Back to Jardin

The girl at the ticket counter sold me a ticket to return to Jardin and told me the bus was around the corner. What she did not tell me was that the 'corner' was at a different terminal, 10 miles away. I would not have been at this terminal if the hotel clerk had not told me to come here. This is very typical for Colombia. Do your own homework and trust nothing anyone says. As I was waiting for the bus that was NOT going to Jardin, I met three girls also going to Jardin. They had been working in the Peace Corps in Guatemala. After raising a fuss, which I am very good at, We were given 15,000 COP to take a taxi to the correct terminal. It was a 4 hour wait for the bus and we got to know each other. Very nice, intelligent ladies in their twenties. We arrived in Jardin late in the afternoon. I went to my hotel and collected my bags. I met up with the girls a few times for drinks. Guillermo and Alejandro also came bHey. The girls moved on to Salento and I stuck around Jardin for Christmas. In Ecuador and Peru there were frequent parades for children during the holiday. Not so in Colombia. A few lights strung up and that is about all they do to celebrate. Nothing for kids. Very dissapointing. Jardin is just a place for Colombians to drink small amounts of coffee from china cups and listen to terrible music before they get drunk. The same music over, and over. The horses became an annoyance. Alejandro and Guillermo's mother and brother were coming from Venezuela. At first I thought they were fleeing the country but they were just coming for a visit. The border is opened and closed at Maduro's whim.
Alejandro and I took many birding walks together. He has become a very good friend. I wish it could have been a life-long friendship.
I added a eBird Hotspot for Jardin. It was up to 190 species last I looked. He and I also took a trip to Ciudad Bolivar to go to Las Tangaras Reserve. I got us rooms at the better hotels and it was very enjoyable. We got rained out at the reserve but still managed some good species. Alejandro can hear faint calls and identify the bird. Very smart and a pleasure to be with. His visa is set to expire soon and I am not sure what he is going to do. He is an excellent bird guide and I mentioned that he might enjoy Ecuador and maybe I could help him find work and accomodation. We'll see what he decides. A friend from Ecuador (Canada) and her friend came to visit Jardin. A catastrophe. These two came without pin numbers for ATM cards and then left their money and cards behind when they left Jardin. They don't speak Spanish though they have been living in Ecuador for a long time. Just plain stupid and I pushed them away from me. I don't have much time left and I refuse to let others drag me down.
I said my good bye's to my buddies and I am now in Guatape. Another little vacation spot for Colombians. It sucks. Very loud music and drunks. Very inconsiderate people. Pablo's hacienda Napoli is near by but I have no desire to visit. I watched Narcos and that was enough.A few days here and I will go to Rio Claro where ablack oropendula was recently seen. I will look for beautiful woodpecker and white-mantled barbet. I have not given up on white-faced whistling ducks yet. I might re-trace my path and revisit the places I have enjoyed. Mompos, Bucaramanga, Minca. Go after some of the birds I have missed. Alejandro has helped me add more than twenty new species, including black-billed mountain toucan. That wraps up all the toucans for me- I have seen them all. Now I have to make my way back to Cartegena for my January 26th flight home. When I left Ecuador the first time I was very sad to go. When I left the second time it was even harder. I didn't want to leave Peru either. I am ready to return home from Colombia.

