Day 1: ARRIVE LIMA

Arrival in Lima and to the Miraflores district for a two night stay. D  

Day 2: THE PERUVIAN COAST

After a good night’s sleep and a relatively late start we drive south of Lima towards Pucusana. Our first stop will be a small nature reserve on the outskirts of Lima, Villa Marshes. Here we will see Andean Coot, Puna Ibis, Great and White-tufted Grebes, Cinnamon Teal, White-cheeked Pintail, Franklin’s Gull, Gray-hooded Gull, Bay-winged and Red-backed Hawk. We will make selected stops along the way in agricultural areas particularly for Peruvian Thicknee, Yellowish Pipit, Short-tailed Field Tyrant and others. Other possibilities include a variety of Seedeaters including Drab (endemic), Parrot-billed and Chestnut-throated as well as Scrub Blackbird and Long-tailed Mockingbird. After a seafood lunch a boat trip around Pucusana Bay will produce nesting Guaynay and and Peruvian Boobies is a stunning sight, not to mention the colonies of South-American Sea-lions. . Our targets here are the lovely Inca Tern, Blackish Oystercatcher, Peruvian Pelican, Red-legged Cormorant, Gray Gull, Peruvian Seaside Cinclodes and Humboldt Penguin. A stop in roadside scrub should produce Oasis and Amazillia Hunmingbirds and Peruvian Sheartail. A last stop at San Pedro and Lurin will give us a chance at many shorebirds, Peruvian Tern, Chestnut-collared Swallow, Pacific Bran-colored Flyctacher We return to our hotel in Lima for the night. B:L:D  

Day 3: LIMA TO CUSCO AND HUACARPAY LAKES

Early morning flight to Cusco and we head out south of town with a picnic lunch to Huacarpay lakes. The lake is surrounded by Inca, and pre-Inca ruins. Here we will see a variety of high Andean waterfowl including Puna, Speckled and Cinnamon Teal, Yellow-billed Pintail, Andean Duck and other wetland associated birds. White-winged Grebe and Andean coot will be here too.  Depending on the time of year migrant North American shorebirds (waders) may be present.  We will be specifically on the lookout for Wren-like Rushbird, Many-colored Rush-tyrant, Yellow-winged Blackbird, Puna Ibis and Andean White-winged Negrito. Birds of Prey we may see include Aplomado Falcon, Cinereous Harrier, Red-backed Hawk and Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle. In the arid scrub around the lake we’ll look for the endemic Rufous-fronted Canastero and also Streak-fronted Thornbird. We should find the pretty, endemic Bearded Mountaineer feeding in the tree tobacco (Nicotania sp.) with Giant Hummingbird and Trainbearers. Peruvian, Ash-breasted and Mourning Sierra-Finches will be here with Greenish Yellow-finch and Blue and Yellow Tanager. In the late afternoon we’ll drive back to Cusco for a night in the old Inca capital with tim eto wander the ancient town centre. B:L:D  

Day 4: MACHU PICCHU

We leave early in the morning for the 2.5 hour train journey to Machu-Picchu. From the train we will certainly see Torrent Ducks and White-capped Dipper on the Urubamba River and get closer looks as we leave the train.  Arriving at the ruins, birding takes a back seat for once as we are taken on a guided tour of this mystical archeological complex. White-tipped Swifts will be flying overhead. After lunch we will look for Inca Wren, which is quite common in the bamboo around the ruins and then descend into the Urubamba gorge for late afternoon birding.  We return to Cusco in the early evening. Night in Cusco BL:D  

Day 5: CUSCO TO COCK OF THE ROCK LODGE

Early start in our expedition bus. We will make a couple of selected stops in the inter-montane valleys specifically for two endemics. We’ll take a picnic breakfast as the sun hits the slopes and colorful Quechua peasant farmers pass by with livestock creating a peacefull pastoral scene – our target here - the Chestnut-breasted Mountain-Finch. We should see Andean Hillstar, Andean Flicker, Black-throated Flowerpiercer, Chuiguanco Thrush and more. Our next stop is for the endemic Creamy-crested Spinetail, before arriving at the last Andean pass - Ajcanacu.  We have had luck with Andean Condors here in the past and if its clear we’ll be able to look out from the last range of the Andes over the Amazon basin stretching into the distance, as the Incas did in ancient times, worshipping the sun rising over the endless rainforest. A side stop should find us Scribble-tailed and Line -fronted Canasteros and maybe Puna and Diademed Tapaculo.  In the after-noon we will bird the upper limits of the eastern slopes.  Working our way down the eastern slope of the Andes, the forest becomes more continuous and we will spend the afternoon birding to Cock of the Rock Lodge above sea level above Pillahuata.  Possibilities are many but we hope to encounter mixed species flocks of Tanagers, Flycatchers and Furnarids. Gray-breasted Mountain Toucan, Collared Jay and Mountain Cacique are among some of the many species we may find. In the evening we will go to a favorite spot where we have had luck calling in Swallow-tailed Nightjar and Yungas Pygmy-Owl with tapes. White-throated Screech-Owl is here too. We’ll spend the night at the Cock of the Rock Lodge. B:L:D  

