Birding Northern Costa Rica 3-17-26

A travel day as, I watched my last sunrise from Hotel Linda Vista, I couldn’t help but admire the beauty of it all. This morning, Lenin Duarte, our Road Scholar tour guide, led us along a new trail on the property. The hike provided a good morning workout as it wound along the mountainside, but the effort was well worth it for what we discovered along the way. After breakfast, it was time to put our bags outside the door and wait for the bus. The way back to San Jose was through backcountry roads, and a stop at Canto del Rio, a small nature stop for lunch. Walking through the thick jungle didn’t help my photography, but I got to hear and partially see some fantastic birds. By mid-afternoon, we stopped in El Jardin again for a shopping break for those who were interested, but I was interested in the butterfly house. The Blue Morpho is the national symbol and one of my favorites. We waited for a while to release our bus from the guardhouse to the Hotel Canal Grande Lodge. It wasn’t quite dark yet. The lodge is situated on a mountainside overlooking San Jose, and we were given our rooms. I took some time to explore the views from the poolside before dinner. The sunset was beautiful and served as a wonderful memory of our last night in Costa Rica. In the morning, there was one final birding walk led by Lenin, our trip leader and guide, on the grounds. However, I decided to rest and take a walk on my own before heading to the airport for the journey back home.