Which bird species do you think is the biggest attraction to visitors of your lodge (please only name one species)?
There are many top birds, but to me, it is the Salvin’s Curassow (Mitu salvini), which is getting very common around the lodge.
What is the name of your lodge, and since when has your lodge been operating?
The lodge’s name is La Isla Escondida, as it is located between 2 major rivers and therefore protected from hunters in the past. The lodge is open to visitors since January 2017.
How best to travel to your lodge?
Best is to fly to Puerto Asís from either Bogota or Cali, and there we can pick you up. It is also possible to take a bus from there to Orito and then a taxi to the trailhead. The walk to the lodge takes about 1.5 hours and is very beautiful (ideal for birding). Your luggage will be brought to the lodge by the horses.
Collared Puffbird
What kind of services – except for accommodation and food – does your lodge offer to visiting birders?
We have excellent bird guides, excellent marked trails (you can walk everywhere on your own), and 2 canopy towers (one with accommodation). The lodge has hummingbird feeders.
Buff-tailed Sicklebill
What makes your lodge special?
Because of the altitude (850 m above sea level), we have an excellent range of birds: species from the lowlands and the Andes, as well as typical species from the foothills. The lodge is located in the middle of primary forest, and nearly all the birds are special. Among the 450 species recorded are rarely seen species, which are not too difficult to see around the lodge. This is why we are one of the best birdwatching locations in Colombia.
Moreover, we have excellent food, and the rates are inexpensive compared to other lodges.
Putumayo had a bad reputation, but the lodge and the area around it are perfectly safe.
Gould’s Jewelfront
What are the 10 – 20 most interesting birds that your lodge offers good chances to see?
1. Red-winged Wood-Rail Aramides calopterus
2. Spectacled Bristle-Tyrant Phylloscartes orbitalis
3. Buff-throated Tody-Tyrant Hemitriccus rufigularis
4. Fulvous Antshrike Frederickena fulva
5. Green Manakin Cryptopipo holochlora
6. Salvin’s Curassow Mitu salvini
7. Buff-tailed Sicklebill Eutoxeres condamini
8. Black-bellied Thorntail Discosura langsdorffi
9. Fiery-throated Fruiteater Pipreola chlorolepidota
10. Nocturnal Curassow Nothocrax urumutum
11. Black-faced Hawk Leucopternis melanops
12. Foothill Screech-owl Megascops roraimae
13. Hairy-crested Antbird Rhegmatorhina melanosticta
14. Foothill Stipplethroat Epinecrophylla spodionota
15. Grey-tailed Piha Snowornis subalaris
16. Collared Puffbird Bucco capensis
17. Black-throated Brilliant Heliodoxa schreibersii
18. Pavonine Quetzal Pharomachrus pavoninus
19. Lined Forest-Falcon Micrastur gilvicollis
20. Gould’s Jewelfront Heliodoxa aurescens
Black-faced Hawk
What is the best time to visit your lodge, and why?
The whole year is good for birding in the lodge. But it is better to avoid the rainier months, May-June.
Fiery-throated Fruiteater
Is your lodge involved in conservation efforts? If yes, please describe them.
Yes, we are preserving a lot of forest, and we like to preserve more. Untouched primary foothill forest, such as in the reserve, is rare in Colombia.
White-plumed Antbird
What other suggestions can you give to birders interested in visiting your lodge?
Nearly all is available in the lodge. Do not bring too much with you, apart from essential equipment such as cameras, binoculars, sound recorders, etc…
The most important thing is rubber boots that go up to your knees. You can buy boots from size 36 to 42 (US 4 to 10) in Orito. Further, we recommend a good umbrella, which is better than a rain cape. Do not forget a hat or cap. Recommended are T-shirts with long and short sleeves and light (quick drying) long trousers. Walking in your rubber boots is easier with thick socks.
Definitely bring a good torch/flashlight. This is especially needed if you stay in the cabaña and need to walk after sunset. Bring along sufficient repellent. On hot days, there are often annoying but harmless sweat bees, especially on the canopy platforms. So, additionally, bring a mosquito hat. (Telescopic) hiking sticks are useful for walking up the main trail. We provide wooden walking sticks free of charge.
Hairy-crested Antbird
Do you have activities for non-birders? If so, please describe.
There are plenty of long and short walks around the lodge. It can include a climb into one of the towers. And they can also stay overnight there. Also, we have a swimming pool and a hot tub. In addition, there are guided night walks.
If any reader of 10,000 Birds is interested in staying at your lodge, how can they best contact you?
Best is to contact me through my WhatsApp +57 305-390.88.76 (Jurgen Beckers)
Fulvous Shrike-tanager
Leave a Comment