holmesneg said:
Hi,
Be gentle with me, it is my first post....and typically, I want something!
I am a keen UK birder who, over the past few years, has enjoyed a birding element to family holidays to Costa Rica, Panama, India, Florida, Mallorca, France.
Now I am considering taking the plunge and going on a more dedicated birding holiday. I have read about an 8 day trip with Wildwings staying at the Pax guest house in Trinidad. They do a birding package that includes trips out pretty much everyday to the hotspots. This is within my budget, unlike some of the horrendously priced briding trips.
Does anyone have any experience of Trinidad/Wildwings/Pax that may help me decide whether this is the right trip for me?
Anything would be appreciated as this is a new location and new type of trip for me....I need to get my money's worth.
Thanks
Nick
Hi Nick,
What are the dates of your tour? I'll be leading a birding tour to T&T in January and will be at Pax from the evening of Jan. 24th until the morning of Jan. 28th. It would be great to meet you there. In my highly prejudiced opinion (I've been birding there more than 50 times), you’ll have a great time birding in Trinidad and will get a lot for your money.
I have no personal experience with Wildwings, but I’ve been staying at Pax Guest House Mt. St. Benedict since about 1978 and love everything about it. Visit their website at
http://www.paxguesthouse.com/ for more information. Planetware has some nice pics of the Mt. St. Benedict area:
http://www.planetware.com/photos/TRI/TRI073.HTM
http://www.planetware.com/photos/TRI/TRI098.HTM
http://www.planetware.com/photos/TRI/TRI099.HTM
http://www.planetware.com/photos/TRI/TRI074.HTM
http://www.planetware.com/photos/TRI/TRI075.HTM
To quote briefly from the new edition of my
Birdwatcher's Guide to Trinidad and Tobago: “At the edge of the Northern Range, with the ornate tapestry of the blue-green forest on Mount Tabor at its back and the lush Plains of Caroni at its feet, lies the Pax Guest House Mount St. Benedict. Centrally located in the cool heights (250 m, 820 ft.) of the largest and oldest (1912) Benedictine monastery in the Caribbean, Pax boasts 19 rooms, three tennis courts, and several nature trails on a 243-ha (600-acre) estate. The area contains two distinctly different types of evergreen forest: softwood (Caribbean pine) and hardwood. Guided tours through the estate are available… Pax Guest House is centrally located for birding excursions in all directions and is itself surrounded by bird-rich habitat. The manager, Gerard Ramsawak, is the epitome of a perfect host, providing delectable Caribbean dishes, sumptuous lunches, and sublime rum punch while adding his own charming personality to an already pleasing ambiance. You may telephone Pax directly from overseas, and you may telephone overseas from Pax. Piarco Airport is about 11 km (7 mi.) to the east, and Port-of-Spain is 12 km (7.5 mi.) to the west… Electricity at Pax is standard 120-volt, 60-cycle alternating current; appliances usually will need no converters. Most rooms are on the second floor. Baths are mostly shared, with separate men’s and ladies’ rooms. There also are efficiency (self-contained) rooms. Breakfast usually is served from 7:30 to 9:00 a.m., lunch buffet at 12:30 p.m., and dinner buffet at 7:30 p.m. Birders can arrange to have breakfast served as early as 5:30 a.m. or to have fruit and beverages set out for them the night before. Enormous lunches are packed every day for picnics in the field.”
Pax uses a comfortable van for birding trips, with Kenny Calderon as their local bird expert. Kenny’s father, Lawrence Calderon, was the first professional bird tour guide in Trinidad, way back in the 1960s. Kenny’s sister, Molly, is a local bird expert at the Asa Wright Nature Centre.
In my experience it's easier to find Lesser Swallow-tailed and Chestnut-collared Swifts, Rufous Nightjar, and Short-tailed and Zone-tailed Hawks in the Pax area than it is anywhere else in Trinidad. Gerard has planted an extensive hummingbird/butterfly garden that's produced 13 species of hummingbirds, including a very cooperative Brown Violet-ear on my last visit.
I'd be happy to answer any other questions you have about birding in T&T. You might consider visiting my
Birding Trinidad website at
http://birderbill.us and following some of the links to learn more about the area.
All the best,
--Bill Murphy, Indianapolis, Indiana USA