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Jardin

I am in Medellin right now having just extended my visa until mid-March. It is a quick 3-hour jaunt to Medellin from Jardin. They stamped my passport in just a little more than an hour. There were only about 10 people in the Migracion office and most, it seemed, were Venezuelan. The idiot bus-driver Maduro was on TV and all were watching. I feel very sad for them. When the US goes to war with China, as we surely will with Trump Tweets, we could end up like.....well..
 I have added 153 new species since I arrived in Colombia. I have missed too many that should have been checked off. Here in Jardin I can be birding within a 5 minute walk and there are trails in every direction. I still am looking for the black-billed mountain toucan, which lives in the mountains around me. I have been very fortunate to have met Guillermo and Alejandro Nagy, brothers from Venezuela who have started a tour company here-Aramacao Tours. Alejandro is the birder and has an excellent ear for far-off bird calls. Guillermo has a local wife, Patricia, and a beautiful, happy little girl, Eva Luna. They have become very good friends. Alejandro takes me birding around the area and I enjoy his company. There is a little black dog that follows us and I named her Blackie. She shows up everywhere. I take Alejandro to lunch or dinner and we sit at the cafe in the evening and chat about birds with a few beers and maybe an aguardiente, or two. His English is excellent. It is so nice to have a friend here who likes what I like. Some mornings we take off around 6 am and walk the mountain roads. I lent him the extra pair of Minox binoculars I brought with me. He used them everyday. I know they are better than the pair he has so I gave him an early Christmas present. I told him to keep them forever and he gave me a hug. No one in my family has bird interests so I know they will always be put to good use. He now has a damn good pair of binocs!
We sit and watch the Jardin elite come in their fine boots and leather. Then the stable boy brings their horses. They ride tall in the saddle doing the Paso Doble. Alejandro calls them the Jardin Kardashians. Long blond silky hair, perfect makeup, Colombian money. It's fun to watch them. Unfortunately Jardin has no good restaurants. I am eating great food here in Medellin. Nothing is as good as in the USA, but a few people here do enjoy cooking. I had a rack of ribs for the first time last night. Usually they are cut short and are gristley.
The girls at my hotel in Jardin treat me very well. I stayed 5 days at another place but they never cleaned my room so I returned to Hotel Dorado. They do my laundry and give me good advise. A friend from Ecuador is visiting Colombia and we will meet somewhere around Medellin in a week, or so. I still think about going to Ecuador and just might pop down. The Guayacanes trees are starting to bloom and the ones here have been covered in hummingbirds. Ecuador has an area that turns yellow with the blossoms. Beautuful trees. Also known as Tabebuia. But, for now, I am glad I have found Jardin and the good brothers Nagy. There are areas north where I will go birding but I am not in a hurry. There is a large lake area near Medellin called Guatape which is probably my next stop. I am still going strong. Ama La Vida.

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Noche de los Caballos Bailando

The owner of La Cabaña quickly became a new friend. I left Ibague and headed for Salento and a small milk farm just on the outskirts of the village. Hector and his wife have a nice spread along the Quindio river. He gave me a nice room in the second house along the river. Very comfortable for $25 a night, with breakfast. He told me there were torrent ducks on the river. In the morning I found them. Such fascinating and beautiful ducks. Hector was very pleased. I taught him how to use eBird and I put his hotel as a hotspot on the eBird map. There was a German family staying there as well and one night we all went down to the bar to watch a futbol match, which Colombia lost. Hector ordered a bottle of aguardiente. We drank it all. The next morning I nearly fell out of bed but still was in shape for Hector to drop me off at the Corcora Valley trail to the hummingbird house. It was a 6 hour round-trip hike. I was in awe of myself for having made it. I am beginning to get winded easily, especially at high altitude. But I carry on. Hector took me to the bus for my trip to Manizales, where he has a house. I checked into a very nice one bedroom apartment for two nights near the center of the best neighborhood. Nice restaurants with bad food but great drinks. I made arrangements to go to Rio Blanco, which is one of the most popular birding locations in Colombia. I was told I had to have a 'permit'. A car would pick me up at 6 am. It is only a 25 minute drive from town. I arrived at 6:20 am and met Ben King who owns his own famous bird tour company for Asia. Our guide was slow to get moving and did not speak English so I translated for Ben. Carlos carried a bucket of worms to feed the four species of antpitta present. It began to rain. It was wet and cold. I did add 5 new species but it was a washout. Carlos didn't know his birds that well. Ben was a little irritated too. They just don't understand tourism here. It was a pain in the ass to visit Rio Blanco and they charged me way too much for transport and guide. Ben told me about Cerro Montezuma and said I should visit there. The next day I went to Marsella and stayed at a finca up the the hills. There were nice trails to bird. I inquired about getting to Montezuma and soon received an email saying they were booked until December. Shit. Back to Manizales and a nice cheap hostal near the stadium. Hector was in town so we met for drinks. I inquired how to get to Jardin and received as many different answers. It would have been a 3 hour trip but became 7 hours because I had to change buses three times.

