Birding in Colombia January/February 2024 (1 Viewer)

[Christine Eberl]

Hi! I would like to recruit a few people to join me for a 6 day, 5 night birding tour in the Llanos region of Colombia in January or early February. I'm hoping to hire a local reputable birdtour company I'm in communication with, and we need a group of 8 people to keep the cost down. I currently have 4 interested birders including myself. It will be more a lister tour as opposed to focusing on photography. If you're interested, send me a line and I'll forward you the proposed itinerary.
My travel buddy and I may also be heading to the north to bird around Minca and I will be really keen to receive advice from anyone who knows of good places to stay as a base to bird out of (without a rental vehicle) that are comfee but not expensive and can be accessed by local bus. Let me know if you are interested in joining us for our bird tour, or if you have any info on Minca. Thanks!
Cheers Christine

 

[THE_FERN]

Hi! I would like to recruit a few people to join me for a 6 day, 5 night birding tour in the Llanos region of Colombia in January or early February. I'm hoping to hire a local reputable birdtour company I'm in communication with, and we need a group of 8 people to keep the cost down. I currently have 4 interested birders including myself. It will be more a lister tour as opposed to focusing on photography. If you're interested, send me a line and I'll forward you the proposed itinerary.
My travel buddy and I may also be heading to the north to bird around Minca and I will be really keen to receive advice from anyone who knows of good places to stay as a base to bird out of (without a rental vehicle) that are comfee but not expensive and can be accessed by local bus. Let me know if you are interested in joining us for our bird tour, or if you have any info on Minca. Thanks!
Cheers Christine

Anywhere around Minca is good. Also can follow the main road down the hill and see things: think military macaw is at lower levels. On the outskirts you can find (e.g.) Keel-billed toucan, manakins, migrants, king vulture etc. Hotel Minca for hummingbird feeders. Working up the hill you can get to the various places for the endemics. An easy way is to use moto taxis, or a guide is fairly cheap for a day/half day. Much further up you have the biological station (which might be refurbished open, now?), or the antenna station where I stayed. I think there are other places. This is where you'll find the endemic hummers, parakeet, owl, warbler etc. Guans, wrens and tapaculos are abundant. Perhaps the highest altitude habitat has recovered enough now (from c 2013 burn) that you get Santa Marta Bush-tyrant (?).

Away from Minca, the whole of the coast is easily accessible by bus. There's Tayrona National Park, but Los Flamencos area is better. You can stay at (e.g.) Camarones. Lots of good stuff within walking distance, or get moto taxis.

 

[Christine Eberl]

Anywhere around Minca is good. Also can follow the main road down the hill and see things: think military macaw is at lower levels. On the outskirts you can find (e.g.) Keel-billed toucan, manakins, migrants, king vulture etc. Hotel Minca for hummingbird feeders. Working up the hill you can get to the various places for the endemics. An easy way is to use moto taxis, or a guide is fairly cheap for a day/half day. Much further up you have the biological station (which might be refurbished open, now?), or the antenna station where I stayed. I think there are other places. This is where you'll find the endemic hummers, parakeet, owl, warbler etc. Guans, wrens and tapaculos are abundant. Perhaps the highest altitude habitat has recovered enough now (from c 2013 burn) that you get Santa Marta Bush-tyrant (?).

Away from Minca, the whole of the coast is easily accessible by bus. There's Tayrona National Park, but Los Flamencos area is better. You can stay at (e.g.) Camarones. Lots of good stuff within walking distance, or get moto taxis.

Thank-you Fern! There is just so much to see - the Llanos tour is actually off which is good as I'm struggling to fit everything else in! I did allocate a week to the coast - I hope it's enough! I had assumed I should stay as close to El Dorado as possible, but from what you're saying, it sounds like I could stay in Minca and daytrip higher up??

 

[THE_FERN]

Thank-you Fern! There is just so much to see - the Llanos tour is actually off which is good as I'm struggling to fit everything else in! I did allocate a week to the coast - I hope it's enough! I had assumed I should stay as close to El Dorado as possible, but from what you're saying, it sounds like I could stay in Minca and daytrip higher up??

