Colombia | Harpy Eagles and More in Colombia`s Mountains and Forests

Upon arrival, meet your driver and transfer to the hotel. This evening, meet your guide for your program orientation before a welcome dinner in the hotel restaurant. Check-in starts at 3 pm.

Today you'll visit Sumapaz, the largest páramo in the world, located about two hours away from downtown Bogota. The páramo is teeming with plants and animals that have made incredible adaptations, resulting in a significant number of endemic species. You'll visit an area of Sumapaz that has a mixture of shrubs and grasslands with small bodies of water. This creates a convenient setting to photograph a variety of species. A flat, unpaved road at 12,140 feet of altitude will be an excellent location to watch for Apolinar's Wren, Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle, Tawny Antpitta, Noble Snipe, and more. Observe and revel in the marvelous sight of hummingbirds flitting and bobbing between flowers. Keep an eye out for chances to capture a photo of species like the Great Sapphirewing, Glossy Flowerpiercer, Shining Sunbeam, and others. This afternoon, journey three and a half hours south east to Villavicencio arriving in time for dinner. Elevation: 9,800-12,140 feet / Mobility: Easy / Temperature: 46-61 °F. Key species: Apolinar's Wren, Bogota Rail, Green-bearded Helmetcrest, Bronze-tailed Thornbill, Silvery-throated Spinetail, Chestnut-winged Cinclodes, Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle, Many-striped Canastero, White-chinned Thistletail, Andean Tit-Spinetail, Red-rumped Bush-Tyrant, Andean Siskin, Rufous-browed Conebill, Great Sapphirewing, Shining Sunbeam, Glowing Puffleg, Tawny Antpitta, Band-tailed Seedeater, Plumbeous Sierra Finch, Glossy Flowerpiercer, Pale-bellied Tapaculo, Noble Snipe

Embark on a hike through Bosque Bavaria, a forest located on the outskirts of the city of Villavicencio at the foot of the Cordillera Oriental, the widest of the three branches of the Colombian Andes. The Bosque Bavaria constitutes a patch of humid tropical rainforest, as it is a jungle-like fragment at the transitional foothills between the Andes and the savannas of Colombia. It is precisely this blend of ecosystems that helps to create a distinct diversity of birds. This forest is a protected property by the largest brewery in the country and a very special place for the city of Villavicencio. Capture photos along the way as you hike to the top of a mountain in Bosque Bavaria where you'll visit the Halcón Colorado Natural Reserve from Fundación ProAves, a non-profit environmental organization that protects birds and their habitats. From the mountaintop, enjoy a breathtaking view across the immensity of the Colombian Llanos. This very special place has possibly the most biodiversity of mountain birds in central Colombia. Travel about three hours to Vista Hermosa. Elevation: 1,970-4,265 feet / Track: rural unpaved road, steep incline in some spots, but overall easy to hike / Temperature: 75-90 °F. Key species: Turquoise, Paradise, Speckled, Silver-beaked, and Magpie Tanagers, Yellow-billed Nunbird, Golden-headed and Striolated Manakins, Chestnut-eared and Lettered Aracaris, Spectacled Thrush, Gilded Barbet, Speckled Chachalaca, Pectoral Sparrow, Golden-crowned Warbler, Gray-chinned Hermit, Green-backed Trogon, Bright-rumped Attila, Black-crowned Tityra, Violaceous Jay, Russet-backed and Crested Oropendolas, Dusky Antbird, White-chested Puffbird.

Today you'll visit the Harpy Eagle Natural Reserve, a private tract of land established by Manakin Nature Tours as a conservation program to protect a Harpy Eagle nesting area and a very important watershed of the Legia River. Located at the foot of the Serranía de la Macarena Mountain Range in the village of Alto Guapaya, the reserve covers 270 acres, 170 of which are primary forest. The remaining 100 acres comprise pastures and avocado crops, as well as ample water sources and a high biodiversity of plants and animals. It is possible to see six to eight species of monkeys including the woolly monkey and the ornate titi. You'll also look for a variety of bird species and other mammals including puma and jaguar. The Harpy Eagles you will observe from the camp have been monitored for 6 years at the same nesting site with sighting possible for 10 months out of the year. The camp consists of 4 double tents, a outdoor dining area and a common area for meetings. From the camp, you will be able to view the Harpy Eagles at eye level in a Ceiba tree less than 100 meters away. Start your journey in Vista Hermosa where you will board 4x4 vehicles to Guayabal. Here you will continue either on foot or on horseback up to the glamping lodge within the Harpy Eagle Natural Reserve. The trail is about 1.8 miles long up hill on a well maintained trail with some portions of the trail having a steep incline. The hike/ride will take about 2 hours and luggage will be carried by horses. Elevation: 1,970-2,625 feet / Track: easy path with some steps, a walk of 45-60 minutes / Temperature: 75-90 °F. Key species: Harpy Eagle, White-chested Puffbird, Yellow-billed Nunbird, Black-and-white, Ornate, and Black Hawk-Eagles, King Vulture, Striolated and Golden-headed Manakins, Sooty-capped Hermit, Blue-fronted Lancebill, Rusty-winged and Spot-winged Antbirds, Plain-crowned Spinetail, Pectoral Sparrow, Epaulet Oriole, Flame-crested, Masked, Turquoise and Paradise Tanagers, Purple Honeycreeper.