Jardin is at almost 6,000ft and has a great climate. I think this is my favorite pueblo so far. I feel safe and the people are very warm and welcoming. I hired a 3-wheel moto to take me up the the yellow-eared parrot reserve but we soon ran into a landslide which blocked passage. Only two-wheel motos could go over the mud. I told the driver to come back in 4 hours and i went walking up the road. I did see some of the parrots and some great birds but I was not able to get to the higher elevation where the birds I wanted fly about. I intend to stay here for a week so maybe they will fix the road soon. There are Colombian cowboys here who are very proud of their horses. They ride in a prance where the horses hooves hit the ground 40 times for every ten feet forward. Paso Doble? They are very fine horses. Not so much the cowboys. Each night around 6 pm they come to ride around the plaza. I love watching and listening to them. They tie the horses to the bar tables. I actually saw a horse tied through the window of a bar in Marsella. Reminded me of Lee Marvin and his horse in Cat Ballou. I rarely meet people who speak English here so when a young 'Merican couple walked by I invited then to sit. After a few beers I saw and older lady pushing a stroller our direction. I said to the the dummies " here comes that lady selling babies again". They got quiet. When I saw the baby had blond hair I exclaimed that she was pushing blond ones tonight. "Really? That's terrible. Someone should tell the police."

I have to make a decision within the next few days. My flight home is on December 8th. I don't want to come back to the land of the dummies but I know my cancer is progressing quickly. If I come home I would like to stay in Tallahassee or Apalachicola. If anyone has something I could rent for a couple months. I might change my ticket to a date in late January. I have one week to make up my mind and extend my Visa another 90 days. What to do......

Bogotá and Ibagué

I very much enjoyed my stay in Villa de Leyva at the Hostal Renacer. Nearly all those staying there were from Europe or Argentina. One Canadian. I, alone, from U.S.A. I left my bags there and went on a two night visit to Rogitama. This is a plot of land which a doctor bought in 1982 and replanted with natural flora. After 20 years the birds started to return, and then the ocelots and other mammals. It was rustic and inexpensive at $24, which included breafast, lunch and dinner. DR. Robert Chavarro and his nursing-professor wife were very kind. I showed him on eBird, using Hotspot Maps, how I discovered where Rogitama is located. He called me yesterday to thank me, again. It rained a lot while I was there but I saw the black Inca hummingbird, which was my primary target. At dinner a plate of funny-looking chicken was placed in front of me. As I ate it I was told it was rabbit-delicious. I received a 2-hour personal tour of the property and learned a lot from him.

The next morning I took the buseta ( small van) back to Villa de Leyva (one hour) and was given a larger room at Renacer. A balcony door I could keep open all night. Birds singing. Rose-breasted grosbeaks and summer tanagers everywheere. I watched CNÑ for an hour and drifted off to sleep in the queen-sized bed. I awoke at 5 am and shuttered to think what had happend overnight. I went to breakfast and the Europeans frowned at me. It was true. Enough said. That night I went to a bar and was constantly asked how it happened. The next morning was rainy. A good day to travel. After 5 hours on a 3 hour bus trip, I was in Bogota. The Argentinians had told me Explora Hostal was a good place to stay so I had made a reservation there. It was in the Candelaria part of the old city. More Europeans giving me a surprised look. I went to the Gold Museum at 3 pm and was in complete awe. More gold than Joan Rivers had ever seen. The true El Dorado. All pre-conquest and was never looted by the Spaniards. Incredible craftmanship. That called for a drink, so I curtailed my history lesson for a bit of fermented libation. I found a great old house with three fireplaces on three floors of art and books. 'How about a bit of red wine?' I asked. Coming right up sir. Cozy Glass roof with the moon looking down. The smell of the fire took me back in time to my home in Indiana. Cue Mussorsky 'Dawn on the Moskva River'. Cold and damp. I zipped down the stairs out onto the street and found another set of stairs going down. An elegant bar with a stage for music. Campari on the shelf. After four I headed back to my hostal but was diverted one more time to Bogota Beer Company. A very drunk young man wanted to know all about me. There are a lot of drunks in Colombia. Something I rarely saw in Ecuador or Peru. We had a nice chat. I picked up some fried chicken and went to my room.

