Day 1: Arrive to Bogota

Arrive at Bogotá El Dorado Airport, and after clearing customs and immigration, you will be transfer to the hotel. Night in Bogota

Day 2: Full birding day to Ibague

Today we will depart early to beat the city traffic, to western slope of the eastern cordillera, hoping to connect in scrub and second-growth woodlands with endemic species such as Apical Flycatcher and Velvet fronted Euphonia. Night in Ibague.

Day 3: Birding along Ukuku Rural Lodge.

Our destination this morning is not too far from the city, a small eco-lodge with feeders on the lower slopes of the Central Cordillera. Here, we have a solid chance to see three range-restricted endemics that most tours do not search for: Tolima Blossomcrown, Yellow-headed Brushfinch, and Tolima Dove. The feeders also often attract the stunning Indigo-capped Hummingbird, along with a fine assortment of Central Cordillera birds, including White-tipped Swift and sometimes Masked Saltator. To reach the birding area is a bit of it uphill and steep (bring your walking sticks), but we will take our time and bird along the way. Night in Ibague.

Day 4: Birding Humedal El Hato to Victoria area

Today involves a bit of travel, but we will want to take advantage of the cooler morning hours for birding. We will plan on visiting the wetland area called “El Hato” locally, which will have a nice representative sampling of waterbirds and a few species of secondary forests as well. We will probably adjust our route to include searches for a few species we might have missed in previous days or would like to bank before heading northward through the valley. Night in Victoria.

Day 5: Birding along Bellavista Nature Reserve to Rio Claro

This morning will find us in the small but usually birdy Bellavista reserve, searching for White bibbed Manakin, Sooty Ant-Tanager, White-mantled Barbet, and several other range-restricted species. We’ll depart after the day warms up, heading for our next destination. Night in Rio Claro.

Day 6: Rio Claro Nature Reserve

We will rise early to get a jump on the heat to make the short drive from our hotel to the beautiful reserve. It is likely we will bird a bit along the entrance road, which has many of the species we seek. After lunch, we will walk the more level paved trail along the river in search of Magdalena Antbird. Night in Rio Claro.

Day 7: Birding along Reinita Cielo Azul - Cerulean Warbler Reserve.

Today is mostly a long travel day, but we will certainly bird the hotel grounds (and nearby) in the morning before saddling up to head toward San Vincente de Chucurí, almost 5 hours distant, by far the longest of our travel days. At San Vincente de Chucurí, we will transfer to 4x4 vehicles to reach our simple lodge (limited singles available here). Night in San Vicente or at the Cerulean Warbler Reserve.

Day 8: Birding along Cerulean Warbler Reserve.

Today we will spend birding along the dense forest above the lodge. Once at the forest edge, we have a challenging climb on the cobbled trail that is very slippery when wet (and it is usually wet!). If you use a walking stick or benefit from resting on the perch of a folding stool, this is the place for them. We will work our way steadily upward, trying for a variety of fine birds: Parkers Antbird, Black Inca, and Magdalena Tapaculo (yariguiorum). We will have a welcome picnic lunch in the forest or lunch back at the lodge. In the afternoon, we will bird near the lodge in hopes of finding Turquoise Dacnis, and perhaps a few other fancy birds. It is not a strenuous day (we don not go fast), but it is a tiring day that requires concentration to avoid slipping. Night in San Vicente or at the Cerulean Warbler Reserve.

Day 9: Cerulean Warbler Reserve.

Birding for some species such as Niceforos Wren, Double-banded Graytail and Yellow-browed Shrike Vireo some inhabit the bamboo stands and coffee and cocoa plantations below the lodge, and we will devote the better part of the day in search of them, both on foot and using 4x4 transport to save our legs a bit. Night in San Vicente or at the Cerulean Warbler Reserve.

Day 10: Birding drive to Bucaramanga to Bogota.

We will transfer back down to San Vicente and head to Bucaramanga for our mid-day flight to Bogota and international flight to home