From La Fortuna we traveled northwest toward the Pacific Ocean. Monteverde, a small town of about 4000 people, sits at an elevation of about 4,360 ft. in what’s known as the cloud forest.
Andres explained that at this time of year, the clouds don’t roll in until evening. Sure enough, around 4 o’clock, mist - almost like fine rain - swept in on the trade winds.
And I mean WINDS! From November to March, this area is known to be one of the windiest spots in the world. The winds howled continuously, day and night. I liked it - it almost sounded like ocean waves. I can’t imagine living with it, though, but people we met said they don’t really notice them.
Our first stop in Monteverde was an organic coffee plantation. Daniel showed us some plantains and the berries on a coffee bush, which are picked by hand when they are a red color.
After they are picked, the beans are dried. From there, beans destined to become "regular" coffee are stripped of all of their coverings and roasted. Other beans will become "honey coffee," which is a fairly recent concept. For these beans, only the outer shell is removed and the inner coverings stay on, giving the beans a somewhat sweet taste. We tasted all of it later, and even the light roast was way too strong for me.
Daniel also showed us the cacao pods used in making chocolate.
The cacao beans are actually quite slimy until they are dried.
Next morning - a hike through the cloud forest in search of flora and fauna.
We had another spectacular, clear day. We have been very fortunate with the weather throughout the trip.
These "strangler" figs are pervasive in the forest. They are parasitic plants that begin their growth at the top of the tree from seeds dispersed by birds. They grow downward, toward the ground, while encircling the trees and strangling them of nutrients. Most of the trees eventually die, leaving only the fig skeleton.
Here I am "inside" the tree.
It’s a lot cooler at the higher elevation in Monteverde. We needed long pants and jackets.
Some type of flycatcher, I believe
The furry looking plants growing on the tree are called epiphytes. They use the tree for structure, but they don’t cause any harm to it.
There are 150 varieties of mushrooms in Costa Rica
This plant is related to coffee
I loved the shape of this tree. I wondered if the extreme winds were a factor .
Spider monkeys! They are the largest monkeys in Costa Rica.
Quest for the elusive Resplendent Quetzal…
Before I left for Costa Rica, my friend and expert birder, Peggi, told me that spotting a Resplendent Quetzal on our trip would be a real prize. Birders put it at the top of their list of must-see species - and no wonder. The quetzal is a beautiful, brightly colored bird about 14 inches in length that was considered sacred to the indigenous people of Central America. The male Quetzal is particularly striking because of his long tail plumes measuring two feet or more.
Naturally I wanted to see one, but I didn’t get my hopes up. They are notoriously difficult to spot.
So there we were in the Monteverde cloud forest when our guide, Andres, quickly herded us toward a spot where another guide told him they had spotted a Quetzal. We went from here to there trying to get a good look. I had Peggi's binoculars, but I’m pretty inept with them. I focused in on the Quetzal when she was in the shade, but when we moved a bit to see her in the light, I couldn’t see her no matter how I tried. Fortunately Andres always had his birding scope and took pictures with our cameras through the lens. She didn’t want to show her face at first.
The guide of a French group had a different kind of scope and I took this photo from his screen.
Spectacular! I was on cloud nine. Or I should say, cloud forest nine!