In the morning the sun shone clearly. I went to an ATM and Juan Valdez for coffee and cinnamon rolls.  I asked the hostal to call a taxi and they had their own comfortable transport in a Great Wall SUV. I went to the bus station and after another 3 hour bus trip I arrived in Ibague, 5 hours later. Twenty hours in Bogota was enough. Ibague is at 4,200 ft and a nice climate. I wanted a nice hotel so I told the Taxi driver to take me to the best downtown hotel. At $34 a night it is very comfie. I posted a request on a Facebook Colombia Birding page and was contacted by several folks wanting to help with my birding pursuits. There is a botanical garden 8 minutes away from my hotel and I was told it was dangerous to visit and to be careful. Colombia is not tourist-friendly. It is a pain in the ass to travel on busses and then I have to be vigilant everywhere I go. Were I to live a full life, I would not return to Colombia. Anyway, A young student offered to accompany me birding to the gardens this morning. We went at 7 am. Oh, they don't open until 8 am. There were many birds, none new for me. He new little about birds. I would have done better without him. We called the taxi and came back to my hotel where I taught him about eBird, also. This evening I went to the plaza where the big church is and watched a procession of well-robed catholics walk into the church. Must have been the Bishop- cue Monty Python. I had 4 beers as they sang. I took out my camera to take a picture of a coffee-making jeep and as I lifted my shirt to put my camera in my pocket a young man saw my scar. "Ohh, what is that from?" Just a touch of cancer, I said. "That ugly scar was cancer?" That ugly scar cost more that $100,000 dollars, I told him. And it is much more interesting and special than your cheap tatoo's. His face went blank. More fried chicken. No Campari to be found. I am in my room contemplating my next pueblo. Armenia, named in honor of the folks the bastard Turks slaughtered. I am heading into the Nevada del Ruiz area where earthquake and lahars have killed many thousands in the last, oh, 25 years. Although I am a true misanthrope, I cry when people suffer. All people, of all races. I wish the Bishop understood why life in not fair. I do. Ama la Vida y'all.

