Ecuadorean adventures: Western Andean Cloudforests

On our first day out birdwatching we travelled
west over a road south of Pichincha, getting nice
views of it then from the opposite side of the pass.
Note the blue sky and wispy clouds of early morning.



In the mists above our heads here, moments
earlier we had seen our first significant bird of
the day, a short eared owl (unrelated to the
European bird of that name) flew up from a roadside
post and drifted overhead before fading from view
into the cloud.



Driving on further down the "Chiriboga road" we
got out of the bus to walk, checking out the roadside
trees and shrubbery as we went for whatever was
around


and we did well in that department, although the
views and vegetation was just as enticing of viewing
...and less inclined to fly off whilst being observed
or photographed!









Now you see why its called "cloudforest"...






This barred fruiteater below obliged us with some
good views....and I took a photo through William's
telescope (a technique that I pioneered for the
group! Not without success. William was naturally
anxious that I did not scratch his scope lens, which
I took care not to do)


Here is a masked trogon.....



an attractive flower..



....a bromeliad in flower (shot taken thro' scope)



more flowers...





The tubular flowers above are designed to entice
birds rather insects..... the dazzling little hummingbirds.
I decided the best way of capturing them "on film"
was mostly going to be through video clips...and this
next picture was later extracted from just such a clip.
(It's a collared inca)



After our day on the Chiriboga Road
we returned to Quito, before setting off for
some Amazonian adventures. We revisited
western cloudforest in our second week, decending
down the Nono-Mindo road and staying at Bellavista lodge http://www.ecuadorexplorer.com/bellavista/eindex.htm
and the Sachatamia lodge
http://www.sachatamia.com/newsacha/about_us.htm,
to explore the forests nearby.

Visiting Mindo I was fascinated by treelike
bamboo plants. The biggest grass I've ever seen!



More commentary and more pics to follow. Meanwhile,
some more cloudforest.....

Dover Boxing Day craziness

Today we went to watch the
usual mad midday dashing into and
out of the sea in Dover harbour.
It was cold enough just standing watching!




























....then home for some lovely hot soup!
(p.s. How is this for quick blogging?)

Some pictures from in and around Quito

As I may have mentioned to some folk (!) I
planned to go to Ecuador in this year of my 40th
birthday. So I did. My chosen holiday was :














and was focused on birdwatching in these areas,
Ecuador being a major hotspot for biodiversity in
general and birdlife in particular. Ecuador, the size
of Italy, is home to something like 1,500 species
of birds (Europe has about 600!) In the two weeks
I spent there the group I travelled with saw
over 500 species. With some difficulty at times I saw
most of this number sometimes ablbeit fleatingly!

This was the group on my holiday. The photo
was taken with us stood along the line of what
the original French surveying team had determined
was the Equator. GPS proves them to have been
a few meters out but never mind that.














On the left is William Perez, our excellent tour
leader whose energy and enthusiasm was unflagging,
as were his efforts to ensure we all saw and appreciated
the birds he was seeking out for us. He works for
"Neblina Forest"(http://www.neblinaforest.com ) the "Ground Agents" for Naturetrek,
the UK based company organising this tour
(and numerous others!) . From the right of the picture
are Tim, from Hampshire, Patrick from Rotherham,
Faline and Colin from Surrey, Pete and Jill from Essex,
and then me!
I should also give credit to our driver, Luiz, who negotiated
the ups and downs of Ecuador with confidence-inspiring skill.

Here follow a few of my photos from around Quito, to give a
impression of the place.

I could not resist taking this shot as we passed by in our
minibus.
















From the window of "Hotel Quito", a clear morning view
towards Pichincha, an inactive volcano.














Also from "Hotel Quito", a view of Cotopaxi
in the misty distance














A final view of Cotopaxi, taken from the aircraft
as we flew from Guayacil, back over Quito at altitude
on our way home.

Westonbirt visit (part 1)

Yesterday I decided to have a walk to Westonbirt
Arboretum from Alderley, a village beyond Wooton-under-Edge.
Having followed a little of the Cotswold Way, I joined the "Monarch's Way"
up a pleasant valley towards Tresham.
Here I encountered this little fun guy (!)


Moving onwards onto the windy Cotswold flatland,
with misleading blue sky (it was starting to turn hazier)
I enjoyed the slight bleakness of this stonewall scene.
A contrast to the riot of colour awaiting me at ...


Westonbirt Arboretum.














more pics in part too!

Westonbirt (part too!)

Now you may be wondering if I had all this splendour
to enjoy alone (or perhaps your not that daft....)








Yes, the place was heaving!
Not everyone, however, had a camera in their hands....



Let me try some arty close ups now...











or to take a slightly different angle on tree photography...



Finally, leaving the bright colours behind,
I'll let the fungi have the last say......

Views from an Early Morning Walk

Being inspired to get out for a walk early this morning I went up onto Stinchcombe Hill.
Here I found some Harebells in flower.....

....and got this atmospheric view over towards Cam Peak and the Long Down.............then I returned home ready for breakfast!

Down Darwin's Way

On my way back from visiting Dover for mum's birthday I stopped off, near Orpington, to visit Down House, the family home of Charles Darwin. It was in this house and its gardens that he mulled over (for years and years!) his ideas about a theory of evolution. I pulled into the carpark in time for a spot of lunch and whilst I chewed on my sandwiches I spotted this interesting shot through my car roof! Any dark spots you can make out are not blemishes on my car but aircraft queing up to land at Gatwick!

Anyway, here is the house....
...and here a view from Darwin's "Thinking Path" (with his greenhouse visible beyond the hedge) along which he walked three times each day, rain or shine, regular as clockwork.
It was interesting to visit and see some of the various specimens he collected, books he refered to etc. etc. But its not a huge house, so hardly a "whole day" sort of place to visit. I timed my visit very neatly, as just as I left a coachload of tourists arrived!