We will then reconvene at Albergue Colbert in Varablanca around 9 a.m. for the meeting and a sumptuous French breakfast buffet prepared by Chef Joel, that includes juice, croissants, brioches, baguettes, butter, jam, eggs and ham. Coffee, tea and the Colbert’s famous hot chocolate will be served. There will be a charge of 3000 colones per person to cover some of the expenses of the breakfast and the guide. The club will subsidize the rest, and a birder’s delight door prize will be given.

Andrew Russell is organizing a two-night outing to the Arenal Observatory Lodge on Wednesday and Thursday, July 26 and 27. He has booked the entire Smithsonian block, which has 8 double rooms (2 queen-size beds) with balconies. Single occupancy will cost $77/night and double $86 (i.e. $43/person) and includes breakfast only. Lunch is $16 and dinner $19. Triple rooms (1 queen, 2 twins) are also currently available in another part of the hotel, at $95/night.

Dan Keller is expected to guide us on this trip and there will be a modest charge to cover his expenses.

Arenal offers good Caribbean slope birding. In addition there is the interest of the volcano itself and its effects on the surrounding environment. The lodge offers horseback riding and has a large swimming pool. In July it is probably advisable to be prepared for showers.

The lodge is accessed from La Fortuna; drive west towards Lake Arenal, pass through Tabacón and after a further 4 km turn left onto a gravel road, signposted to Arenal Observatory Lodge. Follow the signs for about 9 kms. The lodge’s website is www. Arenalobservatorylodge.com.

The following lodging arrangements are available:

• 1 house with 3 bedrooms for 6 people
• 3 bungalows for 2 persons each
• 1 studio-apartment for 2 people

The cost of lodging for the entire weekend, with breakfast and taxes included, will be about $70 per person. Guide fees will be extra; the exact amount will be announced at a later date.

Besides birding, members will be able to relax in the inn’s pool or go snorkeling off the nearby beach. The inn can arrange horseback riding for those who wish to do so. There are several eateries nearby, but if there is enough interest, we’ll organize a delivery of food from Pizz N Love to supplement the usual bocas.

Sara Clark has reserved 6 double rooms at the Laguna del Lagarto Lodge for a two-day outing on Wednesday and Thursday, October 24 and 25. The group rate of $75 per person includes 2 nights lodging, 2 breakfasts, 1 lunch, 2 dinners, and taxes. The cost of guides and gratuities will be extra. More information will be available when Sara returns from El Norte.

The November outing will take place at Hacienda Barú, a national wildlife refuge, 3 km. north of Dominical on the coastal road. The property is located between the highway and the beach. Penny Houghton has reserved space for 15-20 adults from Friday, November 17, to Sunday, November 19. The room rate is $16.00 per person per night, with taxes and continental breakfast included.

There are 6 cabins with the following distribution:

• 2 cabins have 3 bedrooms (2 doubles and 1 single)
• 4 cabins have 2 bedrooms (1 double and 1 with a double and a single bed)

This means that there are a maximum of 14 bedrooms with the possibility of single, double and triple occupation.

Lunch and dinner cost around $6-$7, and there are one or two interesting restaurants in nearby Dominical.

Hacienda Barú has its own guides, who will accompany us on the trails reserved for accompanied walks. There are also several trails that can be explored alone.

Four intrepid members of BCCR braved the high elevation of the Mirador de Quetzales Lodge at Km 70 of the Interamerican Highway to participate in the May 17 and 18 outing. As advertised, the rooms of the Mirador were nice, clean, and rustic. Tap water was a bit off color, so bottled drinking water was in order. The room heaters were adequate for some and less so for others, but extra blankets were available in all cabins to keep warm during the chilly nights. The Albergue also provided rubber boots and walking sticks – essential for sure footing in the mountain forest.

All employees of this family business are members of Eddie Serrano's family. His wife Leonor, the Matriarch of the clan with 40 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren, supervises the kitchen, which produces simple but quite good meals.

Carlos Serrano was a hard working guide and did well to find what birds were available. He said that many birds were nesting at this time of the year and added that more birds can be seen in the area from January to March. [BCCR will consider this information when scheduling future outings.] Nevertheless, we saw a Sulfur-winged Parakeet, a Long-tailed Silky-Flycatcher, and expected residents of high elevations such as the Mountain Elaenia, Collared Redstart and Volcano Hummingbird.

Carlos Serrano also provided transportation for a fee for our group to find the Volcano Junco at Km 89. After a short walk this bird was found and all got a good look. We then drove to Savegre Mountain Lodge. Upon arrival, we stopped where a group of people were out with their bins up. Sure enough, they were watching a Resplendent Quetzal, a Black Guan and also a Black Vulture. The group was led by Marino Chacon, who was our guide a couple of years ago when BCCR birded at Savegre. He wished the club well. We then walked Savegre's trail with Carlos and did see some birds not spotted at the Mirador, including an Acorn Woodpecker and a Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush.

Participants: Fred Holt, Jordan and Beth Holtam and Gillian Lewis.

Birds seen [or heard (H)]: 44. At Mirador de Quetzales: 30 (plus 1 at Km 89): Band-tailed Pigeon, Sulfur-winged Parakeet, White-collared Swift, Blue-and-white Swallow, Green Violet-ear, Violet Sabrewing, Magnificent Hummingbird, Purple-throated Mountain-gem, Fiery-throated Hummingbird, Volcano Hummingbird, Hairy Woodpecker, Ruddy Treerunner, Tufted Flycatcher, Mountain Elaenia, Gray-breasted Wood-Wren, Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush, Mountain Robin, Sooty Robin, Clay-colored Robin, Black-and-yellow Silky-Flycatcher, Long-tailed Silky-Flycatcher, Black-cheeked Warbler, Collared Redstart, Golden-browed Chlorophonia, Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager, Flame-colored Tanager, Large-footed Finch, Yellow-thighed Finch, Slaty Flowerpiercer, Volcano Junco (Km 89), Rufous-collared Sparrow.

At Savegre (27): Black Guan, Black Vulture, Band-tailed Pigeon, Sulfur-winged Parakeet, Blue-and-white Swallow, Green Violet-ear, Purple-throated Mountain-gem, Fiery-throated Hummingbird, Resplendent Quetzal, Acorn Woodpecker, Spotted-crowned Woodcreeper, Torrent Tyrannulet, Black-capped Flycatcher, Mountain Elaenia, Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush, Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush, Sooty Robin, Black-and-yellow Silky-Flycatcher, American Dipper, Black-faced Solitaire (H), Long-tailed Silky-Flycatcher, Black-cheeked Warbler, Collared Redstart, Common Bush-Tanager, Black-thighed Grosbeak, Large-footed Finch, Yellow-faced Grassquit.

The Tico Tweeter is published by the Birding Club of Costa Rica.

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Club Officers: Co-Chair: Dorothy MacKinnon, macamel@hotmail.com; Co-Chair: Dorothy Sagel, Dorothy_Sagel@yahoo.com; Treasurer/Membership: Penny Houghton, phought23@aol.com; Secretary: Pat Piessens, dew2dew@racsa.co.cr; Newsletter Editor and Communications: Willy Piessens, dew2dew@racsa.co.cr; Member-at-Large: Winifred Orcutt, dawin@racsa.co.cr; Member-at-Large: Peter Negaard, 290-6396.