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The Llanos

I took the 8 am bus from Barichara to Sogamoso. By 1 pm I was in my room at the Sogamoso Real Hotel. They are building high-rise condos in Tunja in the middle of cow pastures. 20-story modern buildings in the middle of a field with cows looking up. Very strange looking. Condos are popular in Colombia. Sogamoso is at 8,300 ft and I had a slight headache. My sinus troubles are back, but not as bad as last May, so I went to the drugstore for pills. I didn't care for my hotel in the middle of town so I changed to Finca San Pedro, about one mile out. It's more of a hostal for backpackers but I had a nice room. I avoided the kids, they just weren't very interesting. Mostly from U.K. with a few Swiss thrown in. At 5 am i caught the first bus up to the Lago de Tota. This is Colombia's highest and largest lake at 10,000 ft. The sky had cleared for me and it was a beautiful morning. There are about 10 endemic birds which can be found around the lake. The Apolinar's wren lives only in the reed beds of a few lakes in this area. The spot-flanked gallinule is also found here. I stopped at a hotel along the lake and asked if I could wander the grounds. They were happy to have me visit. Within an hour I had all the birds I was looking for. I strolled down the road to another, more expensive, hotel and walked along their dock. They were very kind and offered me breakfast. I walked back out on the road and climbed on a small bus going to Aquitania. The entire area is very rural with farmland. People were busy harvesting onions from the fields. Beautiful farms and small houses. In town I had breakfast for $3 and strolled around. The bus back to my hotel took 35 minutes. I was tempted to move up to one of the hotels but I am growing tired of unpacking and packing. I walked around town and dodged traffic. Nearly two years in Ecuador and I never saw any accidents happen. One month in Colombia and I have seen 3 people hit on motorcycles and one nearly died. Just today we passed 2 accidents. People here are shitty drivers. Oh well. In the meantime Juan at San Pedro had contacted Nelson Barragan at Juan Solito and told them I would be coming. First I had to take a bus to Yopal, which was  a 4 hour trip. A bridge crossing one of th many rivers had collapsed 2 months before. It became a 8 hour trip. Hot and sweaty. I was upset. Traveling in Colombia is not easy. No one knows where or how to travel. If they say it is 3 hours I count on 6 hours. Nothing seems to be on time. The next day I have to start with a van ride to Paz de Ariporo and then a noon bus to ..???  The noon bus leaves at 1 pm. Packed with people, chickens and supplies. The pavement ends and the road turns to mud and ruts. The scenery is fantastic and I birdwatch the whole way. I see storks, ducks, herons. At 7 pm, in the dark, the bus drops me along the side of the road where a girl on a motorcycle awaits. Thank god I am only carrying a small backpack and my bag is at the hotel. Did I say it was dark? A new moon? It had rained a lot the previous few days so all was mud. I climbed on the back of the moto cursing. I hate surprises. She got lost. We had to part 3 herds of Brahma. After 30 minutes we arrived. I was shown to my room- a nice corner room with windows on three sides. I informed them I do not eat fish and they seemed perplexed. I asked for 3 beers and sat down. The owners wife came to greet me and calmed my spirit. The stars were incredible. A owl hooted from the woods. I was taken to the dining hall a short pass through the field. The owner, Nelson introduced himself and his father. They had a harp and a guitar and played soothing music. They have recorded and their music is on the website for Juan Solito. Plates of food were delivered and I met some folks from Bogota who would be leaving in the morning. Chicken, beef, fruit, rice, bread and juice. The electric dimmed but the band kept playing. I asked for a bird guide at 5 am and was told Julio would take me. I took a cold shower and crashed to the sound of frogs, capybara, cattle and nightjars. The horrible trip was worth it.
Julio didn't know his birds as well as he claimed, but it was okay, because I did. There are 5 species of Ibis here. Parrots everywhere and very noisy at 6 am. We strolled the fields and saw whistling herons and red-bellied macaws, masked cardinals. Troupial! Then a giant anteater crossed the field!  Everything David Attenborough said there would be! I was amazed. We returned for a hearty breaksfast and I walked the fields alone. At 3 pm we crossed the river and took a truck to go see the scarlet ibis fly in at dusk. It took two hours, not one. We stopped at a lagoon where capybaras swam. Caiman love baby capybaras. There were birds everywhere in the savanna. We came to a magnificent hacienda in the middle of a field surrounded by flowers and trees. Nelson's mothers house. She greeted me with cheese and lemonade and a sweet panela candy. A very elegant woman. They own as far as the eye can see and more. 16,000 hectares is almost 40,000 acres. All owned by the family. The scarlet ibis came in at dusk and the trees were filled with roosting herons and ibis's. Now for the ride back, in the dark. I nearly fell into the river getting into the canoe/boat. I wouldn't have minded. The others had left so I was the only guest and they treated me like family. In the moring I went off on my own and birded the whole day. I sat and watched holwer monkeys for an hour. At lunch, Nelson told me he had to go to Yopal on Wednesday and would take me back with him. We got on the road at 8 am. He had a call and started crying when they told him his daughter had a head injury in Bogota. We stopped for lunch and chatted. She would be okay. He took me to my hotel and told me I had a new friend in Colombia. I left Yopal this morning and I am back in Sogamosos. I added 29 new species of birds and saw 149. I dipped on the whistling duck but got Orinoco goose! I am almost at 1,500 birds. I have seen one-third of all species in South America. Next is Villa de Leyva.

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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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