Day 6 & 7: COCK OF THE ROCK LODGE

Cock of the Rock Lodge is situated in the pristine Cloud Forest of the Mountains of Manu just a few minutes walk from a spectacular Cock of the Rock lek furnished with comfortable blinds (hides) whch enable us to observe these colorful birds during their dawn mating rituals. Facilities at the Lodge include 12 large spacious en-suite bungalows with hot and cold running water, flush toilets and two single beds in each room plus several rooms with shared facilities – which room you get depends on how early you book!. Private bungalows have thir own private balcony.  Lighting is by candle and lantern but there is a small generator available for charging batteries. There is a large dining area and lounge overlooking a feeding station for Brown Capuchin Monkeys and Tayras (a large mustellid related to the Martens). Hummingbird feeders attract several species right in he dining room including Rufous-webbed Brilliant. There is trail system behind the lodge that enables you to see the under-story of the Cloud Forest first hand and facilitates seeing some species not likely from the road such as Chestnut-breasted Wren, Scaled Antpitta, Rufous-breasted and Short-tailed Antthrush’s, Slaty Gnateater and the endemic Cerulean-capped Mankin. Many spectacular waterfalls in the area are far enough away so as to enable hearing birdsong. Orchids abound with c. 80 species recorded around the lodge. One day we’ll devote to the 2500 meter altitude zone, and one day to the 1500 meter zone.  Possibilities include White-rumped Hawk, Solitary Eagle, Rufous-capped Thornbill, Crested Quetzal, Golden-headed Quetzal, Masked Trogon, Highland Motmot, Black-streaked Puffbird, Blue-banded Toucanet, Olive-backed Woodcreeper, Montane Woodcreeper, Spotted Barbtail, Montane Foliage-gleaner, Amazonian Umbrellabird, Uniform and Variable Antshrikes, Slaty Gnateater, Chestnut-crested Cotinga, Scaled Fruiteater, Bolivian Tyrannulet, Inca Flycatcher (endemic), Yungas Mankin, Uniform Antshrike, White-throated Spadebill, Fulvous-breasted Flatbill, Saffron-crowned Tanager, Yellow-rumped and Slaty Antwrens, Deep-blue Flowerpiercer, Peruvian Piedtail (endemic)  and lots  more. We will visit one of the two nearby Cock-of-the-Rock leks to watch the strange mating dance of these spectacular birds. Up to 20 males congregate at this spot to display. We will also do some night birding here and we have been lucky previously with Foothill and Rufescent Screech Owl, Rufous-banded Owl, Lyre-tailed Nightjar and Andean Potoo. Nights at Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge. B:L:D.  NOTE: If Cock of the Rock Lodge is full we’ll stay at the nearby very comfortable Paradise Lodge  

Day 8: COCK OF THE ROCK LODGE TO MANU WILDLIFE CENTRE

Early morning birding along the road to Atalaya. As the day begins to warm, we will head down the Alto Madre de Dios river in our motorized canoes to its confluence with the Manu River (about 4 hours), and then on for another two hours to the very comfortable Manu Wildlife Center, jointly owned by Manu Expeditions and the Peru Verde conservation group. This lodge facility is designed to take visitors, but there are usually biologists here conducting scientific research, often ornithologists. Accommodations are first class in bungalows with en-suite bath, hot water and with adjoining spacious dining and bar complexes. On the river journey, we will have the opportunity to see some of the typical riverside species such as Pied Lapwing, Collared Plover, Fasciated Tiger-heron, Orinoco Goose, Large-billed and Yellow-billed Tern.  Flyovers will include many species of Macaws and Parrots, and this is our opportunity for some Bird of Prey observations. The river trip is a pleasure as we leave the last foothills and enter the Amazon proper. Our boats are roofed with comfortable padded bucket seats. We plan to arrive at the Manu Wildlife Center in the late afternoon. Night Manu Wildlife Center. B:L:D  