It very much depends on your taste, how much cash you have to spend, your experience level etc etc. The Proaves Lodge is meant to be very nice, a good place to chill with huge numbers of hummers at least. On the other hand, it's very expensive, some feel it's a bit like a zoo and it's perhaps now not as good as it was (e.g. lacks the wood quail I think). There are some species which are only higher up like the Bush-tyrant, parakeet, warbler etc. so you have to make some trips either way. It's convenient to have a base further up the mountain for these but it's up to you if that's El Dorado. I expect they will organise transport there but it probably will cost a king's ransom.

The birds in Minca are different but there are still many endemics, and in the hotel (for example) there are humming bird feeders. Further down the mountain the birds are different again with (e.g.) manakins, macaws. So really depends how much time, money, expertise and obsession you have.

 

[JLS]

I stayed at both Minca and El Dorado earlier this year. I found both the birding and staying at El Dorado to be very enjoyable. As The_Fern said, it's probably a matter of taste whether to stay at El Dorado, but I would factor in the time it takes to get up there from Minca (it takes much longer than it looks on the map, due to the road condition, I don't remember exactly but I think around an hour) and perhaps the transport cost (if you plan multiple day trips up, that would be a factor for me). If you are fine with moto-taxis the cost of getting up is not so bad, whereas by car it is (to my taste) quite expensive as it is for specially prepared 4WD only.

 

[simmojunior]

I recommend staying at El Dorado. It's not like "Disneyland" or a zoo but a low key, pleasant lodge that is not particularly expensive. Beautiful setting too. Mountain House would be a cheaper alternative option.

As others have said, some species are only on the road up to El Dorado and some species are only at the top of the mountain. You can arrange transport through Sylvana Travel.

By Minca, there is good birding but few specialities. At El Dorado, there are not big flocks but loads of specialities so it depends what you are after.

 

[halftwo]

Hi Christine,

I'd be interested in joining others birding in Colombia.
What are your plans, now?

Richard

 

[Christine Eberl]

Hi Christine,

I'd be interested in joining others birding in Colombia.
What are your plans, now?

Richard

Hi Richard, well I'm back to travelling solo (I have one or two more acquaintances I'm going to invite), and would be happy to have someone to bird with for part, or all of the trip if it's working out well. When do you plan to be there? I've pretty well finished my bookings for the interior - south of Medellin, west of Bogota, Jan 8-22, but there are still vacancies in all the lodges I'm staying at. Next I'm going to book lodges for birding along the north coast - Tayrona and the flamingo lagoon - and around Minca and El Dorado to keep me busy till I fly home on the 4th of February. I won't be renting a car, but am taking a few flights and public transportation if its available. I'm also hiring guides where I can for at least one day at each lodge.
Just a note: If you want to get to Rio Claro, you will have to get there before Jan 12 or after March 20 as someone booked the place solid last week between those dates - and no day passes in that time. Darn. I wanted to see the oilbirds!
All the Best - Christine

 

[halftwo]

Hi, Christine,

I wasn't planning anything before I saw your post - just an idea to escape the winter here! But I'm in Ghana for most of December, so I'm looking for somewhere in Feb/Mar.
I see you'll be home by early Feb, now. I'm looking at later than that, unfortunately.

Richard

 

[AveryBartels]

Hi Richard, well I'm back to travelling solo (I have one or two more acquaintances I'm going to invite), and would be happy to have someone to bird with for part, or all of the trip if it's working out well. When do you plan to be there? I've pretty well finished my bookings for the interior - south of Medellin, west of Bogota, Jan 8-22, but there are still vacancies in all the lodges I'm staying at. Next I'm going to book lodges for birding along the north coast - Tayrona and the flamingo lagoon - and around Minca and El Dorado to keep me busy till I fly home on the 4th of February. I won't be renting a car, but am taking a few flights and public transportation if its available. I'm also hiring guides where I can for at least one day at each lodge.
Just a note: If you want to get to Rio Claro, you will have to get there before Jan 12 or after March 20 as someone booked the place solid last week between those dates - and no day passes in that time. Darn. I wanted to see the oilbirds!
All the Best - Christine

