Ecuador 2023 - The Journey to Sachatamia Lodge: Day 3 - Jan. 21st, 2023

We met for breakfast in the dining room of Hacienda Jimenita at 7am to grab tea, coffee and some freshly made eggs, bacon, and whatever else the kitchen happened to have on hand. The mugs sported a variety of nature-themed designs and the self-serve coffee/tea/toast/juice table had a plethora of fresh herbs and spices to add to your drink of choice. 

Freshly squeezed orange juice

My cup!

All the fresh herbs and spices you want!

Our guide appeared in the dining room at 7:30am sharp and after much laughter and jokes we all managed to introduce ourselves. Let's just say that we quickly discovered that our guide had excellent hearing and not a single whisper escaped him!

As we were gathering ourselves to embark on the journey to our next lodge, the owner of Hacienda Jimenita invited us into the courtyard to see the nestling Sparkling Violetear! The chick was covered in pinfeathers and there was an umbrella propped up above the nest to protect it from beating sun and heavy rains. 

Hummingbird Nest Protection

Sparkling Violetear Chick

We finally piled into the bus and met our wonderful driver! Leaving Hacienda Jimenita behind, we embarked on the journey to Sachatamia Lodge. Driving through Quito isn't for the faint of heart or the nervous driver so we were happy not to have to deal with that part of the trip ourselves. Bicycling is a very popular activity in Quito, but definitely one of the more dangerous activities. Turn singles are never used (except by trucks that are letting you know it is safe to pass), and road lanes are merely a suggestion as are stop signs and traffic lights. Motorbikes are also a popular way to get around, with many people not wearing helmets. We even saw babies (under 1 year old) and very young children being carried on motorbikes either on the mother's back in a cloth wrap or seated between two adults. The air pollution in Quito is awful since there are no regulations on exhaust output and diesel fueled vehicles are popular. 

Only a small portion of the bicycles we encountered

The narrow road leaving Hacienda Jimenita

  

 

 

 

In the background you can see Cotopaxi: an active stratovolcano

Driving through Quito

Our first stop was the pond by the airport. Although there is a shoulder here, it is not advised to stop for long as it is dangerous and birders are apparently not looked kindly on at this spot. We picked up a few lifers such as Yellow-billed Pintail, Andean Gull, White-cheeked Pintail, and Slate-colored Coot. We also had a flock of what we were certain were Red Phalarope, but at this time the observation has not yet been accepted into eBird. This location definitely needs a very good scope and lots of patience as the birds are often in the back side of the pond and tough to see. 

We were back on the road again, and I was very excited to pass Mitad del Mundo! This is a monument to the Equator, and although we didn't stop, I was able to get a photo of it from the van. My first crossing into the Southern Hemisphere!

Mitad del Mundo!

Once we were out of the city and urban areas, we stopped at a gas station to empty our bladders. Wow! That was a bit of a culture shock! The restrooms themselves had no doors on them...not even a divider wall! At least the women's restroom had stalls with doors. Toilet paper was not provided, but if you had a nickel you could get some from a vending machine right outside the restrooms. At least you got quite a few squares for that nickel. As we piled back into the van, I made a mental note to dig the "travel" tp I had brought out of the bottom of my luggage and put it in a more accessible spot. 

The toilet paper vending machine

Our first birding stop of the day was at Mirador Guaycapi cafe. The back deck of this place has many hummingbird feeders and fruit feeders that bring in the birds! The inside of the store sells coffee, sodas, snacks, chocolate and many other items for hungry birders. We spent quite a bit of time on the deck along with many other locals and tourists who were there to enjoy the wildlife. This is where I got my lifer White-booted Racket-tail. This was a bird I had wanted to see since 2011 when a former supervisor of mine showed up to a halloween party dressed as normal, but with a tennis racket hanging from the back of his pants and wearing hiking boots. At first I was confused about this peculiar "costume" , but when I learned he was dressed as a booted racket-tail I immediately looked up the bird and have wanted to see one ever since!

A wonderful place for some easy birding

Had to buy some chocolate!

Red-tailed Squirrel

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird

Brown Violetear

Blue-necked Tanager

Golden Tanager

White-lined Tanager

Golden-naped Tanager

Black-capped Tanager

Flame-rumped Tanager (female)

Bay-headed Tanager

Fawn-breasted Brilliant

Crowned Woodnymph

Purple-throated Woodstar (female)

White-booted Racket-tail

Purple-bibbed Whitetip

White-whiskered Hermit

Green-crowned Brilliant

Palm Tanager

After tearing ourselves away from the feeders at the cafe, we headed off to Sachatamia Lodge. By the time we got there it was raining (as it often does in the cloud forest). As soon as we parked the van at the lodge we grabbed our cameras and binoculars and swarmed toward the hummingbird feeders conveniently located under a nice shelter! Here we found many more White-booted Racket-tails and many Violet-tailed Sylphs among many other amazing birds! We also had our first sighting of the Central American Agouti. 

