2008 Tour Narrative
In Brief: We’ve been visiting Machu Picchu for years in combination with our longer Manu tour, but this new tour represents our first dedicated tour to Machu Picchu and Abra Malaga. We had an excellent group, and this short tour was fun and exciting. Machu Picchu itself is a magical place, and our local guide provided a wonderfully knowledgeable introduction to Inca history. Plus we had beautiful weather for our guided tour of the ruins. The rest of the tour was devoted to birding, both at Machu Picchu and on both sides of the high pass Abra Malaga, easily accessible from Urubamba. Although this tour did not generate a huge list, we still managed to see 200 species, some amazing birds among them. In combination with our Iquitos tour, we saw more than 500 species in just over two weeks of birding!
In Detail: We began with a flight to historic Cusco and a visit to the wonderful Huacarpay Lakes. On the brushy hillsides around the lake we looked for such specialties as Rusty-fronted Canastero and Streak-fronted Thornbird, and added dry-country birds such as White-browed Chat-Tyrant and Yellow-billed Tit-Tyrant. The lakes themselves provided a number of ducks, the most common being Puna Teal, as well as nice Andean birds such as Plumbeous Rail, White-tufted Grebe, and Puna Ibis. Rufous-naped Ground-Tyrants were common in the flat grassy areas near the lakes, and we saw the cute Andean Negrito (a funny ground-dwelling flycatcher). We then checked out a nearby section of the Urubamba River, where in the extensive stands of flowering tree-tobacco we found a stunning Bearded Mountaineer; we also found a nice pair of Torrent Ducks. On the way to the hotel in Cusco we stopped by one of the main plazas for some photos.
Our visit to Machu Picchu was great. We had a wonderful tour of the ruins, which, of course, are our main reason for making the excursion—but by no means our only reason! The birding around Machu Picchu makes a visit to this area more than worthwhile. Outside the ruins themselves we saw Inca Wren, a local endemic discovered essentially at Machu Picchu, as well as Pale-legged Warbler and Rust-and-yellow Tanager. Our best birding was down near the Urubamba River, where we saw a number of local specialties including Sclater’s and Mottle-cheeked Tyrannulets, Ocellated Piculet, Blue-necked and Silvery Tanagers, and a lovely Black-streaked Puffbird, to name just a few. We had additional views of Torrent Ducks along the river, as well as river specialists such as White-capped Dipper and Torrent Tyrannulet. Over lunch at the Pueblo Hotel we watched the hummingbird feeders there, where we saw Gould’s Inca, Chestnut-breasted Coronet, Booted Racket-Tail, and both Green and Sparkling Violetears. The endemic Green-and-white Hummingbird was numerous as well. In all our visit to Machu Picchu was a great experience: excellent birding, a wonderful tour of the ruins, and excellent food.
Our two-night stay in Urubamba was equally fantastic. Our very comfortable hotel made our stay even better, but the main objective was to visit nearby Abra Malaga, a high pass along the road between Ollantaytambo and the town of Quillabamba on the eastern slope. The road had been recently paved, allowing a quicker drive to the pass, leaving us that much more time to bird. Abra Malaga is stunning—a true high Andean pass with snow-covered peaks and visible glaciers, and great birding! On the way up we stopped in the drier scrub vegetation and saw several White-tufted Sunbeams (what a hummer!), as well as Chestnut-breasted Mountain-Finch and Golden-billed Saltator. Perhaps the highlight was the soaring Andean Condor circling over one of the ridges. Birding at the pass itself was lots of fun—even in the first day’s snowstorm—and we saw such great birds as Gray-breasted Seedsnipe, Mountain Caracara, Andean Ibis, Andean Lapwing, a scattering of different ground-tyrants, and several White-winged Diuca-Finches. Birding down the east slope a ways we found an incredible flock with a number of regional specialties, including Marcapata Spinetail, the scarce and endemic Parodi’s Hemispingus, and the equally local Cusco Brush-Finch. Among my favorites were the excellent views of Diademed Tapaculo (a new bird for the leader) and the incredible Sword-billed Hummingbird. Close studies of Barred Fruiteater, Red-crested Cotinga, Crimson-mantled Woodpecker, and both Scarlet-bellied and Hooded Mountain-Tanagers made for an exciting day of birding!
We finished the tour with a morning along the coast near Lima. Coastal birding here can be incredible, and the number of Gray Gulls we saw along the beach was impressive. In addition we saw Peruvian Booby, Peruvian Pelican, Great Grebe, Belcher’s, Kelp, and Gray-hooded Gulls, Inca and Peruvian Terns, and both Red-legged and Guanay Cormorants. I look forward to next year and a return to this wonderful part of the world!
- Gary Rosenberg