Category: Travel

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Highest Point in Atenas

Walter Ramírez and his 97 year old Great Aunt.

Two days ago Walter took me and another customer/friend to see the “Real” Costa Rica near the highest point in Atenas Canton where a high percentage of the people are his coffee-farming relatives, showing us his mountain-top lot with the view seen in the feature photo, along with meeting some of his relatives and going to the Atenas Highest Point Mirador, called “Piedra La Zopilota,” because the rocky outcropping of the mountain top is where vultures hang out and raise their children. 🙂 It is a steep mountain gravel road that required his 4-wheel drive vehicle to get there. I made a lot of neat photos of the gorgeous scenery, wildlife, lunch at a relative’s restaurant, and the three of us adventurers which you can see in the Trip Gallery: 2024 September 26 – Highest Point in Atenas. Check out these “real” Costa Rica coffee farming hills! It might even make you want to visit or move here yourself! 🙂

Vista from Walter’s mountain-top lot!

You might also be interested in these links . . .

¡Pura Vida!

Note: Walter is my best friend in Costa Rica, also my driver, translator, healthcare assistant at most doctor appointments, and thus sometimes substitute son! There are multiple pix of him in the above linked Gallery and a few of me and Julia, his other friend on this day trip. 🙂

Postscript: Architect’s Drawings of the future mirador

Facebook page with several images like this . . .

Read more: Highest Point in Atenas
Architect’s drawing of future Mirador Piedra La Zopilota.

¡Pura Vida!

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How to Subscribe to this Blog?

Someone just wrote with that question and I thought I would share my answer to him with everyone and hope you share it with anyone you think might be interested in my nature-centered blog!

It is a fairly simple process, though as with most technology, it requires multiple steps. . .

  1. Go to any blog post or the blog page (linked)of my site.
  2. First item at the top of the right-hand column of the page or post is “Blog Subscription by Email.” 
  3. Simply type in your email address where indicated. 
  4. CLICK the Subscribe Button.
  5. You will soon receive a computer-generated email to confirm that you are a real person and not a robot subscribing. YOU MUST RESPOND TO THAT EMAIL TO SUBSCRIBE. (That is WordPress’ security step.) You will then receive an email notice of each new post I publish. You can easily unsubscribe by clicking a button at the bottom of any post. 

And for those who prefer a language other than English, note that the next item in that right-hand column is a Google Translate option.

¡Pura Vida!

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Maquenque 2024 Trip Gallery

Being quarantined at home with Covid means I can give more time to finishing my photos from the July trip to Maquenque Eco Lodge and I now have that “Trip Gallery” finished, which I’m pleased with. It is Costa Rica Trip #121 and I continue to feel my trip galleries are the best.

You can click on the first page below to go there or if prefered, here’s the web address: https://charliedoggett.smugmug.com/TRIPS/2024-July-4-9-Maquenque-Eco-Lodge

CLICK on above image to go to the trip gallery.

¡Pura Vida!

And Maquenque Lodge Website

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Maquenque Birds 2024 GALLERY

In my slow state of activity with Covid I finished the birds gallery for my recent trip. 48 species is not bad but not as many as last year with 62! But let’s face it, I’m slowing down. And the good thing is that I got one Lifer this trip, the Yellow Tyrannulet! And from the back porch of my little cabin! 🙂

You can see this trip’s bird gallery by clicking the first page image below or going to: https://charliedoggett.smugmug.com/TRIPS/2024-July-4-9-Maquenque-Eco-Lodge/BIRDS

CLICK image to go to the gallery.

¡Pura Vida!

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4 Hummingbirds

There were oh so many more hummingbirds at Maquenque, but I’m getting too “slow on the draw” to capture these fast and constantly moving birds. And these four shots aren’t real good, but at least I got some that aren’t Rufous-tailed H, which is all I get at home now. 🙂 Here’s a shot of each of four different species of hummingbirds and only a tiny sample of what’s at Maquenque throughout the forests and gardens.

Stripe-throated Hermit Hummingbird, Maquenque Eco Lodge, Boca Tapada, Costa Rica

See more in my Stripe-throated Hermit Gallery.

Continue reading “4 Hummingbirds”
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Immature Gray Hawk

Most mornings at Maquenque I walked from my cabin to breakfast around the Lagoon, through two little forests, and a corner of the farm looking for birds. One morning I saw this juvenile, young or immature Gray Hawk perched in a tree long enough for me to get several shots and in okay light! To see the different looks of Gray Hawks, go to my Gray Hawk Gallery with shots from several areas of Costa Rica. I did see a more mature Gray Hawk on another day, but in the shadows and my photo is not good enough to share here though in my gallery.

Immature Gray Hawk, Maquenque Eco Lodge, Boca Tapada, Costa Rica

¡Pura vida!

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Black-bellied Whistling Duck

One of my favorite ducks in Costa Rica, the Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Dendrocygna autumnalis, is found where there’s a lot of water. The only place I’ve seen more than at Maquenque was at Palo Verde National Park and the Rancho Humo next door. Here’s two shots and you can see more of my efforts to photograph them in my Black-bellied Whistling Duck Gallery, or read about them on eBird. They are found in Eastern and Southern U.S. south through all of Central America and most of South America. Here’s two shots from last week with more in the above gallery.

Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Maquenque Eco Lodge & Reserve, Costa Rica
Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Maquenque Eco Lodge & Reserve, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

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2 Satyrs at Maquenque

There are many species of Satyrs (mostly very small) at Maquenque Eco Lodge or almost anywhere else you go in Costa Rica, but I photographed only these two on this visit. The Carolina Satyr , Hermeuptychia sosybius, is one that I also see regularly in my garden in Atenas, while the Simple Satyr, Magneuptychia alcinoe, I’ve seen two other times (At Hotel Banana Azul & Xandari Resort). Those names are linked to my gallery on each, if you wish to see more. Or if you explore my Brushfoots Galleries you will see that I have photos of 21 different species of Satyrs! And to me they are all amazing! 🙂 Here’s the two seen last week . . .

Carolina Satyr, Maquenque Eco Lodge, Costa Rica
Simple Satyr, Maquenque Eco Lodge, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

Maquenque Eco Lodge Website