We made it!

Central American Agouti

Species unknown, but what a gnarly caterpillar!

White-booted Racket-tail

Look at those boots!!!

A pair of White-booted Racket-tails! Male on left and female on right. 

Violet-tailed Sylph

Violet-tailed Sylph

Young male Violet-tailed Sylph

Purple-bibbed Whitetip

It was getting to be lunchtime, so we had to leave our posts at the hummingbird feeders and go find our rooms. Our luggage was already on the porch, so we just had to tell the staff which suitcases went to which rooms, and they were whisked away by strong, hard working staff members. We were required to always put blue cloth booties over our shoes before entering the lodge to keep the wooden floor from getting wet and muddy. These booties were then to be left at the entrance of the lodge when we exited to be washed and ready for another wear.  My husband and I ended up on the top (3rd) floor of the lodge with an amazing view of the property! 

Our room

A window in the dormer

The view out of our room

Lunch was delicious, and I even had something new - corn with palm hearts. After lunch we gathered our things and started heading toward the van to drive to a rarely traveled road nearby for some more diversity. From our room we spotted a Crimson-rumped Toucanet high in a tree that was just barely visible through the rain and fog. Of course, we hurried downstairs to show everyone else. What a treat!

Corn with Palm Hearts

Crimson-rumped Toucanet

We got back in the van and after a short drive and a few unplanned stops to see Swallow Tanagers and toucans flying over, we arrived in the Mindo area. The rain had mostly stopped except for a short shower here and there, so we go out and started walking. One of the huge benefits of hiring a driver for these trips is that there is someone to stay with the vehicle to keep it secure and to come get you when you are exhausted or caught in a rainstorm. We walked a bit, then got back in the van, went somewhere else nearby and walked a bit more while checking off species after species. Our final stop of the afternoon was on a red dirt road. As we walked down the road, we marveled at the tall sheer cliffs to our right. The birds were fantastic and we added a few hard to get species to our lists including Golden-headed Quetzal, Ringed Kingfisher. Choco Toucan, and Guayquil Woodpecker (just to name a few). One of the more interesting observations was seeing multiple Swallow-tailed Kites fly overhead "under power". Usually these birds are seen circling with thermals or soaring over fields looking for food, but these birds were on a mission and were constantly flapping like there was an evacuation order. 

The red dirt road with the cliffs near Mindo

Golden-headed Quetzal

Golden-headed Quetzal

Ringed Kingfisher

Choco Toucan

Guayaquil Woodpecker

Roadside Hawk

Collared Aracari

Bronze-winged Parrot

Eventually the rain became too much for us and the van came and picked us up to head back to Sachatamia Lodge where we spent the remainder of the afternoon enjoying the hummingbirds and relaxing before dinner. 

After dinner our guide told us it was time to go look for some owls! We quickly scattered to grab our headlamps and anything else we might want in the pitch dark and very wet cloud forest. Back in the van we went for another bumpy ride to a rural road. The van was parked up the road a bit (to keep from disturbing any potential owls), and we walked quietly down the road to a small break in the barbed-wire fence. We then proceeded down a very steep, soaking wet, grassy hill to a spot indicated by our guide. Despite our best efforts no owls were heard. So we trekked back up the very steep hill, gasping for air and inhaling bugs along the way. At least nobody fell! We then repeated this procedure a few times in different places to no avail. That is how birding is sometimes though - it can be difficult with no reward, or it can be difficult with high reward. This evening was the difficult with no reward, but we held out hope for the following evening.

This white fungus really
glowed in the bright headlamps

Our trek back up one of the hills

When we finally got back to Sachatamia, the staff had already closed the gates, but luckily we were able to get the "gate boy" to come let us in. We also saw a huge Caliper Beetle on the porch of the lodge. Exhausted, but happy with our first full day of adventuring and still hacking up inhaled bugs, we all disappeared into our rooms for a good night's rest. 

Oh no! Not a closed gate!

