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December 2024
Day 1
 Saturday 21st of December 2024 and waking up at 5 o'clock. 2 hours until the restaurant opens and I will go to have a look for an adapter. No tea, but I have cheese and DIET drinks for breakfast and it was good enough. I leave my room just before 7 o'clock and I hear a bird in the bushes outside my room and I fire up my mobile phone and my new JBL microphone to record the bird. And the Rufous-collared Sparrow is my first recording from Costa Rica. I am excited as I walk towards the reception 200 meters away from my room and I am soon making my second recording. A bird that I cannot ID so I will send the recording to Xeno-canto and www.birdforum.net for help with the ID. Listen to the Rufous-collared Sparrow
Sound from www.xeno-canto.org
Listen to the Rufous-collared Sparrow
Sound from www.xeno-canto.org
Listen to the Great Kiskadee
Sound from www.xeno-canto.org
  Rufous-collared Sparrow
 Rufous-collared Sparrow
 Rufous-collared Sparrow
 I check out the area and I have a little report for eBird by the time I am ready at the reception. Paid for my room, and they do not have adapters so I need to take a taxi to town and the girl call a driver. I complain a bit over my room, no internet and far away and the girl tell me that I can have room #1 just next to the restaurant and the internet might be able to reach my room. We go to check it out and the internet works, of course, you must have internet when working with your bird lists etc. She will ove my luggage when I am in town but I went to pick up my camera and computer in my old room. I bring my carry-on luggage to my new room and the driver is waiting for me. I was in an upbeat mood as I expect to sort out my “power” issues while in town.  Room #1 at Hotel de Montaña Suria
 Room #1 at Hotel de Montaña Suria
 Room #1 at Hotel de Montaña Suria
 Room #1 at Hotel de Montaña Suria
It will take us an hour to drive to the closest town, San Isidro de El General. We drive up the mountain on the C. San Gerardo Road and it is a beautiful area. Pitch dark when we arrived yesterday and we could hardly see the road in front of us. We turn right reaching the Pan-American Highway and we drive along the road winding along the mountains. We could see nothing yesterday evening, but today I could enjoy the view from the road. I am enjoying the view and the gorgeous weather.  Going along the C. San Gerardo Road
 Going along the C. San Gerardo Road
 Going along the C. San Gerardo Road
 We are on the Pan-American Highway
 San Isidro de El General
San Isidro de El General is surprisingly big. I had expected a mountain village. But this is a proper city and by the looks of it, there are all the shopping you will ever need. First stop and we found the adapter and I was very happy. Next stop, to buy a SIM card. I have my eSIM, but this operator does not work in the mountains. There is a mast next to the hotel, but it is another network operator. We go to eat while waiting for them to register my new SIM, 10 to 15 minutes we were told. We stop at the ATM so I can get cash to pay the driver. And we park on the other side of the park to have our breakfast. There was a good smell on the street that make me hungrier. We choose one restaurant having breakfast and we ordered our food. The SIM shop is 3 minutes away and I went to pick up my phone while waiting for the food. My phone was not ready, he had had a lot of customers and I took the phone so I could take some pictures. I told him that I would bring it back after the meal,  Waiting for the food
 Waiting for the food
The food was very good and I went to check on the SIM card when we were ready. Nothing so I left walking back to the Driver and the car. I spot one Feral Pigeon in the Central Park and I report it to eBird. Back in the car and we looked for another SIM card shop, no luck and we were soon back on the Pan-American Highway going back to Hotel de Montaña Suria. We had passe the highest mountain in Costa Rica and I wanted to take some pictures going back. Sunshine in the morning and the fog / clouds covering the area in the afternoon seems to be the normal weather here. Rain/ drizzle from the fog si there was no chance to take any pictures of any mountains going back to the hotel.  Going back to Hotel de Montaña Suria
 Going back to Hotel de Montaña Suria
 Going back to Hotel de Montaña Suria
 Going back to Hotel de Montaña Suria
 Going back to Hotel de Montaña Suria
 Going back to Hotel de Montaña Suria
 We are hit by the fog
 We are hit by the fog
 We are hit by the fog
I was disappointed, it was dense fog and rain before we reached the mountain. Never mind, it always look better “naturel” than on the picture. Pictures do not give the nature any justice. We turn off the Pan-American Highway when we reach C. San Gerardo Road. C. San Gerardo Road is a small narrow road going down the mountains. The road is mostly passing hotels and lodges. The area is famous for horse riding and bird watching. They say that there is living 250 people in the village, but there are really no houses.  Driving down the mountain on C. San Gerardo Road
