an awesome bird list. We will then head to the Monteverde Cloud Forest to stay at the world famous (for birders anyway) Trapp Family Lodge. This place looks insanely amazing. We'll finish the week with 3 days in the Punta Leona area along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. I'll have a chance to visit their private white sand beaches and also to bird Carara National Park - home to Scarlet Macaws and the rare Yellow-billed Cotinga!!! There will also be a boat tour through the mangroves in hopes of seeing the endemic Mangrove Hummingbird.

The second week will begin with a short flight out to the Osa Peninsula. This area is thought to be one of the most bio-diverse areas in all of Central/South America. The trip will start at the Bosque del Rio Tigre Lodge. Birding around this area is supposedly amazing and includes birds such as Turquoise Cotinga and White-tipped Sicklebill (one of the birds I most want to see!). We'll finish the trip up in the town of Golfito at the Golfo Dulce Lodge. We'll travel here by boat, which I think is pretty cool. Here we'll hope to see birds like White-crested Coquette and Black Hawk-Eagle.

I'm really psyched for the trip! If anyone is interested, there are still spots open on both legs of the trip.