It’s always funny when you picture in your head how a place is going to be and then you show up and it’s vastly different. Honestly I had no expectations and didn’t know what to expect but Ross had pictured in his mind walking wide, flat trails similar to the ones we ventured down in … Continue reading Ranomafana – Madagascar – The Last Hurrah
The following morning we headed to Berenty, a private wildlife reserve in southern Madagascar where we had reservations waiting for us in what is a very touristy destination, or well, at least as “touristy” as Madagascar can get. Lemurs are notoriously easy, along with a few birds, so we opted to spend one night to enjoy … Continue reading Madagascar – Berenty – Pied Crow vs Chameleon Showdown (One of the coolest things we’ve ever seen)
If you need to get around in a foreign country using a driver, there are two ways to go about it. You can plan ahead of time and book a driver, usually someone who has driven birders before with a phone number that ends up in subsequent trip reports. Or you can just show up at the airport and wing it. Prior … Continue reading Madagascar – Andohahela – Covered in Leeches and Eating Lychees
So before I jump right into our "Reunion on Reunion" let it be known that I left Ross and went home for three weeks in the middle of our 6-month trip. It took nearly 2 days of travel on either end to get from one side of the world to the other, and I realize … Continue reading Reunion – The Indian Ocean Islands – A Reunion on Reunion
After a few hours rest from the worst boat ride of our lives, Josh and I met up with Patrice who we planned to rent a car from. Once Patrice arrived it became apparent that we were not just renting the car, we were renting Patrice along with it. The price was still reasonable to … Continue reading The Comoros Part 2 – Anjo-what?! That’s a Sparrowhawk!
We knew Biak was going to be special. Ross was going to achieve a lifelong goal and see 5,000 species of the world’s birds. That’s a pretty big achievement for a world birder in case you weren’t aware. Come on, FIVE THOUSAND birds! Get a little excited. At the time Ross started birding roughly 10,000 … Continue reading Biak – West Papua – Number 5,000
On our flight over to Nimbokrang after the Arfak Mountains, Stephan and Ross prepped Claudia and myself by basically saying how miserable Nimbokrang would be. Apparently the birding is done while walking along muddy, swampy trails that are infested with an abundance of malaria-carrying mosquitoes and weather consisting of extreme heat and 100% humidity. Hell … Continue reading Nimbokrang – West Papua – Chasing Dinosaurs
This area of West Papua, The Arfaks Mountains, is world renowned thanks to the likes of David Attenborough narrating about the uniqueness of the area on popular nature documentaries such as The Life of Birds and Planet Earth, where the amazing displays done by the male birds in the area are showcased. It was hard … Continue reading Arfaks – West Papua – Arrrfakkkk (“White People Walk Into The Forest and Money Comes Out”)
Our visit to the Kai Islands was certainly one for the books. When Google Maps and Maps.me both showed the small town of Fako in the wrong location, our little ‘overnight trip to Kai Besar’ turned into a fiasco. Buttttttt we initially started our trip on the island of Kai Kecil so let me start … Continue reading Kai Islands (Kecil & Besar) – Indonesia – What the Fako?
When you're out walking the roads all day with binoculars around your neck, a camera hanging on your shoulder, and a scope in your hand, it's no surprise that people notice you. Indonesians are very friendly and yell "hello mister" to us as they zoom by on their motorbikes. Occasionally people will stop to talk and … Continue reading Tanimbar – Indonesia – An Unlikely Encounter
