The Rainmaker Tour
May 11th, 2014
On our last day in Costa Rica we went on a tour of Rainmaker, a privately-owned rainforest, organized by our resort and led by Roger. One of my happy early discoveries at Pueblo Real was that two of the men who worked the front desk, Roger and Oscar, were passionate birders. They were professionals, in fact, who led tours and only worked the desk as a side job. Both were very friendly, spoke excellent English, and were ever willing to share their advice and expertise. Oscar even took us birding for free a few times.
Rainmaker was the most tropical experience I had on this vacation. It was all you imagine when you hear the word "rainforest": giant trees, tarzan vines, sweeping vistas. Alas, I decided early on that it would not be a camera day, not with wavy suspension bridges and mandated walking sticks. Mike did decide to use his camera and got a bunch of scenery shots, of which I have a few favorites. As usual, click on any of these for a higher res version.
Photo by Michael Britton
Our fearless leader :-)
Photo by Michael Britton
Photo by Michael Britton
Photo by Michael Britton
As for me, I took photos of just one subject. I'll save those for my next post.
Late morning and it was time for a swim in the pool beneath the waterfall. Except...the birds were calling me. All morning I'd longed to see more of them, but the noise and activity of the two children in the group kept them at bay. So when Roger offered to take me around birding while the rest of the group swam, the waterfall, pristine and inviting though it was, had to be passed up. "Unless you'd like to swim," I said.
Roger replied, and I quote, "pff."
So we went around a bit, not getting too far from the group, and were rewarded with excellent views of a Buff-Rumped Warbler hopping from rock to rock in the stream below the falls. Buff-Rumpeds are "resident" warblers in Costa Rica: they actually live out their lives in the tropics instead of flying to North America to breed. They're always found near flowing water, with a loud, ringing song that can be heard over the roar of a waterfall. I found their habits very similar to those of our own Louisiana Waterthrush (a rare warbler in this area, but it's been known to nest at Lauriault Falls.) Waterthrushes are some of my favorite birds, and I loved Buff-Rumped Warblers as well.
The "good bird" of the day was a Stub-Tailed Spadebill. I am Roger's backup for his claim of having seen one (having seen it also, and pegged it as such independently), since it was believed to have been extirpated from the region!
May 11th, 2014
On our last day in Costa Rica we went on a tour of Rainmaker, a privately-owned rainforest, organized by our resort and led by Roger. One of my happy early discoveries at Pueblo Real was that two of the men who worked the front desk, Roger and Oscar, were passionate birders. They were professionals, in fact, who led tours and only worked the desk as a side job. Both were very friendly, spoke excellent English, and were ever willing to share their advice and expertise. Oscar even took us birding for free a few times.
Rainmaker was the most tropical experience I had on this vacation. It was all you imagine when you hear the word "rainforest": giant trees, tarzan vines, sweeping vistas. Alas, I decided early on that it would not be a camera day, not with wavy suspension bridges and mandated walking sticks. Mike did decide to use his camera and got a bunch of scenery shots, of which I have a few favorites. As usual, click on any of these for a higher res version.
Photo by Michael Britton
Our fearless leader :-)
Photo by Michael Britton
Photo by Michael Britton
Photo by Michael Britton
As for me, I took photos of just one subject. I'll save those for my next post.
Late morning and it was time for a swim in the pool beneath the waterfall. Except...the birds were calling me. All morning I'd longed to see more of them, but the noise and activity of the two children in the group kept them at bay. So when Roger offered to take me around birding while the rest of the group swam, the waterfall, pristine and inviting though it was, had to be passed up. "Unless you'd like to swim," I said.
Roger replied, and I quote, "pff."
So we went around a bit, not getting too far from the group, and were rewarded with excellent views of a Buff-Rumped Warbler hopping from rock to rock in the stream below the falls. Buff-Rumpeds are "resident" warblers in Costa Rica: they actually live out their lives in the tropics instead of flying to North America to breed. They're always found near flowing water, with a loud, ringing song that can be heard over the roar of a waterfall. I found their habits very similar to those of our own Louisiana Waterthrush (a rare warbler in this area, but it's been known to nest at Lauriault Falls.) Waterthrushes are some of my favorite birds, and I loved Buff-Rumped Warblers as well.
The "good bird" of the day was a Stub-Tailed Spadebill. I am Roger's backup for his claim of having seen one (having seen it also, and pegged it as such independently), since it was believed to have been extirpated from the region!
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Mike
May 12th, 2014 at 7:40 am
I guess I should hold my "nice pictures!" comments for your other posts, eh?
Good memories, though!
And the waterfall pool was the most refreshing swimming I got while we were there.