(OLD) The Golden Birding Trail

The Golden Birding Trail
A Colombia bird watching tour in search of Andes, Magdalena Valley & Choco endemics

The mighty Andes splits into three distinct ranges within Colombia’s borders, forming the Eastern, Central and Western Cordilleras. The resulting mosaic of localised climatic conditions and subsequent myriad ecological niches supports a staggering regional biodiversity. On this 16-day classic Colombia birding tour we shall explore all three Cordilleras, focusing on the rich avian diversity found in each!
The Golden Birding Trail - Itinerary at a glance
Day 1
Days 2, 3
Days 4, 5
Day 6
Days 7, 8
Days 9, 10
Day 11
Days 12-14
Day 15
Day 16
The Golden Birding Trail - 
Itinerary at a glance
Day 1          Arrive Bogotá
Day 2,3      Birding the Eastern Andes from Bogotá
Day 4,5      Lowland tropical forests of the     
                    Magdalena Valley 
Day 6         Rio Claro to Medellín with birding stops
Day 7,8      Cloud forests and cock-of-the-rock lek 
                    from  Jardín
Day 9,10    Manizales, birding Rio Blanco Reserve 
Day 11       High altitude Los Nevados National Park 
Day 12-14  Birding the mega-diverse Chocó from 
                    Montezuma
Day 15       Otún Quimbaya Reserve 
Day 16       Fly back to Bogotá where the tour ends
Arrive in Bogotá
Birding the Eastern Andes from Bogotá
Lowland tropical forests of the Magdalena Valley
Rio Claro to Medellín with birding stops
Cloud forests and cock-of-the-rock lek from Jardin
Maninizales, birding Rio Blanco Reserve 
High altitude Los Nevados National Park 
Birding the mega-diverse Chocó from Montezuma
Otún Quimbaya Reserve 
Fly back to Bogotá where the tour ends
Day 1
Days 2, 3
Days 4, 5
Day 6
Days 7, 8
Days 9, 10
Day 11
Days 12-14
Day 15
Day 16
Arrive in Bogota
Birding the Eastern Andes from Bogota
Lowland tropical forests of the Magdalena Valley
Rio Claro to Medellin with birding stops
Cloud forests and cock-of-the-rock lek from Jardin
Manizales, birding Rio Blanco Reserve 
High altitude Los Nevados National Park 
Birding the mega-diverse Choco from Montezuma
Otun Quimbaya Reserve 
Fly back to Bogota, where the tour ends
Tour Details

Tour type: Classic Colombia birding tour
Duration of the tour: 16 days        
Group size: Limited to 8 participants

Dates:   14 Feb - 01 Mar 2019*
              28 Feb - 14 Mar 2020**
*This departure can be combined with our March 2019 'Birding in Paradise' tour
**This departure can be combined with our March 2020 'Birding in Paradise' tour            

Pricing:  US $4,495 per person (2019)
               Single room supplement: US $585 
               Price to be confirmed for the 2020 tour (1 year prior to departure)
             
Tour leader(s): With 5-8 guests there will be x2 expert birding bilingual guides (Rob Smith + additional guide). With less than 5 guests there will be one expert bilingual guide.
Tour highlights 

Explore the Eastern Andes for range restricted Colombian endemics 

Bird in high altitude paramo habitats of Chingaza and Los Nevados national parks

Explore the Magdalena Valley for localised endemics and visit an Oilbird cave

Visit one of the most active Andean Cock-of-the-rock leks in all South America and search for Yellow-eared Parrots from the quaint colonial town of Jardin

See as many as 5 species of furtive antpitta in a single morning at the pristine cloud forest reserve of Rio Blanco

Spend 3 nights in the mega-diverse 'Choco' bioregion, where a suite of Colombian endemic and Choco specialties await!

A tour tally of over 500 species is expected, including over 50 varieties of hummers and a feast of dazzling tanagers

Enjoy world-class Colombian coffee, delicious food and amazing hospitality throughout the tour


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