Day 9 -13 MANU WILDLIFE CENTRE

 Five full days based at the Manu Wildlife Center. Situated just upriver from the Blanquillo Macaw Lick. There will be the opportunity on one morning to visit the Macaw lick and observe the spectacle of hundreds of Parrots and Macaws at close quarters from our blinds. Here we will see the beautiful Orange-cheeked Parrrot, hundreds of Blue-headed Parrots as well as Mealy and Yellow-crowned Parrots. Smaller visitors include White-eyed, Cobalt-winged and Dusky-cheeeked parrotlets. The rest of the time will be spent birding the extensive trail systems which  have been designed  to visit different forest types. The area around this lodge has the most forest types of anywhere in the Manu area, and thus the highest bio-diversity - which means the most species of birds. Large stands of Bamboo hold many local and much sought after species, and coupled with the extensive Varzea, Tierra Firme and Mature Transitional Floodplain Forest, this means a mind-boggling variety of bird-life. Although investigation on birds is in its early stages we expect this lodge area to hold more species of birds than anywhere else in the world and the bird list is already 575+. We will spend time at a canopy observation tower accessed by a spiral metal stairway watching canopy flocks which include Sclater’s Antwren, Chestmut-winged and Lineated Foliage-gleaners, Three-striped Flycatcher, Red-billed Pied Tanager, Yellow-shouldered Grosbeak and a multitude of Tanagers, Dacnis and Honeycreepers.  Some of the more interesting and unusual species we will be searching for in the Bamboo include - Rufous-headed Woodpecker, Manu Antbird (common here), Flammulated Bamboo-tyrant, White-cheeked Tody-flycatcher, Brown-rumped Foliage-gleaner, Large-headed and Dusky-tailed Flatbills, Peruvian Recurvebill, Dusky-cheeked and Brown-rumped Foliage-gleaners, Ihring’s and Ornate Antwren, White-lined Antbird, Striated Antbird and more.  We will certainly look for one of the 5 singing Rufous-fronted Antthrushes we have located on territory here. Some of the scarcer forest species we will be on the lookout for that we have seen here previously include  : Bartlett’s Tinamou, Razor-billed Currasow, Pale-winged Trumpeter, Sunbittern, Elusive Antpitta (2 territories) Pavonine Quetzal, Purus Jacamar, Striolated Puffbird, Gray-cheeked Nunlet, Cream-colored Woodpecker, Ocellated Woodcreeper, Colared Puffbird, Ruddy Spinetail, Plain Softail, Striped Woodhaunter, Sclater’s Antwren, Banded Antbird, Ash-throated Gnateater, White-throated Antbird, Black-spotted Bare-eye,  Black-faced Cotinga, Ochre-bellied Flycatcher, White-bellied tody-tyrant, Royal Flycatcher, Musician Wren, Pale-eyed Blackbird, Yellow-shouldered Grosbeak to name but a few. We will also visit Ox-bow lakes in the area where we will see lakeside birds including Hoatzin, Sungrebe, Agami Heron, Greater Large-billed Seed-finch, Silvered and Band-tailed Antbirds, Amazonian Streaked Antwren, Rufous-sided Crake, Gray-breasted Crake and we may be lucky and see one of the two Giant Otter families that live in the area.  Night birding may produce Long-tailed, Great and Gray Potoos, Amazonian Pygmy Owl, Spectacled Owl, Ocellated Poorwill and Silky-tailed Nightjar amongst others. A visit to the large mammal lick in the forest, apart from attracting Tapirs, Peccaries and maybe a Jaguar, also attracts Guans, Currasows, Chachalacas as well as Rose-fronted and Rock Parakeets and Dusky-billed Parrotlet. All nights at the Manu Wildlife Centre. B:L:D  

Day 14: TO PUERTO MALDONADO AND LIMA

 Early morning start as flocks of birds pass over the boat, and we may see a Capybara, the world’s largest rodent. Our destination Boca Colorado, a frontier gold rush town,  where we’ll take local transport for an hour to the Inambari river and by paved road to Puerto Maldonado in order to catch the afternoon Airbus flight to Cusco. On arrival at around 3:00pm we’ll drop you at your hotel B: