Private Birdwatching and Nature Photography in Puntarenas

Great birding and bird photography with Randall, who’s a very knowledgeable biologist and excellent photographer and knows the mangrove forest habitat extremely well. We had such a great time watching magnificent frigate birds fighting over fish, a pair of mating black hawks, a ringed kingfisher catching fish, and several species of birds we came to the Tarcoles river to see and many more (mangrove humming bird, Panama flycatcher, northern scrub flycatcher, mangrove warbler…). As we turned around to return to the dock, I casually mentioned that we didn’t get to see the American Pygmy kingfisher yet, Randall replied that we could try, and worked with the captain to go slowly along the river to look for it. And they found it! We had three cameras, by me and my 7- and 9-year old boys, all amateur beginners mostly working in auto mode, and we all had a wonderful time and learned a great deal from Randall. We ended up going to the botanical garden up in the mountains with him the same afternoon - again had a great time watching the scarlet macaws nesting there and flying by the observation deck outside the restaurant, other species in the gardens (toucans, golden-naped woodpecker…) and the spectacular views. Highly recommended.

Randall Ortega is a superb, knowledgeable guide. Very experienced and talented. We weren’t certain when we booked if we wanted to rent photography equipment or not. We decided to rent the equipment after booking without. No problem. Learned a lot about photography using Randall’s top of the line Nikon camera and lens. So glad we decided to do this. The birds and scenery were exquisite and Randall’s eagle eyes spotted so many thibgswewouldhaveotherwise missed. Cannot recommend highly enough. If you are a movie to photography you will learn a lot w no pressure. If you are a highly experienced photographer with or without your own equipment you will enjoy just as much.