Colombia | Cauca Valley Birding Escape

Upon arrival at the airport, you will be met and taken to your hotel. This evening, meet your guide for a program orientation and welcome dinner. Check-in starts at 3 pm.

This morning, depart Cali and head about an hour and a half north to Laguna de Sonso Nature Reserve, near the heritage town of Guadalajara de Buga. The Sonso Lagoon is an ancient oxbow of the Cauca River and serves as an important bird reserve in the Cauca Valley region. While industrial expansion, agriculture, and livestock have changed the landscape and contributed to wetland loss, the reserve functions as an oasis of biodiversity and offers protected habitat for many birds of the lowlands and dry valley forests. More than 390 species have been recorded here to date. Some key birds include the Horned Screamer, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Masked Duck, Dwarf Cuckoo, Ruby-topaz Hummingbird, Buff-necked Ibis, Snail Kite, Grayish Piculet, Great Antshrike, Jet Antbird, and Apical Flycatcher. (Elevation: 3,280 feet / Accessibility: Unpaved rural road, trails at the edge of the wetland / Temperature: 80-93 °F.) Next, visit Eco Hotel Hacienda El Diamante, a new birding hotspot whose feeders attract more than a dozen species of hummingbirds, as well as tanagers and other visitors. The hotel property also has forested areas and lakes with roosting egrets, herons, and other wading birds. Some of the target species to look out for here are the Little Cuckoo, Ruby-topaz Hummingbird, Andean Emerald, Buff-tailed Coronet, Grayish Piculet, Bar-crested Antshrike, Apical Flycatcher, and Blue-necked, Black-capped, and Fawn-breasted Tanagers. Later, continue on to your accommodations near picturesque Lake Calima and check in for the night. This evening gather to review your bird checklists. (Elevation: 3,937 feet / Accessibility: Easy / Temperature: 66-86 °F.)

Check out and spend today exploring the Río Bravo Nature Reserve, renowned by national and international experts for its great biodiversity and endemism. The Río Bravo area is prioritized worldwide as a Key Biodiversity Area (KBA) within the Tropical Andes Biodiversity Hotspot, as well as an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) due to its remarkable bird list, which represents 64% of the birds in the Valle del Cauca department and 27% of all birds in Colombia. Río Bravo is not only notable for its biodiversity, with its immense wealth of birds, mammals, and orchids, but also for its magnificent landscapes characterized by rivers, gorges, and waterfalls. On the road that leads to the sector of Río Azul and Chancos, there are majestic views of the Calima River and beautiful blue streams. Some of the birds that are possible to spot here are the Toucan Barbet, Crimson-rumped Toucanet, Parker's Antbird, Tatama Tapaculo, Golden-winged and Golden-collared Manakins, Glossy-black Thrush, Choco Brushfinch, Sooty-headed Wren, and Multicolored, Purplish-mantled, Rufous-throated, and Golden-naped Tanagers. Continue to your accommodations and check in. This evening gather to review your bird checklists. (Elevation: 6,561 feet / Accessibility: Unpaved road, rural roads / Temperature: 68-78 °F.)

