Monday I had the opportunity to wander around camp once again after much time away from here. I was excited by all that I saw. One of the first finds was a small owl (Pygmy Owl?) in a tree on the upper side of camp. I could not see it well enough to identify it but it was definitely a smaller type. Later I caught a glimpse of an iguana in a tree by one of the ravines. I finally got a better look at one of the fowl-like birds on camp and identified it as a Tinamou. The most exciting find of the day though was the passion fruit that had finally turned yellow and was ready for harvesting. There were just enough for everyone on camp and today I had some ”jugo de maracuya.” Fruits and juices always taste better when it is harvested by hand (and comes from free fruit). I always loved picking wineberries and blackberries on camp in PA. The discovery of the passion fruit was a bit like finding pawpaw in PA.
Yesterday Wes reported that he saw 5 toucans down in the jungle which is also exciting news. (I saw 3 of them today. Such beautiful creatures!) On my hike later in the day I saw some Green Jays which are actually beautiful birds – blue and black head, green back, and yellow chest, but I was sad to learn that they are related to Blue Jays. I guess I was trained from my childhood to not appreciate the jays which are loud and mean. I had personal first-hand experience when I ended up too close to one of their nests. I also saw another Jesus Christ Lizard climbing a tree near the jungle. We may have nutmeg on camp which is pretty cool especially if I could figure out how to harvest it and make it useful.
Last evening I got to walk home in my first torrential downpour and be witness to how quickly rivers of water take over camp. Erosion is a huge problem. I enjoyed the short walk to my house even though I waded through many a puddle. There is something fun about being in a woods at dusk during a downpour. I had a rain jacket too so I did not get drenched. This morning the woods were misty after a good rain and were awesome for a morning run. Today’s hike in the woods also revealed more cool bird findings. A Chestnut-colored woodpecker, a Yellow throated Euphonia, and I couple of birds I have yet to identify.
My experiences and sightings out in the woods have helped me become very thankful again to be where I am at. True the power is going off a lot with the rains, but there is plenty of water now. Yes, my roof has a little leak but thankfully it is over a spot without furniture and so when I returned to my house after being gone for 5 days, only the floor was wet.
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