Hi Christine,

If you're keen to see the Oilbirds and still have room in your itinerary for time around Rio Claro you can stay at the Hotel Colores, not far from there and visit the Cueva del Condor site. This is on private land, adn there'll be a small entrance fee, and the "trail" such as it is just follows a stream about 400-500m until it goes into a cave which is where the Oilbirds roost. A head lamp is needed to see them and depending on water levels you might need/want to get your feet a bit wet depending on the desired views. Thre are other good birds here, notably it is perhaps the best spot for Antioquia Bristle-tyrant (in the section of forest opposite the small clearing you will see across the river). Gray-cheeked Nunlet as well.

Access is here, where it says "Hotel el Condor", which is new since my last visit there (a few years ago) and you might just stay there. 5°55'17.0"N 74°50'09.9"W

The trail is as marked on the attached image.

 

[Christine Eberl]

Hi Christine,

If you're keen to see the Oilbirds and still have room in your itinerary for time around Rio Claro you can stay at the Hotel Colores, not far from there and visit the Cueva del Condor site. This is on private land, adn there'll be a small entrance fee, and the "trail" such as it is just follows a stream about 400-500m until it goes into a cave which is where the Oilbirds roost. A head lamp is needed to see them and depending on water levels you might need/want to get your feet a bit wet depending on the desired views. Thre are other good birds here, notably it is perhaps the best spot for Antioquia Bristle-tyrant (in the section of forest opposite the small clearing you will see across the river). Gray-cheeked Nunlet as well.

Access is here, where it says "Hotel el Condor", which is new since my last visit there (a few years ago) and you might just stay there. 5°55'17.0"N 74°50'09.9"W

The trail is as marked on the attached image.View attachment 1539952

Ooh this is a really nice tip! I will keep this information for future reference. As it is, because the park is closed to the public the entire time could have been in the area, I went ahead and booked to go to the north coast immediately on leaving Jardin. If i get through my Jardin birding early, i could head to this area for a day, but otherwise I've planned to be in and out of medellin in one day. Next trip!
Cheers C.

 

[Christine Eberl]

Ooh this is a really nice tip! I will keep this information for future reference. As it is, because the park is closed to the public the entire time could have been in the area, I went ahead and booked to go to the north coast immediately on leaving Jardin. If i get through my Jardin birding early, i could head to this area for a day, but otherwise I've planned to be in and out of medellin in one day. Next trip!
Cheers C.

I've just seen that there is a Cueva de los Guacharos near Jardin - a long difficult hike, but also without a hotspot on ebird. Do you know about this and whether the hike there will net an oilbird sighting or two? thanks! Cheers Chrisitne

 

[AveryBartels]

I've just seen that there is a Cueva de los Guacharos near Jardin - a long difficult hike, but also without a hotspot on ebird. Do you know about this and whether the hike there will net an oilbird sighting or two? thanks! Cheers Chrisitne

Hi Christine, actually this is the first I have heard about there being an Oilbird cave near Jardin. I note that there is an ebird checklist from the site by Diego Guerrero of the local birding company "Colombia Birdhouse". You could try getting in touch with them and maybe they can help you arrange a visit there.

Colombia Birdhouse • Birdwatching tours in Colombia

Come with us to discover Colombia in our tailor made birdwatching tours, this country with almost 2,000 species of birds will amaze you

www.colombiabirdhouse.com

 

[Christine Eberl]

Hi Christine, actually this is the first I have heard about there being an Oilbird cave near Jardin. I note that there is an ebird checklist from the site by Diego Guerrero of the local birding company "Colombia Birdhouse". You could try getting in touch with them and maybe they can help you arrange a visit there.

Colombia Birdhouse • Birdwatching tours in Colombia

Come with us to discover Colombia in our tailor made birdwatching tours, this country with almost 2,000 species of birds will amaze you

www.colombiabirdhouse.com

Thank you very much Avery - You've been an immense help to me Cheers Christine