Abra Malaga & Machu Picchu Birdwatching Adventure – 5 days

We will start our Cusco Birdwatching tour at 05:30 hrs picking you up from your hotel in the city of Cusco and we will go 30 km south of the city to Huacarpay Wetlands. Upon our arrival to Huacarpay Wetlands we will go to the different strategic points during the next three hours to spot as many Cusco birds and Cusco endemic birds as possible. We may see Rusty-Fronted Canastero (Asthenes ottonis) and Bearded Mountaineer (Oreonimpha nobilis) Ending our Cusco Birdwatching tour, we will start the return from Huacarpay Wetlands to the city of Cusco. Approximate arrival time to Cusco: 10:00 a.m.

At noon we will enjoy our lunch as a new Culinary Experience in one of the best Cusco restaurants. Here we will enjoy a tasting of the different dishes of the restaurant with one of the Chefs that will explain the concepts and the ingredients of each dish. A fun educational and unique culinary experience.

Our Cusco birdwatching tour will start by picking you up from your hotel/restaurant at 2:30 pm to go in a private vehicle to “El Bacon del Diablo”. This amazing place, special for watching Cusco birds, is located next to Sacsaywaman archeological site, like 20 minutes from Cusco City. Upon arrival to Balcon del Diablo we are going to start the exploring in 2 kilometers around looking for the cusco birds and especially the Cusco endemic birds.

Ending our Cusco birdwatching tour at 4:30 pm approximately, we will bring you to your hotel to pick up your stuff and 30 minutes later we will go to Ollantaytambo town to spend the night (accomodation is not included)

• • Huacarpay Wetlands birds Andean Duck, Puna Teal, White-tufted Grebe, Puna Ibis, Variable Hawk, Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle, Plumbeous Rail, Spotted Sanpiper, Yellow-winged Blackbird, Yellow-billed Tit-tyrant, Rusty-Fronted Canastero (E) , Bearded Mountaineer (E) , Black-tailed Trainbearer, Andean Flicker, Many-colored Rush-Tyrant, Andean Negrito, Rusty Flowerpiercer, Golden-billed Saltatoras well as other interesting birds.
   
  • Cusco birds at Balcon del Diablo Chestnut-breasted Mountain- Finch (E) , Creamy-creasted Spinetail (E), Bearded Mountaineer (E), Rusty-fronted Canastero (E) and white-tufted Sunbeam (E) as well as other interesting birds.

We will start our birdwatching at Malaga Pass departing at 5:30 am from your Ollantaytambo hotel to the Polylepis woodland at almost 4000 masl close to the Malaga Pass. At noon we will have our box lunch and later we will walk uphill to catch the vehicle to continue to the east slope of Malaga Pass looking for more Cusco birds. On the road we will do some stops on different strategic spots according to the altitudes until we arrive to our Lodge in the Cusco Cloud Forest.

Check in, dinner and sleep

• Abra Malaga Birds (East & West): Taczanowski’s Tinamou, Tyrian Metaltail, Shining and White-tufted Sunbeam (E) , Giant Hummingbird, White.billied Hummingbird, Andean Swift, Creamy-crested Spinetail (E) , Junin Canastero (E) , White-crested and Sierran Elaenias, d’Orbigny’s Chat-Tyrant, Rofous-breasted and White-browed Chat-Tyrants, Black-throated Flowerpiercer, Tit-like Dacnis, Peruvian Sierra-Finch, Ash-breasted Sierra-Finch, Greenish Yllow-Finch, Chestnut-breasted Mountain Finch (E), Black-backed Grosbeak, Hooded Siskin, Royal Cinclodes, White-browed Tit-Spinetail, Ash breasted Tit-tyrant, Andean Hillstar, Tawny Tit-spinetail, Line-fronted Canastero, Stripe-headed Antpitta, Puna Tapaculo, Brown-backed Chat-tyrant, Rufous-webbed Bush-Tyrant, Giant Conebill, Marcapata Spinetail (E) , Parodi´s Hemispingus (E) , Cuzco Brushfinch (E) , Unstreaked Tit-Tyrant (E), Royal Cinclodes (NE), White-browed Tit-Spinetail (E), Ash breasted Tit-tyrant (NE), Andean Hillstar, Tawny Tit-spinetail (NE), Line-fronted Canastero (NE), Stripe-headed Antpitta (NE), Puna Tapaculo (NE), Brown-backed Chat-tyrant, Rufous-webbed Bush-Tyrant, Giant Conebill, Tit-like Dacnis (NE) and more.

