tropical chill

There are many things that come to mind when one thinks of vacationing in Costa Rica: incredible birding opportunities, beautiful beaches with killer surf, amazing wildlife viewing and one-of-a-kind nature-based experiences, and plenty of adrenaline-fueled adventure. The one thing we would wager does not immediately spring to mind is a bone-chilling cold that requires hot water bottles and in-room fireplaces to dispel. Yet, that is precisely the kind of weather we encountered in San Gerardo de Dota last weekend – and we were mighty glad for the fireplaces and hot water bottles too!

The road from the capital to San Gerardo de Dota, famed for its proximity to the Quetzales National Park, snakes southeast along the border between Cartago and San Jose provinces. The two-hour drive, most of it on pristine asphalt that cut through equally pristine forest, was the most scenic we’ve done during our year in Costa Rica. It was so beautiful, in fact, that we wondered why it had taken us so long to visit this part of the country, which is far more accessible than many of the far-flung beach and rainforest destinations to which we have driven.

There is an actual entrance into the national park off the main road, but we drove past it to descend down into Savegre Valley, which is where much of the real action in San Gerardo de Dota takes place. While there are plenty of beautiful hiking trails to explore and lots of unique birds one could espy in Savegre Valley, most visitors come with one thing in mind: to see and photograph Costa Rica’s famed resplendent quetzal, the most stunning of the country’s nine trogon species. Trogons are some of our favorite birds – uniquely patterned, immensely colorful, and sociable enough to pose for pictures. We like them all, but one look at the quetzal is enough to discern why it is the most prized sighting in the trogon family.

The best time to see the quetzals is early in the morning, when they flock to the avocadillo trees for their breakfast. We booked a 5 a.m. tour thinking that D would go, but as we both awoke just before D’s alarm went off, we decided that S should join the guided tour instead. Not knowing where to look for the quetzals – and this being our first visit to San Gerardo de Dota, we of course had no clue where to look – a guide was indeed helpful. By the time D went searching for the quetzals the following morning, he dispensed with the guide. Not only do the birds flock to the same trees like clockwork, but also with dozens of bird lovers crowding around the two known quetzal sites in the valley, one would be hard-pressed to miss them. After S returned for breakfast from quetzal viewing, we went hiking to a waterfall deep in the valley, and S pointed out the two locations for D to check out the following morning.

The quetzals were indeed resplendent – and they were definitely worth seeing – though the experience for D lacked the magic of discovery that usually accompanies birding. There were simply too many people crowding around and jostling each other for position. At one point, a guide literally attempted to elbow D out of the way so that he could set up a tripod for his tourists in the exact spot D was standing taking pictures. D was having none of it, of course, and politely told the man so while fixing him with his most withering look. Though D succeeded in keeping his photo spot, the experience soured the viewing a bit. D experienced far more rapture on our waterfall hike, during which we came across several mixed flocks that featured so many new birds for D that he dispensed with list-keeping and focused first on photographing them all, filling in his list after the hike.

We’ll share more photos once D recovers his laptop and has a chance to sort through his bird pictures. In the meantime, here are a few photos of the resplendent quetzal, which the guide helped S take on her phone through his birding scope.