Birding and Hiking along the Leisurely Trip to Belize City

Jonathan met us at the Dangriga Airstrip and we began birding right away. The weather seemed to be clearing up a bit, but Jonathan told us that the Hummingbird Highway was very rainy with a low ceiling of heavy clouds - not great conditions for birding in the jungle. We dallied along the shore, giving the weather a chance to clear off in the mountains.

Setting up the spotting scope.

Jonathan very kindly took some digiscope shots with my phone camera through his spotting scope.  Here is a series of a very distant great egret as it leaves it rocky perch in the sea.

The vignetting is due to the edge of scope's eye piece.  

Scoping out the birds on the sandbar.

The birds on the sandbar were not bothered at all by our presence, probably because they felt protected by the expanse of water separating us.  Lots of good birds out there.

A group of 7 or so little sanderlings, a black-bellied plover, and a laughing gull having a bath.

A royal tern (lower right) joined them, as did a couple of sandwich terns which are not in this image.

A couple of my favorite sightings of the day were a tricolor heron and a willet.  Alas, no photos.

We moved on to St. Herman's Blue Hole National Park.  Along the highway we set up the scope to see this lovely bird - a white-tailed kite.  These are digiscoped photos that Jonathan took with my phone and his scope.

Look at that fierce face!

Fluffing up against the cold dampness.

The weather was not cooperating and you can see that we struggled with visibility.  But you work with what you get in birding.

The nest of a royal flycatcher.

We heard and had glimpses of many birds at St. Herman's, but with the drizzle and low light, photos were hard to come by.  In the distance we could hear a keep-billed toucan, but didn't even manage a glimpse.  We did get good looks at several hummingbirds - a stripe-throated hermit, a wedge-tailed sabrewing, and a white-bellied emerald.  Also watched a very active lineated woodpecker on a tree just next to the hiking trail.  We hurried back to the van as the drizzle turned to actual rain and continued on our way.  After lunch in Belmopan, the weather cleared a bit, and we paid a visit to one of my favorite places in the world - Belize Bird Rescue.  That stop will get its very own post very soon, maybe tomorrow.  Then it was time to get on the George Price highway toward Belize City with a birding stop at Captain Hook's Shrimp Farm while we waiting for our "to go" shrimp dinner to be prepared.

Looking out over the shrimp ponds near dusk.

Jonathan spotted a clapper rail along the bank of the pond.

They aren't rare, but they are rarely seen.  I was thrilled to watch this bird through the scope as it preened.

We also had great looks at another tricolor heron, green heron, great and little blue herons, yellow-crowned night herons, great egrets, snowy egrets, lesser scaups, anhinga, white ibis,  These birds love their shrimp!

In all we saw or heard 62 different bird species.  And we got to our hotel in time for Becki to have her departure covid test before we ate our shrimp dinners relaxing by the hotel's pool.

Pine Ridge Creek By Kayak

The last of my three recent kayak trips was up Pine Ridge Creek.  This time, Orington took me and the kayak up in the boat to drop me off at the mouth of Pine Ridge Creek rather than paddling all the way up on the sea.  I did paddle all the way home, though, which was a total of 3.8 miles. 

Pine Ridge Creek drains an area between a shrimp farm and the sea.  Part of the swamp it drains goes all the way to Black Creel Lagoon.

Orington dropped me off a little before 7AM.  It was easier than I thought it might be to get into the kayak from the boat.  

Looking back toward the sea before heading up the creek.

After paddling for about 20 minutes, I reached the fork in the creek.  I decided to take the right fork that goes behind the shrimp farm first.  Lots of birds around, most numerous were juvenile and some mature yellow crowned night herons.  I also saw green herons, little blues, and bare throated tiger herons.  Many smaller other birds I didn't get a good look at, but I did spot a pair of black cowled orioles and quite a few doves of some sort.

The left fork turns south toward Black Creek Lagoon and the right fork heads west and then north.

Soon after the fork, the terrain changes and the pines giving the creek its name appear along both banks.  

You can see the pines up ahead.

The banks are steeper and there is actual dry ground where the pine trees grow, rather than the mangrove swamp along the lower part of the creek.  The birding highlight for this trip was the agami heron I saw skulking around near a little side stream.  I had seen an agami heron in the same location a number of years ago.  Good to know they are still around.  They are beautiful birds.  Alas, I have no photos of it or any of the other birds I saw and heard on this trip.

As I remembered from a previous trip, the creek makes a sharp turn to the north.  I think this portion may be manmade as part of the shrimp farm drainage.  The pines are not part of this section, which is predominantly red mangrove swamp.

The turn to the north.

After about an hour of paddling, this was as far as I could go without a machete, so I turned around and headed back.

I made a side trip up the other fork of the creek and explored a little flat open space.  By this time the sun was higher and there was very little bird activity aside from the group of juvenile yellow crowned night herons that I disturbed.  By 9:40 I reached the mouth of the creek and began paddling south toward home.

Beginning the return trip.

I took a couple of photos of other points of interest along the Englishtown strip.  First is a nice spot owned by our friend Craig.  He doesn't stay here full time any longer, but keeps it well-maintained.

Craig's Place.

The second is a former small fishing resort, which has fallen into ruin.  It is also owned by friends of ours, who about 10 years ago bought a lovely farm just off the Hummingbird Highway not too far from Belmopan, the capitol of Belize.

It was lovely in its heyday.

Our place is just to the south off the left side of the photo above.  And so I am almost home after 3 hours.  It was a beautiful morning.

Traveling Away From Home

I've kept a low profile for the last month or more because I have been busy with traveling (and other things).  First, by boat from our place to the airstrip, dodging the light sprinkles of rain.  From there I caught a flight on a small plane to the international airport.

The purple line marks the route of our boat from WilDen (our place) to the canal next to the Placencia Airstrip, 15 miles.

The Placencia Airstrip, serviced by 2 local commercial airlines - Maya Island Air and Tropic Air.

Placencia Airstrip to Dangriga Airstrip, 35 miles.

On the Tropic Air flight at the Placencia Airstrip.

Taxiing down the runway.  The canal to the left is where I got dropped off in our boat a little earlier.  I hopped out of the skiff and walked down the runway to the terminal - after looking both ways for planes.  ;-) 

In the air over the Placencia peninsula.

Looking toward the Cockscomb range with shrimp farms in the foreground.

Looking down on the north end of the Placencia peninsula.

Banana farm below, with jungle on either side.

Maya Mountains and jungle in the mist.

A development called "Sanctuary" near the village of Hopkins.

The Coastal Highway.  Travel at own risk during the rainy season.

Citrus farm next to the Hummingbird Highway.

Misty jungle with nearly hidden farm clearings.

Airstrip at the town of Dangriga.  This was a quick stop to take on additional passengers.

I flew on the the international airport just outside Belize City to catch my flight to the US.

Dangrigia to Philip Goldson International Airport, 45 miles.

 The photo below was taken in my destination city. 

Where was eye?

More coming soon.