On Sunday the 11th Carlos picked us up – glad he found his way back! at 10 am. Of course he was early and we were scrambling with clean up. David & I had taken an early wander with Megan down to the pool – nope, it was not even tempting – bit far from house and water very “fresh.” We used the hot tub multiple times instead, as it was on the deck and the temperature at this altitude was lovely but not hot. This is when David spotted the last new bird - a simple Yellow-olive flycatcher. We all took different ways to get back to the house (very steep terrain and so much fruit all over the place). Another fun point - I swear the same bird (a Melodious Blackbird) woke us up ... read more

It’s just not possible to sleep in when the birds are so active and singing beautifully through our open windows. So we wandered the grounds just a little before another lovely breakfast cooked mostly by Heather and Mike (and cleanup as usual by yours truly 😊) before our ride Marciel picked us up at 9:15. The 6 were taken to the Original Canopy Tour zip line event, and David & Jean were dropped off at nearby Santa Elena, where we discovered familiar territory. We had simply not remembered, or understood, that our stay with the McClungs last year in Monteverde was actually in this town. We also learned (or were reminded) that Monteverde itself was barely settled until the 50s, when a group of Quakers (presumably from the US), settled to start dairy farming. They immediately ... read more

I needed a reminder that today is Wednesday! We had plenty of time to say thank you to both Yadi the chef and Joaquin the all-around man, and do our packing up. Joaquin sent us off with a box full of goodies: plantains, huge avocados, and cassava roots. We exchanged hugs and left by 11 am, Heather and David having left earlier to return the 2 rental cars. BTW we spent about $112 for that 3 day rental. The road that Carlos took was to the west, past the entrance to Ecotermales and Arenal Observatory and Mistoco Hanging Bridges. We circumnavigated the huge Lake Arenal, created by tectonic activity centuries ago, but expanded on purpose to create electricity (Carlos said it supplies 1/3 of the country’s needs), and wiping out two towns that were rebuilt elsewhere. ... read more

Wow, have we done a lot today. Lovely breakfast again prepared by Yadi, who lives next door, on the grounds. Had a 45 min drive to Mistoco Hanging Bridges tour – a guided walk. Our guide was Donald, and he was excellent at pointing out all sorts of things. David understood that this would not be a birding tour – for that we should have been there at 6 not 9. We saw 3 snakes, the flat frogs on leaves that looked like gummy frogs, a NEW HUMMINGBIRD, and an owl (NEW BIRD), a bat, and some bluejean frogs (they are bright red but have blue legs). We heard toucans and saw a Rufous motmot. We went up and down for 3 hours and were very very hot by the end. Donald recommended a soda for ... read more

Unfortunately both flights got in very very late Friday night, so none of us got much sleep, but the good news is that all our family arrived safely, and we are very grateful.. Even with 4 hours sleep, we walked the grounds a bit before breakfast. It’s bright so early, everyone was soon up and enjoying the traditional Tico breakfast of eggs, fruit, rice mixed with black beans, and coffee and juice of course. Our driver Carlos arrived early and we piled in. More than enough room for all, but not much more for luggage if we’d had more. Jean in the way back with Andrew, as neither of us get car sick, then, closer to the front was Heather & Dario and Megan, right behind driver was Anna & Mike, and David sat shotgun. We ... read more