Valledupar to Barichara

The hotel in Rioacha had a taxi service pick me up at the hotel at 9am for a ride to Valledupar. It was a new Toyota Camry and I sat up front. Three passengers in the back. We passed close to the Venezuelan border and stopped at a small village to buy gasoline. Cheap Venezuelan gasoline. The streets of the village were black with spilled petrol. They poured the gas into a tube through a cloth into a filter and into the car. I have never seen such filth and pollution. One match and this town was off the map. Benzene-laden children played in the streets. Finally we were on our way through the many check points where guards carry heavy assault rifles like the kids in the USA like to take to a movie or the mall. We arrived in Valledupar at 12 noon. I checked into Hostal Provincia and was met by the owners, who were very helpful in my birding pursuits. Valledupar has a music scene and the music is called Vallenato, They are famous for the accordion music. Not any accordion. Not Schmenge Brothers Yosh and Stan. This is a small accordion and they play it very well. I enjoyed it very much. Cristina and Miguel at the hostal set me up with a trip up the mountain to go birding near the Proaves Reserve in the Serrania Perijá. I took a small bus to Villa Adelaida in Manaure. It was a Sunday, which is family day in Latin America and the place was packed. Live music, food, people, people, people. I was intoduced to the owner who made sure I was happy. They gave me a room overlooking the valley and food- soup with chicken and...? It was good. I met the police chief who promised my security. They arranged for a mototaxi to pick me up at 5:30 am and take me up the mountain. I would walk down. I needed to be at about 4,000 ft for the endemic birds. I dipped on all of them, but it was still a wonderful walk down with a list of 73 species. I did see a Solitary eagle which blessed the sky. Two bat Falcons preened as I observed them. By noon I was back in Valledupar and had planned a visit to Ecolodge Los Besotes. I had met the owner/biologist and he had invited me but seemed a little put-off when I called so I decided to skip an overnight there. I arranged a 3:30 am pick-up for a ride to Mompox. Toyota Hilux truck and me in the back seat. We were in Mompox by 8 am. I checked into La Casa Amarilla, suggested by my friend Lorraine Caputo (as was Provincial), and was given a very nice, large room. It is owned by a friend of Lorraine's who is an UK expat within a radio show from Bogota. He sent me a message to welcome me, which was very gracious.  Mompox is a colonial village along the Magdalena river. A local girl married a Marquis from Spain way back when. Very nice village. Hot. 93 when the sun shines, which it didn't much while I was there. At dusk the bats would come out and birds would fly down river.  I sat and watched, in awe, as this went on. Very large bats swarmed the lights after 8 pm. Wow.  Lightening storms light up the sky in the distance each evening. I went on a boat ride to the Cienagas (swamp) with a pair of UK gals who were fun to be with. I pointed out all the birds we saw, which they enjoyed. To the locals, any large bird is an aguila (eagle). We saw three species of hawks. There was a Jazz Fest planned starting Thursday. With every room in town booked they were able to slide me in for an extra night so I could see the opening. They moved me into a larger room! I recommend coming to Mompox for the October Festival. And do stay at Casa Amarilla. Although I had only one night of music, it was enough for me. I was in bed by 10pm. I was up at 5 am to check out and catch a bus to Bucaramanga. A 8 hour adventure down very bad roads. I finnally checked into a very nice hotel, BGA Hotel, around 4. Hotels here aren't designed very well. Nor were they in Ecuador or Perú. Where they place a light switch makes no sense at all. They are placed where the electrician (maybe) finds it easier to put, not where it should be. In BGA Hotel they were under the tables, which were mounted to the walls. The first thing I do when I check in somewhere in locate the switches. Not easy sometimes. When I wake up to pee in the middle of the night I have to remember where I am and where the switches are.
Bucaramanga is a beautiful city of about 500,000. Located between mountain ranges, it is a modern city of high-rise condos. My friend Donna McCoy had given my number to a friend of hers who lives here and he called me to set up a meeting. I was tired the first day so he picked me up at 1pm the next day and took me to Punta Diamante, which is a exclusive resort, hotel, country club, on top of a plateau. Sergio Torres has English language schools here and does very well. I bought him lunch at a Peruvian restaurant and he introduced me to a lady who runs the Spa.  He knew everyone here, including the hotel owner, and he introduced me to so many people. We had a fantastic afternoon. People offered me a place to stay and insisted I call when on my travels. I intend to do so. We ended the evening at a Salsa Bar. I had so much fun. I am very grateful to Sergio and his friends. I needed to move on though and San Gil was next. A 4 hour bus trip as the roads were thick with travelers for the holiday weekend. We passed through height mountain passes and I checked in to look for light switches around 4 pm. A very cheap hostal on the river, but comfie. San Gil is not for me. Next day I took a taxi to Barichara. Barichara is said to be Colombia's most beautiful village. I agree. I checked into ArtePolis Hostal and found a little bit of haven. My room is large with an outside bathroom and a view of the hills. I like it here and will stay for possibly a week. This morning I took a 6 hour birding hike along the Camino Real to Guane. I added a few endemic birds. I adore this village. Beautiful scenery. Two kittens to sleep with. It is quiet here and has lots of birds. People have texture in Colombia. Ecuador as well. Texture is important in a person. Think about it.
I have decided to try to get the Scarlet ibis and the Jabiru stork in the Llanos region. The duck I missed is also there. Ecolodge Juan Solito Casanare. This is where the Anacondas live. The rivers here flow to the Orinoco. And so will I. I was warned about the dangers. Hahahaha.