Start today with a visit to the nearby La Minga Ecolodge, your first of several birding opportunities within the IBA known as KM 18 (Kilómetro 18). KM 18 encompasses the cloud forests between Kilometers 14 and 23 of the road from Cali to Buenaventura; set high in the Western Cordillera of the Colombian Andes, these forests host an impressive array of biodiversity. The access road to La Minga is a rural unpaved road flanked by primary and secondary forests and tea crop fields, resulting in excellent birding. Also explore La Minga's trails and spend time at the tanager and hummingbird feeders. More than 300 species have been recorded at La Minga, and targets here include the Colombian Chachalaca, Blue-headed Sapphire, Bronzy Inca, Andean Emerald, Golden-headed and Crested Quetzals, Masked Trogon, Red-headed Barbet, Blue-winged Mountain Tanager, and Metallic-green, Saffron-crowned, Golden-naped, and Multicolored Tanagers. (Elevation: 7,217 feet / Accessibility: Rural, unpaved road; trails along the farmhouse / Temperature: 60-75 °F.) Later visit the Bosque de Niebla San Antonio, or San Antonio Fog Forest, also located within the KM 18 IBA. The forest's unpaved rural road eventually narrows to a footpath accessible only by pedestrians. Patches of primary and secondary forest with stubble areas make this road very productive in terms of birds. San Antonio is also known for its abundance of Andean Cocks-of-the-Rock, which are usually seen easily in the area or stay in constant lek. Other key species are the Colombian Chachalaca, Blue-headed Sapphire, Bronzy Inca, Andean Emerald, Golden-headed and Crested Quetzals, Masked Trogon, Red-headed Barbet, Nariño Tapaculo, Scaled Fruiteater, Blue-winged Mountain Tanager, and Golden-naped, Metallic-green, Saffron-crowned, and Multicolored Tanagers. This evening gather to review your bird checklists. (Elevation: 8,202 feet / Accessibility: Unpaved rural road / Temperature: 60-75 °F.)

Spend today at Doña Dora's, a family-run observatory and restaurant in the KM 18 area. With multiple observation areas, it's an incredible place to sit and enjoy the drinking troughs and feeders for different hummingbirds and tanagers. Located on the old road that leads to the Pacific Ocean, at an elevation of approximately 5,200 feet, the site sees a confluence of both Andean species and species from the humid forests of the biogeographical Chocó region. The food is great, and the photo opportunities are spectacular; Doña Dora's is a must-see place in the Anchicayá River Canyon. Look for birds such as the Empress and Fawn-breasted Brilliants, Violet-tailed Sylph, Velvet-purple Coronet, White-booted Racket-tail, Green Thorntail, Red-headed and Toucan Barbets, Blue-winged Mountain Tanager, and Silvery-throated, Rufous-throated, Glistening-green, and Golden-naped Tanagers. This evening gather to review your bird checklists. (Elevation: 5,249 feet / Accessibility: Asphalt road / Temperature: 68-78 °F.)

In the lowlands of Valle del Cauca sits the little village of San Cipriano. Drive northwest from your hotel about an hour and a half to two hours, and then continue another 20 minutes aboard "brujitas" - an inventive form of local transportation that uses motorcycle-powered wooden platforms to carry passengers on an out-of-use railroad track. Once at the village, some good birds can be spotted, but the best area is the community reserve, which protects primary and secondary forest. Go birding on a flattish gravel road alongside the crystal waters of the San Cipriano River and watch for the Berlepsch's Tinamou, Baudo Guan, Purple-chested and Blue-chested Hummingbirds, Choco Screech-Owl, Five-colored Barbet, Choco Toucan, Little Woodpecker, Rose-faced and Saffron-headed Parrots, Sapayoa, Esmeraldas Antbird, and Choco and Velvety Manakins. This evening gather to review your bird checklists. (Elevation: 656 feet / Accessibility: Unpaved road, rural paths / Temperature: 78-89 °F.)

La Florida - El Bosque de las Aves is another premier KM 18 birding haven, located on a scenic ridge on the road from Cali to Buenaventura. Managed with dedication by proprietor Javier Rubio, this sanctuary is a showcase of avian diversity, featuring prime spots for viewing toucans, woodpeckers, and tanagers. It's one of the best places to view the highly sought-after Multicolored Tanager, and specially placed feeders also attract Chestnut Wood-Quail and other ground species. In addition, keep an eye out for Nariño Tapaculo, Scaled Fruiteater, Golden-headed and Crested Quetzals, Masked Trogon, and Red-headed Barbet. Later, make your way back to Cali and check in at your hotel. This evening gather to review your bird checklists. (Elevation: 8,202 feet / Accessibility: Rural, unpaved road / Temperature: 60-75 °F.)

Return to the airport for your flight home. Hotel check-out is 1 pm.