"If it wasn't for bad luck I'd have no luck at all"
Cut my 'BLUES' teeth on the likes of Albert from about the age of 12 years.
Wot a Dude!
Rather think this is his 'home made' axe, certainly not a Gibson Flying V
While hope always springs eternal here at the Bagsy Blog we also have to be realistic and realise that things are likely to get worse before getting any better. We are not talking here particularly about the state of the nation, but more about the impending ‘cold snap’ that is now upon us and forcing us to shut down c4 of our c5 Moth Traps.
Cut my 'BLUES' teeth on the likes of Albert from about the age of 12 years.
Rather think this is his 'home made' axe, certainly not a Gibson Flying V
While hope always springs eternal here at the Bagsy Blog we also have to be realistic and realise that things are likely to get worse before getting any better. We are not talking here particularly about the state of the nation, but more about the impending ‘cold snap’ that is now upon us and forcing us to shut down c4 of our c5 Moth Traps.
Additionally,
migration is always slow to reach our part of the world, despite only being
little more than a stone’s throw from the coast, but we always have our almost inexhaustible
‘archive’ at hand to weather such stormy waters!
For however long it
takes, we will field what highlights we have, on a daily basis, before reaching for that wealth of
images within the external hard drive!
The only minor gem to come from the traps has been
SATELLITE
named thus from the 2 tiny white specks seemingly revolving around the orange Planet.
Now, in a random sequence a few 'goodies' from around our own
Planet.
The Grand (3 month) Tour of South America
was an ambitious and open ended one except for the first 2 countries.
The last 10 days of 2009 and the first 3 of the following year were spent
on a dedicated Birding Tour across much of northern Colombia before
crossing the border into Venezuela. There I had commissioned the sevices of the highly
recommended David Escanio as my guide abley assited by his side-kick and driver Bruno ?
The time spent with these 2 'top of their game' micky taking and jolly Herbert's was, to say the least, an absolute delight! However, what I hadn't considered in the full equation were flight availabilities
to carry me on to my next destination Quito in Ecuador. As if he had somehow predicted this, David had presented me with his telephone number and a assurance that should I get stuck simply to give him a ring.
Not that the birds etc of the
Parqu Del Este
in the heart of the capital Caracas were not enough (6 species of Macaw alone)
there was no knowing how long the delay might be. Back to David and he soon had
BRUNO
whisking me off to the
Hato Pinero Reserve
some 220 miles south of the capital.
Guides, transport and full board were a part of the gig and there were few other visitors,
surely we can let the images do the talking!
With first up
BUFF-NECKED IBIS
YELLOW-CROWNED PARROT
and
PEARL KITE
before preparing for the nocturnals and
managing to catch the
COMMON PAUAQUE
bedazzeled in the headlights.
No sooner had we recovered from the excitement of this relatively numerous Nightjar
of far, far more value was an
OCELOT
watched for a full 15 minutes and allowing for a very flakey video clip,
it is difficult (ney impossible) to contain one's self under such circumstances!
it is difficult (ney impossible) to contain one's self under such circumstances!
afterwhich it was back to the
BEER BAR
bright and early the following morning it took no time at all to add the likes of
ORIOLE BLACKBIRD
CAPPED HERON
BROWN-THROATED PARAKEET
SHARP-TAILED IBIS
Mammals were represented by
WHITE-TAILED DEER
and the largest living Rodent in the World
CAPIBARI
unsurprisingly still the birds kept coming such as
YELLOW-KNOBBED CURASSOW
SAFFRON FINCH
WHISTLING HERON
YELLOW-HEADED CARACARA
and
JABIRU
Reprisentatives of the Reptilia included
the totally bizzare and mind-blowing
MATAMATA TURTLE
along with an extrdiary and long lasting exhibition of fish catching by the local
CAIMEN
On the final day of 3 my transport was due at 10:00, so a few hours to capitalise
but who could have predicted they would be the very best of the trip let alone this all too short stay
GREAT POTOO
one of my favourite family groups,
the fairly ordinary looking
SUNBITTERN
until it does
this
however, with its prehistoric pedigree and prehensile claw the
HOATZIN
knocks the Sunbittern off its perch for my money even securing a
for the Dream Catcher the skinny brown fella at 1 'o' clock, Capercaille at 5.
for the Dream Catcher the skinny brown fella at 1 'o' clock, Capercaille at 5.
I had been held up in a few facinating places across World
but nothing quite like this!
It was a stranger who turned up in a huge wood-trimmed shootingbreak to return me to the capital
with an absolute gobsmacker to end mu stay. Pulling into a garage to re-fuel I nipped off to buy the coffees. On my return the guage read 50 litres the cost of which was half that of the 2 beverages!
Absolutely nothing to do with 'vote catching'
President Chavez
keeps the overwhelming oil production in the country to no more than a small donation at the pumps!
Equador, Peru, Chile and Argentina still lay before me but there was time to muse
It was a stranger who turned up in a huge wood-trimmed shootingbreak to return me to the capital
with an absolute gobsmacker to end mu stay. Pulling into a garage to re-fuel I nipped off to buy the coffees. On my return the guage read 50 litres the cost of which was half that of the 2 beverages!
Absolutely nothing to do with 'vote catching'
President Chavez
keeps the overwhelming oil production in the country to no more than a small donation at the pumps!
Equador, Peru, Chile and Argentina still lay before me but there was time to muse
"Thank Heavens for Bad Luck"
