22 Jul 2021
Birdwatching with Polylepis Tours and Edison as our guide was wonderful!
We took 2 tours with them:
1) 100 birds in one day. In this trip we went to the Cajas National Park (~3200 meters above sea level) to see highland birds and then to the tropical lowlands (~200 meters), so we were able to see many species in different environments! We saw many types of hummingbirds, tyrants, tanagers, seedeaters, ibis, anis, ducks, swallows, and many others.
2) Reserva Buenaventura. In this 2 day trip we went south to the province of El Oro in the tropical region and made a few beautiful stops such as in the desert of Jubones (I didn't realize Ecuador had a desert as well!). After staying for a night in the hotel at 6 am in the morning we went to the Reserva Buenaventura where we saw many birds such as toucans, aracaris, honeycreepers, trogons, manakins, jacobines, and many others. And most of all, hummingbirds at an arm distance!
Edison is a great bird watching guide, he recognized the birds instantly, was very accommodating to our needs, and an interesting person to talk to!
If you go, bring with you a camera with a good zoom to take great pictures!
If we go back to Cuenca, we'll definitely look for more tours by Polylepis tours!