I didn’t know much about birdwatching until a very recent trip to Costa Rica when I signed on for a guided tour.
The birding began on a gringo-packed trail that snaked its way into the dense forest of the Monteverde region known for its cloud-forest tree canopies.
Our guide, a veteran birder, knew all the “hot spots” where local avian celebrities hung out.
The three-hour trek (sloth-paced, barely walking on mostly flat land) was a poor match for my amped self. I was irritable and anxious and secretly looking for pumas and monkeys rather than birds. I tried my best to feign interest and dutifully scanned the treetops with my binoculars, awaiting the fateful bird moment.
But it never happened. The best we got was a half-profile view of a quetzal partially obscured by a branch (quick tip: you can also see a quetzal by googling “magical Costa Rican bird”). I celebrated the end of the bird-watching drudgery with a cold cervesa and vowed never to subject myself to the tediousness of that experience again.
Annie Kleykamp – Filter – 2022-01-14.