I had asked the reception to book bird watching tours for me tomorrow, one early morning to look for the Resplendent Quetzal , the bird that most of the people are coming to see. This bird is only awake early mornings. Then a second bird tour at 8 thirty. And if possible this afternoon, I was desperate, more than a half day and no bird watching, the reason for me to come to Costa Rica. Well, I had seen some birds in the morning but I had expected more. The girl brought good news, the Guide is available at 14:30 and I have an hour to kill in my new room.  Slaty Flowerpiercer
 Slaty Flowerpiercer
 Scintillant Hummingbird in nest
I go out to the parking lot and I spot one Stripe-tailed Hummingbird but the pictures turn out to be garbage. I got two pictures of an Slaty Flowerpiercer that I could use, a new LIFER for me. My Guide arrives and he show me an Scintillant Hummingbird sitting on eggs in a nest next to the parking. A very small nest, not much bigger than a ping pong ball and I would never have seen it if it was not for my Guide. The Scintillant Hummingbird is another LIFER for me. Third for today and the bird watching have really not started. We take off and we drive to a restaurant and they have a balcony in the back were they feed the birds. This restaurant is also an eBird hotspot: Savegre Valley--Miriam's Restaurant Most of the places have a bird feeding station for the bird watchers. And they charge a little bit for using the bird watching station, for fruits and stuff for the birds.  View from the eBird hotspot: Savegre Valley--Miriam's Restaurant
There are a couple of bird watchers on the balcony and we join them. Two girls and one guy are busy taking pictures. One of the girls have a huge lens on a tripod and she must have some trouble. I could not use my 500mm lens as it was too close. I started by trying to record some of the hummingbirds, there were at least six different hummingbirds and all of them wer LIFERS for me. • Volcano Hummingbird • White-throated Mountain-gem • Stripe-tailed Hummingbird • Lesser Violetear • Talamanca Hummingbird • Fiery-throated Hummingbird I got two recordings of the hummingbirds using my new JBL microphone. And I grow to like my new microphone more and more by the day. Very handy and it is really good on reducing the wind noise. Listen to the Fiery-throated Hummingbird / Talamanca Hummingbird
Sound from www.xeno-canto.org
Listen to the Talamanca Hummingbird
Sound from www.xeno-canto.org
 Male Flame-coloured Tanager
 Rufous-collared Sparrow
 Rufous-collared Sparrow
 Male Flame-coloured Tanager
 Acorn Woodpecker
 Acorn Woodpecker
 Fiery-throated Hummingbird
 Lesser Violetear
 Volcano Hummingbird
 Black-throated Green Warbler
 Large-footed Finch
 Sooty-capped Chlorospingus
 Baltimore Oriole
 Baltimore Oriole
 Tennessee Warbler
 Slaty Flowerpiercer
 Female Flame-coloured Tanager
< Juvenile Flame-coloured Tanager
br>
 Hairy Woodpecker
 Sooty Thrush
 Male Fiery-throated Hummingbird
 Male Fiery-throated Hummingbird
 Male Fiery-throated Hummingbird
 Male Fiery-throated Hummingbird
 Female Fiery-throated Hummingbird
 Female Fiery-throated Hummingbird
 Lesser Violetear
 Male Talamanca Hummingbird
 Male Talamanca Hummingbird
 Male Talamanca Hummingbird
 Male Talamanca Hummingbird
 Male Talamanca Hummingbird
 Male Talamanca Hummingbird
 Acorn Woodpecker
 Male Fiery-throated Hummingbird
 Volcano Hummingbird
 Volcano Hummingbird
 Volcano Hummingbird
 White-throated Mountain-gem
We left Miriam's Restaurant and we had seen a lot of birds. I had 13 LIFERS from Miriam's Restaurant, 4 from the morning at my hotel makes it 17 in total. We stopped at another hotspot on the way back to my hotel. Savegre Hotel is another eBird hotspot, actually this is the hotel I was going to book. But I was a few minutes too late and the last room got booked while I was going to book. We park the car and we hear one Lesser Violetear when we get out of the car and I make a recording before we continue to the feeding station. Listen to the Lesser Violetear
Sound from www.xeno-canto.org
 Acorn Woodpecker
 Acorn Woodpecker
There is the same birds that we had seen at Miriam's Restaurant and I only took pictures of the Acorn Woodpecker. The main reson for us to stay here was for my Guide to show the place to see if I wanted to come back here tomorrow. We left and my Guide dropped me at the hotel and he will come here to pick me up at 5 o'clock tomorrow morning. Yet another good day of bird watching in Central America have come to an end, 17 LIFERS and I was very satisfied with the day: • Flame-coloured Tanager • Yellow-thighed Brushfinch • Large-footed Finch • Sooty-capped Chlorospingus • Sooty Thrush • Hairy Woodpecker • Acorn Woodpecker • Volcano Hummingbird • White-throated Mountain-gem • Fiery-throated Hummingbird • Talamanca Hummingbird • Lesser Violetear • Band-tailed Pigeon • Slaty Flowerpiercer • Stripe-tailed Hummingbird • Scintillant Hummingbird • Rufous-collared Sparrow We will start early morning tomorrow to have a look for the Resplendent Quetzal and you just need to click HERE to find out if I have any luck. 
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