We’ve got the 12 bar blues 🎼🎼

That’s a reference to an old NRBQ song and today we were out on the hunt and stake out for the 12 wired bird of paradise and did not get lucky. It was the usual MO - leave hotel at 5 am, drive to forest, hike into the hide in the dark (and today I even wore my headlamp) which allowed me to see (and ignore!) the millipedes along the trail.

So we hung around from about 6 am to 8 am and the bird was a no show. Hiked out and still did not see it but for one quick flight across the road over our heads.

It’s okay if we miss some - and if we had to miss any one in particular I’m glad it was this one since the photos we have seen don’t make it look quite as spectacular as some of the others.

We got back to the hotel in time to enjoy the breakfast buffet and we will head out again at 2pm to see where our guide takes us to lunch and then afternoon birding at a new spot and not in a hide.

And if lunch doesn’t turn out well, I can always order this tasty cracker salad the hotel has to offer 😂🤷‍♀️ I’m sure there is a logical translation that does not involve actual crackers since my crackers are not usually tender, juicy, and this flavorful.

From the stake out in the hide: I think I’m starting to look a little exhausted but I’m still feeling good. And Mike looks chipper as always. Oh, funny thing hiking in- he was in front of me on the trail and a vine got stuck around his ankle so he was dragging it along for a while and it looked like the tail of the lesser bird of paradise so I was feeling particularly interested in my male 🥰. And then I reached down and pulled it off without tripping him up.

Lesser!? I don’t think so

What a misnomer if there ever was one. This morning we saw TWO Lesser Birds-of-Paradise, and let me say they should be called amazing, not lesser.

The day began at 5 a.m. with a drive out of the city of Sorong and into the forest. Once again, my mind was hearing something out of a TV special, saying what amazing birds can be seen "deep in the Indonesian forests." We had our same driver, guide, and local guide. We got to the forest about 6 a.m., hiked in, and found two more guides to help us out. One, of course, was hiking around this rugged terrain barefoot! I fell down once, but with no negative ramifications.

I don't know how these dudes are so good at spotting the birds! I mean, we can hear them calling, but it's a thick forest. Once again, we got so lucky to have two at once, staying long enough and perching in a fairly open spot for quite a show.

It really is something to be trudging through, and sometimes off trail, to get a good look. Local guides are very helpful in getting us on the birds, even with no ability to communicate in English. At one point I did say to Mike, "I'm tolerating a lot of sweat and body odor and bad breath for these birds. And people touching me." Because they often will just take your shoulders and point you in the right direction.

And we also saw the Yellow-billed Kingfisher, which I really wanted to see. Such a tiny little cutie of a kingfisher! His bill is so big in comparison to his body that he looks like he should topple over.

Overall, a feeling of gratitude again for me today! Hiking back out a few hours later, up and down inclines, with no major aches or pains, which is an improvement from just a few months back in Costa Rica and Guatemala when my hip was cranky.

Did some road birding, walking along the road we drove in on, after that, and then back to the hotel for resting. So glad we are in this modern and new Aston because a long shower and a hot cup of freshly brewed tea in the room were exactly what I needed to feel civilized again. Mike got fantastic photos, and they will be up shortly.

Male Lesser Bird-of-Paradise displaying his spectacular yellow and white ornamental plumes.

Another view of a male Lesser Bird-of-Paradise, showing his emerald-green throat and long ornamental feathers.

Yellow-billed Kingfisher, with its oversized yellow-orange bill.

Female Blyth's Hornbill, with her enormous bill and distinctive black head and neck.

Male Blyth's Hornbill. Unlike the female, the male has a golden-brown head and neck.

Male Red-flanked Lorikeet feeding among pink flowers.

Mangrove Birds

     

Little Kingfisher

Sahul Sunbird

Female Shining Flycatcher

The boardwalk has seen better days

The masked birders

We still mask on planes, and it’s a good thing we brought our masks with us. The ferry to and from Raja Ampat had an enclosed VIP seating area which was air-conditioned but recirculated air so you’re breathing the air of other people who are coughing. For some reason, our guide wasn’t in the VIP area. He was with the locals that costs six dollars less and was equally poorly ventilated, but just more crowded seats. We travel with a CO2 monitor that tells how much recirculated air you’re breathing and the answer was quite a bit on the ferries. There was a great deal of coughing and sneezing. Anyway, our guide has a fever and is not feeling well but is going with us anyway and, well, we’re in Indonesia, so we’re doing the best we can. We saw a Pacific Baza, a black sunbird, and a Rufus-bellied kookaburra 

Birding around the resort

We allocated four days to find two birds-of-paradise and found them both on the same day, surprisingly in the same hide. So we decided to depart Raja Ampat early and spend more time in Sorong. Raja Ampat has excellent food but no air conditioning, and it's hard to sleep when the nighttime temperature is 82°F.

We birded around the resort for a few hours.

Here are some of the birds.

Male Shining Flycatcher.

Yellow bellied longbill beside a hibiscus flower.

Male Red-cheeked Parrot.

Male Eclectus Parrot.

Brown Oriole

Pink-spotted Fruit Dove.