At 5:00 am we will start our Machu Picchu birdwatching adventure going in a private vehicle to Santa Teresa town and later to “Hidroelectrica” where we will start our 11 kilometers trek to Machu Picchu town known as Aguas Calientes. This trail is another access to Machu Picchu Town and it is full of people in the afternoon. However in the morning it is a special area to see some Machu Picchu birds like Cock of the rocks, Highland Motmot, Green Jay, some woodpeckers, tanagers, hummingbirds, parrots and specially to look for the Machu Picchu endemic birds known as Masked Fruiteater and Green-and-White Hummingbird.

After 7 hours walking the 11 kilometers at birdwatching pace, we will arrive to Machu Picchu town where we will enjoy our lunch (lunch is not included).

Free rest of the day to recharge your energy.

• Machu Picchu birds (Citadel, Mandor waterfalls and Ruinas bridge): Torrent Duck, Lyre-tailed Nightjar, Band-billied Owl, Chestnut-collared and White-tipped Swifts, Green Hermit, Speckled Hummingbird, Long-tailed Sylph, Buff-thighed Puffleg, Collared Inca, Chestnut-breasted Coronet, Booted Racket-tail, White-billied Woodstar, Green-and-White Hummingbird (E) , Masked Trogon, Andean Motmot, Black-streaked Puffbird, Versicolored Barbet, Blue-banded Toucanet, Ocellated Piculet, Golden-Olive Wood-pecker, Mitret Parakeet, Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper, White-tailed and White-banded Tyrannulets, Inca Flycatcher (E) , Smoke-colored Pewwe, Black Phoebe, Masked Fruiteater (E), Cock-of-the Rock, Brown-capped Vireo, Green Jay, White-capped Dipper, Dusky-green Oropendola, Inca Wren (E) and more.

We will start our Machu Picchu Birdwatching Tour at 5:30 am with a peaceful walk towards the Ruinas bridge. Once we get there, we will explore the area in order to look for Machu Picchu Birds like woodpeckers, tanagers, flycatchers, hummingbirds, but especially we will look for the Machu Picchu endemic birds known as Masked Fruiteater, Green-and-White Hummingbird and Inca Flycatcher and other incredible Machu Picchu birds like Andean Motmot, Green Jay and Cock of the Rock. According to the time, we will continue on the way to Mandor cascades. The landscape is flat and it will give us the chance to look for other Machu Picchu birds.

At appropriate time we will return to Aguas Calientes town to have our lunch (lunch is not included).

At 1:30 pm with our guide, we will catch the bus to go uphill to the Machu Picchu citadel to begin the one-hour and half tour of this magical place. In some areas of Machu Picchu citadel (On the bamboo patches) you will have the opportunity to find other Machu Picchu endemic bird known as Inca wren.

At the indicated time (30 minutes before your train schedule) you will board, on your own and with the assistance of the staff of the railway company, the train to go back to the train station of Poroy or Ollantaytambo. Upon arrival to Cusco, our staff will be waiting outside the station with a board with your name to transfer you to your hotel in the city of Cusco.

• Machu Picchu birds: Torrent Duck, Lyre-tailed Nightjar, Band-billied Owl, Chestnut-collared and White-tipped Swifts, Green Hermit, Speckled Hummingbird, Long-tailed Sylph, Buff-thighed Puffleg, Collared Inca, Chestnut-breasted Coronet, Booted Racket-tail, White-billied Woodstar, Green-and-White Hummingbird (E), Masked Trogon, Andean Motmot, Black-streaked Puffbird, Versicolored Barbet, Blue-banded Toucanet, Ocellated Piculet, Golden-Olive Wood-pecker, Mitret Parakeet, Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper, White-tailed and White-banded Tyrannulets, Inca Flycatcher (E), Smoke-colored Pewwe, Black Phoebe, Masked Fruiteater (E), Cock-of-the Rock, Brown-capped Vireo, Green Jay, White-capped Dipper, Dusky-green Oropendola.

At 9:00 am our tour will start with the pick-up from your hotel and walking through the city center, where we will visit two important buildings such as the Cathedral of Cusco that contains many paintings of the Cusco school and the imposing Temple of the Sun also known in Quechua as the “Qoricancha” considered in the time of the Incas as the most important sanctuary dedicated to the Sun God.

According to your flight schedule we will pick you up from your hotel and transfer you to the airport of Cusco.

End of service.