Continue exploring the Harpy Eagle Natural Reserve.

Continue exploring the Harpy Eagle Natural Reserve in the morning then transfer to Guaviare.

Your next stop is the forests of the Alps and Villa Marcela located near the village of La Pizarra. These forests are mainly composed of low vegetation embedded in a labyrinth of unique rock formations that house a series of very interesting bird and animal species. This area is also known as Ciudad de Piedra, which has a network of trails that end in a lookout where you can view the entire savanna of San José del Guaviare. These trails cross through different types of ecosystems as they weave between pastures, secondary forests, and forests allowing for many bird watching opportunities. This is an area of great ornithological interest since it provides one of the best opportunities to see and photograph the incredible Guianan Cock-of-the-rock, one of the most beautiful birds in the entire region and a symbol of tourism in San Jose del Guaviare. Elevation: 985 feet / Track: easy path with some steps, walks inside forest and around the lakes and savannas / Temperature: 75-90 °F. Key species: Euler's and Fuscous Flycatchers, Hauxwell's Thrush, Turquoise Tanager, Orange-cheeked and Black-headed Parrots, Yellow-browed Tody-Flycatcher, Scarlet-shouldered Parrotlet, Amazonian Black-Tyrant, Silvered Antbird, Spot-tailed Nightjar, Brown Nunlet, White-necked Puffbird, Spix's Guan, Yellow-billed Nunbird, Scaled Piculet, Plain-crowned Spinetail, Striolated Manakin, Ringed Woodpecker, Pink-throated Becard.

Today, explore some of Colombia's most unique archaeological sites. Visit cave paintings that date to over 12,000 years old and continue to mystify researchers and locals. In a journey of approximately two miles you will see three huge panels, which have a surface of 3,900 feet of cave paintings. Here, hunting scenes and ancestral rituals are represented. Also, follow a 650-foot-long cavern that takes you to a viewpoint where on one side you will see an immense forest and on the other, areas under restoration. These will invite you to learn about the stories of the locals and their previous and current productive activities. This is another location with very good biodiversity and a large number of fascinating birds, such as the Cliff Flycatcher that nests in the murals with the paintings. Elevation: 985 feet / Track: easy path with some steps, walks inside forest and around the lakes and savannas / Temperature: 75-90 °F. Key species: Little Woodpecker, Royal Flycatcher, Slender-billed Xenops, Black-banded and Elegant Woodcreepers, Peruvian Warbling-Antbird, Amazonian Streaked-Antwren, Short-tailed Pygmy-Tyrant, Golden-tailed Sapphire, Spangled Cotinga, Chestnut-crowned Becard, Amazonian Umbrellabird, Masked Yellowthroat.

Start in the morning by driving 25 minutes to Serranía La Lindosa, a mountain range that's part of the much larger geological formation known as the Guiana Shield. Upon arriving walk in the gallery forest and savannas while watching for birds and monkeys. Reach Orion's Gate, an imposing natural stone formation, then continue walking through the savannas until you reach a beautiful river. Here the vegetation both outside and inside the water is endemic and only shared with the mountain range of La Macarena (also an outcropping of the Guiana Shield). Transfer to the airport for your flight to Bogota. Upon arrival, transfer to the hotel. Meet this evening for a farewell dinner with your group. Elevation: 985 feet / Mobility: medium, single track / Temperature: 77-86 °F. Key species: Blue Ground Dove, Fork-tailed Palm Swift, Green-backed and Amazonian Black-throated Trogons, Violaceous Jay, Epaulet Oriole, Point-tailed Palmcreeper, Brown and Paradise Jacamars, Blue-tailed Emerald, White-bearded Hermit, Swallow Tanager, White-bellied Dacnis, Sunbittern, Lettered Aracari, Purple-throated Fruitcrow, Spotted Tody-Flycatcher, Yellow-billed Nunbird, Blue-capped Manakin, Chestnut-capped Puffbird, White-eyed Parakeet, Chestnut-fronted Macaw.

Transfer to airport for flight to US. Check-out is at 12 pm.