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Minca to Rioacha

I did not end up on the back of a moto. I hired Gabriel Utria for $150 to show me the birds at El Dorado Lodge. He and his driver picked me up at 5am and within an hour we were axle-deep in mud. The Land Cruiser handled it with ease. There were spots I was sure we were not going to be able to pass, but we did. Gabo was very professional and our first birds were a Santa Marta Mountain Tanager and White-tipped Quetzal. In a few hours I had 27 new lifers. We stopped at a small home where a lady served me the best hot chocolate I have ever had. By 2pm were were back at Hotel Minca. I ended up staying there for 10 days. I walked each morning at 6 am. Along the road an old man was sitting outside his small yellow house. The smoke from his cooking fire smelled so good. He told me to come back at 9am because his yard was filled with birds. It was. He lived such a spartan life along a beautiful stream. There was a family of Howler monkeys near his yard. I watched them for 20 minutes. That afternoon the clouds gathered. Hurricane Matthew was offshore and gave us 15 inches of rain and heavy winds. No power on the last day so I decided to head back to Santa Marta for comfort. It is only 40 minutes from Minca. The sky cleared and I took care of some banking and had a great Greek dinner after sunset along the Caribbean. In the morning I was off to the east entrance to Tayrona Nationa Park by bus. A hot bus. They dropped me at Hotel Seineken. My cabana was rustic but sensible. I walked along the river and checked out how I would enter the park in the morning. Cottontop Tamarins played in the trees. Beautiful monkies. The park opens at 8am. Shit. You have to watch a video. Really? Then a taxi bus up to the beach area. By 9 am there were no birds as it was too hot. I saw a couple new ones but dipped on the lance-tail manakin and others. There are expensive hotels inside the park but I passed on that. Not worth it. I got back to my hotel and caught a bus to Camarones. An air-conditioned bus. It was a scenic ride along the coast and in two hours I was dropped in the sweltering heat of Camarones. I called the hotel and he sent two motors to pick me up. Now I have to ride on the back of a motorcycle. Bumpy dirt roads for two miles. A very tiny town. Everyone knew I was there for the American flamingos. My corner room looked at the sea and a bay. Just a fan to keep me cool. None of the hotels along the coast had hot water. It's ok. The lady at the Santuario Remanso gave me a beer and called a local bird guide for me. Jose Luis showed up quickly. He didn't speak much English but he knew the birds in English. At 4 pm I met him down by the bay where everyone fishes for sardine-like fish. They use a crab as a bait and their remains littered the beach. There was a dark storm approaching from the mountains. I spotted the flamingos and the contrast between the pink and the black sky was stunning. There were even snowy plovers along the beach. We had a great afternoon spotting migrants. Just as we got back to the hotel from the beach the storm let loose. I have never seen so much lightening. It seemed constant. The rain poured down. The electric went out. My room was illuminated by the lightening. Jose was coming by at 5:30 am to take me to search for endemics. I took a short walk in the dark before he arrived. I am always followed by animals at that hour. In Minca I had 5 dogs follow me at one point. Here I had two puppies and a kitten tag along. I added 17 more lifers by 9 am. Ruby-topaz hummingbirds! Crested bobwhites. Fantastico! At 1pm I had a taxi come to take me Rioacha, 30 mintues away. By 2pm I was in my hotel room.
I stopped along the beach for a beer, outside in the heat. I heard screams. People yelling. Now they were running. My table and beer knocked over. A kid threw a smoking bomb down the street. I wanted to knock the hell out of him. Glad I didn't. The riot police fired back with tear-gas. FUCK. Now I know what it feels and smells like. What to do. I causally righted my table and chair and went up to the counter to order another beer. To hell with them. The kid at the counter laughed at me and told me the university was protesting because they had not been paid. I don't give a damn, give me a beer. I wiped my eyes and sat down. I had the whole place to myself.
Rioacha is a dirty coastal city. I will leave tomorrow for........I'll sleep on it.

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