Caliper Beetle

Bird List for Jan. 21st

White-cheeked Pintail	Anas bahamensis
Yellow-billed Pintail	Anas georgica
Pied-billed Grebe	Podilymbus podiceps
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)	Columba livia (Feral Pigeon)
Squirrel Cuckoo	Piaya cayana
White-necked Jacobin	Florisuga mellivora
White-whiskered Hermit	Phaethornis yaruqui
Brown Violetear	Colibri delphinae
Violet-tailed Sylph	Aglaiocercus coelestis
Brown Inca	Coeligena wilsoni
Buff-tailed Coronet	Boissonneaua flavescens
Velvet-purple Coronet	Boissonneaua jardini
White-booted Racket-tail	Ocreatus underwoodii
Purple-bibbed Whitetip	Urosticte benjamini
Fawn-breasted Brilliant	Heliodoxa rubinoides
Green-crowned Brilliant	Heliodoxa jacula
Empress Brilliant	Heliodoxa imperatrix
Purple-throated Woodstar	Philodice mitchellii
Crowned Woodnymph	Thalurania colombica
Rufous-tailed Hummingbird	Amazilia tzacatl
Andean Emerald	Uranomitra franciae
Slate-colored Coot	Fulica ardesiaca
Red Phalarope	Phalaropus fulicarius
Andean Gull	Chroicocephalus serranus
Neotropic Cormorant	Nannopterum brasilianum
Great Egret	Ardea alba
Little Blue Heron	Egretta caerulea
Cattle Egret (Western)	Bubulcus ibis ibis
Black Vulture	Coragyps atratus
Turkey Vulture	Cathartes aura
Swallow-tailed Kite	Elanoides forficatus
Roadside Hawk	Rupornis magnirostris
Golden-headed Quetzal	Pharomachrus auriceps
Rufous Motmot	Baryphthengus martii
Ringed Kingfisher	Megaceryle torquata
Crimson-rumped Toucanet	Aulacorhynchus haematopygus
Collared Aracari	Pteroglossus torquatus
Yellow-throated Toucan	Ramphastos ambiguus
Choco Toucan	Ramphastos brevis
Guayaquil Woodpecker	Campephilus gayaquilensis
Bronze-winged Parrot	Pionus chalcopterus
Maroon-tailed Parakeet	Pyrrhura melanura
Pacific Antwren	Myrmotherula pacifica
Spotted Woodcreeper	Xiphorhynchus erythropygius
Streak-headed Woodcreeper	Lepidocolaptes souleyetii
Streaked Xenops	Xenops rutilans
Scaly-throated Foliage-gleaner	Anabacerthia variegaticeps
Red-faced Spinetail	Cranioleuca erythrops
Slaty Spinetail	Synallaxis brachyura
Cinnamon Becard	Pachyramphus cinnamomeus
Scale-crested Pygmy-Tyrant	Lophotriccus pileatus
Common Tody-Flycatcher	Todirostrum cinereum
Yellow-bellied Elaenia	Elaenia flavogaster
Choco Tyrannulet	Zimmerius albigularis
Western Wood-Pewee	Contopus sordidulus
Black Phoebe	Sayornis nigricans
Boat-billed Flycatcher	Megarynchus pitangua
Rusty-margined Flycatcher	Myiozetetes cayanensis
Tropical Kingbird	Tyrannus melancholicus
Lesser Greenlet	Pachysylvia decurtata
Blue-and-white Swallow	Pygochelidon cyanoleuca
Brown-bellied Swallow	Orochelidon murina
Southern Rough-winged Swallow	Stelgidopteryx ruficollis
Scaly-breasted Wren	Microcerculus marginatus
Swainson's Thrush	Catharus ustulatus
Ecuadorian Thrush	Turdus maculirostris
Thick-billed Euphonia	Euphonia laniirostris
Orange-bellied Euphonia	Euphonia xanthogaster
Chestnut-capped Brushfinch	Arremon brunneinucha
Rufous-collared Sparrow	Zonotrichia capensis
Giant Cowbird	Molothrus oryzivorus
Scrub Blackbird	Dives warczewiczi
Tropical Parula	Setophaga pitiayumi
Blackburnian Warbler	Setophaga fusca
Slate-throated Redstart	Myioborus miniatus
Golden Grosbeak	Pheucticus chrysogaster
Rose-breasted Grosbeak	Pheucticus ludovicianus
White-lined Tanager	Tachyphonus rufus
Flame-rumped Tanager	Ramphocelus flammigerus
Blue-winged Mountain Tanager	Anisognathus somptuosus
Blue-gray Tanager	Thraupis episcopus
Palm Tanager	Thraupis palmarum
Golden-naped Tanager	Chalcothraupis ruficervix
Black-capped Tanager	Stilpnia heinei
Blue-necked Tanager	Stilpnia cyanicollis
Bay-headed Tanager	Tangara gyrola
Flame-faced Tanager	Tangara parzudakii
Golden Tanager	Tangara arthus
Silver-throated Tanager	Tangara icterocephala
Swallow Tanager	Tersina viridis
Guira Tanager	Hemithraupis guira
Variable Seedeater	Sporophila corvina
Bananaquit	Coereba flaveola
Buff-throated Saltator	Saltator maximus
Black-winged Saltator	Saltator atripennis