Birdwatching Tour in Cajas National Park from Cuenca

For all birdwatchers or wildlife photographers (like me) this is the best option if you travel to southern Ecuador. Edison, the owner of the agency, is not only an excellent guide but also a very good person. I went with some friends to look for endemic birds of the area, he took us to the best places where we could take advantage of the natural light having better chances to have good pictures. 100% recommended.

This tour allowed me to visit Cajas in the best possible way. I was referred to Edy, my guide for the day, though a mutual friend with the promise of "This man knows his birds, you will get what you want to see.", and to my joy they were 100% right. On the day of the trip, I was picked up on time and we were birding by 6:40am on the outskirts of Cajas. I had 6 life birds, one of them endemic, in my first hour alone. Edy knew exactly where to go for the species I wanted, and was 100% sure that I saw each and every bird we encountered. On the tour we visited a local restaurant where he introduced me to a local corn and egg dish that I LOVED, and had hot chocolate. He was great at pausing when I wanted to take pictures of the park, and his English is really good as well. I highly recommend this tour to any birder in Cuenca. I will be going back to Edy for my next trip.

A group of four beginning birders were looking for a bird-guide for the Cajas, and Eddy Juca of Polylepsis Tours came strongly recommended. Eddy was organized, pleasant, speaks excellent English, and is a very knowledgeable birding guide. We spent a bit over a half day with him. He picked us up around 6 am and drove us up to several locations in the Cajas ranging from a lake at 10,000 feet to grasslands and another lake at 13,000 feet. He provided binoculars, had a spotting telescope, and really helped us see the birds he had spotted, using a laser pointer to help guide our eyes to the bird in question. He provided us with a bird list after the tour and a number of excellent photographs including the two included below. We saw and with his help, identified 29 species between 6 am and 1 pm. We finished the trip with a snack at a pleasant restaurant high in the Cajas, and then he dropped us off at our homes. An altogether outstanding outing!