The best part caused quite a bit of excitement: Chris got a glimpse of a Red Bird-of-Paradise right behind our room. We looked for a while, and it made a few appearances. This is a hard bird to photograph since it is always partly obscured by the branches it perches on.

Male Red Bird-of-Paradise perched in the trees behind our room.

Another view of the Red Bird-of-Paradise, showing its long tail wires and ornamental feathers.

Arriving back in Sorong was even crazier than boarding. As the ferry arrived, a bunch of young men jump onto it from another boat and storm their way into the VIP seating area, asking if you need help with your bags or a taxi. These are informal porters, looking for tips, and I guess it provides a useful service, but our guide had taken care of that for us. It also complicates the egress since there’s now 20 people in the aisle and bags being moved the wrong way. But we made our way back to the Aston hotel with air-conditioning and bad international food.

After Mike went snorkeling, we spotted a spotted cuscus

The snorkeling was pretty good, lots of fish and two turtles. The guide pointed out a turtle but it took him a while to find it, just like birding.  Chris recovered from birding in the hammock.

Chris photographed a beach kingfisher while he was out. Oh, there was a beach cockatoo as well. But the highlight was a spotted cuscus, a marsupial endemic to the area.

Raja Ampat and Birds of Paradise

So the plan was we’d be picked up in a longboat at 4:30 in the morning, take a 20 minute ride to a different part of the island and then drive to a hide.  There’s nothing like splashing in the ocean in a skinny boat at 4:30 in the morning to test a marriage. Then, on the way to the hide, there was a small fire on the side of the road and we stopped to put it out. We got to the hide about 530, and the Wilson’s bird of paradise actually showed up about 6 o’clock. It was a bit too dark for photography, although Mike tried.   Fortunately, it showed up later in the day in good light and his wife even stopped by for a while.  The most surprising part was a red bird of paradise coming to the same hide where he’s supposed to be at a different hide that we would go to tomorrow in another long boat.  We got acceptable views and pictures of him, so there’s no longboat ride tomorrow. We actually planned for four days here, but since we saw the birds we wanted on the first day, we’re cutting our trip short and going to Sorong in a hotel with air conditioning. There are plenty of other birds and even other birds of paradise there, so we should have fun. The other surprise was the Papuan Pitta.

“What’s that crazy fool doing?”

So we are back at the resort after a very successful morning of birding and Mike will I’m sure post beautiful photos as soon as possible- restrictions on internet here.

Anyway, I like to journal when things are fresh in my mind, and boy are they fresh!

We started at 4:30 am in the pitch dark climbing down into a “longboat” for our journey across to a neighboring island where the hide for the Wilson’s Bird of Paridose is active.

Andy in the front had a headlamp on, Mike and I sat behind him and behind our belongings which were covered in a tarp so they didn’t get wet. Michael our bird guide and the guy manning the engine behind us.

We quickly discovered we would be getting wet, very wet- but at least the water was warm.

It was better to laugh than cry - and I had a funny thought of our old selves.

Back in many of our pre birder vacations, we would be in some tropical paradise and due to time change up before daylight and looking out at a pitch black body of water lit by the stars. Then when we would see a small non sea worthy looking little vessel go by, I would think or say something along the lines of “what’s that crazy fool doing out there.”

Well, this time we were the crazy fools! But as I prefaced my entry everything worked out perfectly!

We were in very capable hands. We had to take our hiking shoes off, again in the dark, to get out of the boat of course. Then we got in a nice 4 wheel drive vehicle for the longest part of the trek in. Then you get out of the car and hike - in the dark - into the forest and into the hide. We had our own headlamps for this portion and Mike used his but I had enough light from the lead local guide ahead of me and didn’t take mine out until we were almost there. And then we waited ……,,, that’s what you do a lot of as a birder. One other client of the local guide shared the hide with us so no problems being crowded or uncomfortable in there - and I was sort of starting to dry off.

Oh! We did see a small fire along the way and Yopi who was riding in the back jumped out and put it out. It has not rained here in many months and there have been several small forest fires- we saw evidence of them when it was light out on our drive back.

We got SO LUCKY! this hide was for the Wilson’s bird of paradise but the Red Bird of Paradose also showed up. I should have done my pre trip studying because when I saw it, I said “what the heck is that?” instead of there’s the red bird of paradise.

That thing is huge and the tail is at least 2 feet long! I will say that these birds are really best viewed in person - at least that’s the reaction I am having. They are beautiful to look at a photo of but in person it’s sort of mind boggling to me they exist. So grateful we made this trip!

Made it to Raja Ampat

Our cottage at Raja Ampat Biodiversity Resort, complete with a hammock for relaxing between birding excursions.

The Express Belibis 8 ferry at the dock during our journey from Sorong to Raja Ampat.

Palm Cockatoo, showing off its spectacular crest and bright red cheek patches.

Spangled Starling, with its brilliant red eyes and iridescent plumage.

Common Sandpiper finding a snack along the beach.

Willie Wagtail displaying its beautifully fanned tail.

Spice Imperial Pigeon, with its pale gray head, dark green wings and bright red feet.

Mimic Honeyeater.