Nov 15 - Abra Patricia to Chillo

Paul went owling again for the last time at Abra Patricia at 4:15 AM. Once again I decided to sleep in, but Paul woke me up at 6:10 to tell me he had found the endemic Johnson’s (Lulu) Tody Tyrant. So we rushed down the hill to near the guard shack and within about 15 minutes relocated 2 birds. Paul got some photos but is not sure if the lens setting was focused properly. After satisfying looks we also had great looks at Rufous Naped Brush-Finches and then decided to walk a little of the lower trail. There was quite a bit of bird song this morning and we followed one small flock with a mix of tanagers. Breakfast at 7:30 and then we went to pack up. We decided to walk the lower trail again and had Inca Jay, Flame Faced, Blue and Black and Saffron Crowned Tanagers and great looks at Pearl Treerunner and Montane Woodcreeper. We waited for Martin to get back and then left at 10:45 for our departure to Chillo. We stopped at a small restaurant at the turnoff to Chillo. The floor smelled like oil and the food was bland – we both had trout which was very bony. The landscape changed dramatically on our drive as we followed a river that had cut thru the Andes. The hills were littered with Cactus and as we got closer to Chillo, more banana trees were present. Paul spotted a Fasciated Tiger Heron standing on a rock in the river and I got a digiscoped shot just before my camera battery died. We had some Mitred Parakeets perched in trees by the river – which is unusual as most parrots and parakeets we have seen this trip have been flyovers. We saw a rufous colored bird fly across the road, so decided to pull over to do a little more investigating. It was a female White Lined Tanager, but there was a tree there full of fruit and birds. We had a view of a 3 tiered waterfall that cut thru the cliffs in the distance and there was a rainbow on the other side of the road. The stream that flowed by the road produced a Plumbeous Rail to our surprise as it walked along the river. We also had Blue-And-Yellow Tanager, Maranon Thrush, Yellow Rumped Euphonia, Golden Bellied Grosbeak and many others. We arrived at the hotel about 6:00 – a beautiful castle looking place with nice gardens and 2 Koepcke’s Screech Owls sitting in the tree across the road. Chillo is the name of the hotel and I’m not sure if there is even a town name since it is on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere.