Cloud Forest Photo Safari

A 10 night photographic journey visiting the best bird photography sites in the Cloud Forest of the Andes lowlands in beautiful Ecuador. Every day is packed seeing and photographing stunning colourful species. Highlights will include fun hummingbird gardens that are literally buzzing with activity, busy lodge feeding sites, cock of the rock leks, the chance to see the critically endangered Andean Condor at eye level and trekking with spectacled bears. We will stay in rustic comfortable lodges. 

All under the tuition and inspiration of Andy Rouse and his expert local team. 

Safari Overview

Dates: June 3rd to 13th 2024

Price: £6995

Availability: FULL

Cloud Forest - The first part of the trip will be spent at two lovely lodges in the Cloud Forest where we will concentrate on the local toucans / toucanets / hummingbirds / flower piercers and numerous colourful Tanagers that visit local feeding sites and our lodge platforms. We may get Trogons, MotMots, cuckoos and all manner of extras as well. We will also visit a Cock of the Rock lek for an experience you will never forget, check the image out below of this magnificent bird. Our Ecuador tour has no fixed itinerary  so we will go where the best species are at the time, we have multiple choices of places to go for each day. 

Andes foothills -  we will visit an Andean Condor reserve where we will hopefully photograph these amazing predators at eye level. It's an incredible experience to see this critically endangered bird and each visit we do supports the local conservation project for them. 

AntiSana CloudForest - The final part of the trip will be spent at a lodge in the lower Cloud Forest which borders the species rich Antisana national park. As with all of our Ecuador trips we will have a variety of species to shoot and places to go, depending on the weather of course and local conditions. But we will certainly be targeting the Spectacled Bear from here, plus the spectacular Spangled Coquette hummingbird and our second cock of the rock lek. Add into this a monkey feeding site, various beautiful Tanagers and the second smallest hummingbird in Ecuador and you can see we will be very busy here!

Flexibility - the thing that we love about Ecuador is the flexibility. We have no set plans at any of the lodges. Instead we have a variety of things that we can do, depending on the weather and the feeding behaviour at the time. So the ideas above and throughout this brochure are some of the exciting options that we will choose at the time, thus ensuring you have the best possible chances of great photos and experiences. 

Guides - You will have Andy with you at all times to help you use your cameras to the best of your ability. He will both challenge and inspire you. Suzie will be there too as a superb spotter, another camera assistant and to provide her LightRoom processing expertise to anyone that needs it. Working alongside Andy will be his superb local birding guide and lodge owner Luis, who will handle all the fieldcraft elements of the trip. In short you have a very dynamic team!!!

Health - it is essential that you read carefully the Health and Fitness / Who Should Come on this Tour sections below as this tour will not suit everyone. As always we tell you the truth about everything ahead of time with no flannel!








Hummingbird Gardens

Hummingbirds are simply adorable and you will fall in love with them. The usual problem is that they are tough to photograph, well not with us! We will have many opportunities to photograph beautiful hummingbirds at multiple locations, all of them are completely relaxed and exclusive to us on the day.

All of our hummingbird photography will use natural light, there will be no flash setups. At some sites we will be photographing the hummingbirds feeding on clumps of flowers, at others we will provide naturally occurring flowers so you can get some iconic isolated feeding images. 

Trust me you will come away with amazing hummingbird images!

You will love your interaction with hummingbirds, I could list all the species but it's pointless here as there are so many, the highligts will be the Swordbill, the Sylph, Trainbearer and Spangled Coquette. Just know you will get a LOT of  beautiful hummingbirds as I will be there to help you every single second!







Lodges and feeders

So that is hummingbirds covered. Now in the Cloud Forest we will be spending a lot of time photographing the species that come to the lodges. That's right, we don't have to move. All the lodges have custom built photography decks where you can literally have breakfast and take pictures without moving location! It means you can have your laptop setup there too and shoot in a very relaxed way. It's so much fun. One lodge has three different decks for photography which are amazing. 

So what kind of species visit the decks? Well all kinds of toucans, toucanets, lots of Tanagers and other colourful jobbies plus lovely coloured birds like the toucan barbets you see here. There will be combination of perches that we supply and natural perches too, everything will be shot in natural light. 

For some special species, like the plate billed mountain toucan and toucan barbet we will use local friends that have great feeding sites, plus we have a host of plan B options too as we have a large network. So you will always have great choices.




Condor Reserve

We have a special permit allow us to drive to the top of the nesting / roosting cliffs for the Andean Condor, so we will head up first thing in the morning, setup and wait.  Once the temperature rises the condors will begin to fly and hopefully will soar underneath us which will be an unforgettable experience. 

After lunch at a hacienda with a great viewpoint we will head to our Antisana cloud forest lodge. 




Spectacled Bear Tracking

The amazing Spectacled Bear is native to Ecuador but can be very tough and elusive to photograph. Fortunately we have some great local connections with a ranger group that follows a few radio tracked bears in a beautiful Paramo grassland habitat. Now don't worry, some individuals will have collars but the majority won't!

As always in Ecuador this will be an option for one of our lodge stays. We will be in contact with the trackers and if they find them in a good place then we will make the journey from our lodge to the area. It will then be a hike with your kit to get to the location, a minimum of 30 minutes maximum 2 hours, hence you will need to be fit enough to carry your kit (the minimum) over undulating terrain. It's not mountainous but it's not perfectly flat either. Someone with normal fitness can do this with no problem, you need to be aware that it will always be an extended walk but the reward is so so worth it.

They are beautiful bears and worth all the effort to find them, we will have 3 days to have a go so we are confident of success! Your tour price includes one excursion, if we need another then we will just charge at cost (see prices below).







Cock of the Rock leks

There is nothing like the experience of being close to a cock of the rock lek. These amazing birds come together in the early / late light and display, sometimes aggressively, to each other. It's an amazing spectacle and we will work hopefully (weather permitting) in hides at two different leks of both subspecies. It will be an experience that you will never forget!





Our Lodges

So to our lodges. In total we will be staying at 3, all are unique and full of Ecuadorian charm and hospitality. The main material used for all the construction is wood, and as you can see that the decor is just so cool and it is done by the lodge owner. 

Your rooms are tastefully decorated, with a choice of double or twin rooms and private bathrooms with showers. We will be using upgraded rooms in the Cloud Forest throughout so trust me you will love your rooms. As I have said above, in the Cloud Forest we will be photographing from the lodges for a good percentage of the time which means your rooms are literally a few steps away from the birdies! 

Food wise the fare is traditionally Ecuadorian, lunch and dinner will be 3 courses starting with soup, breakfast is fresh fruit and eggs. If needed we will take a packed lunch and I can tell you they know how to make a sandwich! Now on the subject of food, you have to realise that we are in remote locations and special diets cannot be easily catered for. So vegetarian and vegan yes, gluten free and lactose intolerant too provided you are flexible on what you have but if you have any other diet then please email me first to check. 





Health and Fitness

This is very important so please read. We will be working at a higher altitude than you may be used to. So far after two successful trips we did not notice the effects of this with any clients at all. 

Altitude - Quito airport is at 3000m and the lodges will be at approximately this high too. The Condor will be at 4000m. Again we noticed no ill effects of this but it's important to be aware.

A lot of the photography that we will be doing will be from the decks of the lodges so there is no real fitness involved... except that you will be at 3000m so that may have an effect. 

There are however some locations that will require some fitness to complete, they are all optional of course and you can always choose to stay at the lodge and photograph:

1) The cock of the rock leks will require walking in the jungle, maximum 20 minutes, again carrying your own kit. The paths are great but you still have to walk and obviously the way back is up all the way!!

2) Our Spectacled Bear trekking will involve a hike between 30 minutes and 2 hours, the terrain can be flat or there can be ups and downs. Again this is optional and you can remain at the lodge photographing the hummingbirds there if you don't feel up to this. 

3) The Condor will require only a 5 minute level walk but you must remember that you will be at 4000m so again this may have an effect although it didn't on the last trip. 

Kitwise we will always advise everyone what they will need each day. We always suggest just one camera, one lens and spare batteries plus your waterproofs. That's it, it's best to travel light!

You must be extremely honest about your fitness. You must be able to carry your own kit for all of the situations described above.  At the lodges we have staff to assist with all baggage transfers.

I wanted to be honest here as average good fitness is essential for this trip. 



Why an Andy Rouse Safari?

I put this in my words and a dodgy font so you ! Many of you will come because you've been with me before and you know I deliver as much as I can and will trust me. You will also know that I hate putting all this stuff down but on this tour you will 100% need my skill and experience. I will be giving you regular briefings and help and I will be right there next to you shooting at all times.  Before our first hummingbird session you will get all the info you need on the tech and composition side of taking great shots of these beautiful birds. I will lead from the front, making daily decisions on the schedule and any changes that we need to make. 


Guide team

In addition to me there are two more members of the team, Suzie and Luis.

Suzie - is an accomplished photographer, a LightRoom expert and a superb bird spotter. She has been invaluable on our trips spending time with clients helping them with their photography (as many will testify) and as a superb assistant to Luis in spotting the birdlife. 

Luis - is my local bird expert, he owns the lodges and is an excellent photographer (the spectacled bears and macaw drinking spot pictures are his) and a superb naturalist. He is well connected to all the local communities and will be doing all of the logistics and fieldcraft that we need to ensure that we maximise the potential of this trip. 

I have a brilliant team.

Who should / should NOT come on this tour

This tour is not just for serious birders. Yes you need to have a good appreciation of our feathered friends, but the way we are running this trip means it will be equally exciting for non photographers too. 

As usual the people we do not want on this trip are the trophy hunting photographers that want to further their careers / social media profiles without any recognition of who gave them the help. If you are used to getting your own way and always "pushing" guides etc to get your own way then you will not be welcome on this trip and nor will you enjoy it!! Out of respect the guides will only listen to me as my team has the experience and knowledge, clients that trust in me have a great time! So if this sounds like you then please don't apply for this tour as there are plenty of other tours out there for you. 

For us we need people on this trip that can work as a team with others, we will have minibus transfers for a few hours a couple of times so you must enjoy seeing the world pass by in a relaxed manner. When at the towers / hummingbirds we work as a team again, helping each other out. It can rain in Ecuador like you cannot believe, for many hours on end, which can scupper our plans of course. So in situations like this you must be able to just chill and wait for better weather. Note we will still go out in the rain and work, just not when it's torrential!!

So in summary we just want nice people that can experience the joy of travelling together and can go with the flow!



Itinerary

So below is an outline itinerary for the trip, the order that we do everything may change closer to the date and we will be flexible to allow this. One thing I have now stopped doing though is giving detailed itineraries as now people just use our itineraries for their own photographic trips, which will no longer be happening here as I consider this lower than the gutter and have already removed some people from the database for doing this!


June 3rd 2024 - Arrive Quito Ecuador and transfer to our first lodge

4th - All day shooting hummingbirds, toucans and other visitors to our lodge

5th - All day shooting hummingbirds, toucans and other visitors to our lodge

6th - Morning hummingbird session, transfer to new cloud forest lodge

7th - All day shooting at the lodge or hummingbird gardens or mountain toucan site or cock of the rock

8th - All day shooting at the lodge or hummingbird gardens or mountain toucan site or cock of the rock

9th - Morning swordbill hummingbird session, transfer to Quito hotel overnight

10th - Early morning drive to Andean Condor reserve, lunch then afternoon transfer to Antisana lodge

11th - All day shooting cock of the rock lek, hummingbird garden, monkey feeder, spectacled bear

12th -  Morning photo session then drive to Quito airport for flight home

13th - Arrive home


Wow what a packed itinerary!!!


Travel

The tour starts and finishes at Quito, Ecuador. The best airline for this is KLM which operates connections from the UK via Amsterdam to Quito. BA also operates a code share with Iberia but it's quite expensive at this time. 

After booking we will assist you with your flights.

Travel within Ecuador will be via a comfortable 4x4 minivan driven by an experienced local driver that we have used before. 

Miscellaneous

Weather - the weather everywhere is unpredictable! It may rain a lot or a little, there is nothing we can do about this. You must be able to take this in your stride as the weather can scupper our plans for things like the cock of the rock lek. It can take out our electricity for a few hours too. 

Insect life -  in the Cloud Forest there are some biting insects at night so shorts are pretty much a no no! Long socks and boots are the order of the day, sprays will sort out the local insect life so don't worry. 

Branded stuff - yes we will have some branded clothing as usual, free to you as a gift from us!

Pre-departure Info - as always I will provide extensive pre departure info several months before the trip that will cover everything that you need to know. We can zoom too if needed. 

Cameras etc - covered in the above pre departure info but generally you will need a reach of 500mm  / 600mm to get the most from this trip.

No of people - there will be 7 clients on this tour, which we have done to reduce the costs. Everywhere has enough space for this many people so don't worry, as we will always be working alone. 

Reality check - you must be very honest about your expectations for this trip. There are no guarantees about what we see, it is all down to luck on the day combined with our fieldcraft. Sometimes there is a raptor around and birds just don't show up, that is why we have a flexible itinerary. 

Booking Info

The price of the tour is £6995 per person sharing a twin room, the single supplement is £350.

This includes all Quito land costs airport to airport, all admissions to hummingbird gardens, one spectacled bear trek session and all transfers, food and accommodation (except the night in Quito). 

This price excludes the hotel accommodation in Quito on June 9th (approx $100 pp), alcohol, souvenir hats and items of a personal nature. 

Tipping - it is customary to tip in Ecuador. I have included basic tipping amounts for the lodges in your fee above but please allocate approx $250 pp for tips. 

The deposit is £2000 per person and the remaining balance is split 50% and is due 6 months and 3 months before departure. All monies paid are totally non refundable unless we find someone to take your place, in which case we will refund your money within a reasonable time frame. Once the final balance is paid however this is not refundable and we advise you to take out sufficient travel insurance to cover all eventualities that may arise. 

To book your place please click here to email me.

Terms and Conditions

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  1. The meaning of some words used in these Terms and Conditions.
  2. We, us or our is a reference to ARWP Ltd.
  3. You or your is a reference to the person to whom we are providing our services and who is required to pay for the services we provide.
  4. Services means the trips, tours, tuition or workshops we will organise. The precise services we will be providing to you will be started in the literature including website(s) and newsletters advertising the services on offer and as we may agree from time to time
The Terms

  1. Legally binding contract
    1. A legally binding contract between you and us will come into being when you accept the offer of services from us by booking your place.
    2. We suggest that before you accept the offer and book your place you read through these Terms and Conditions.  If you have any questions concerning them please contact us.
    3. You should keep a copy of these Terms and Conditions for your records.
  2. Providing the Services
    1. Our aim is to always provide you with the Services using reasonable care and skill.
    2. There are certain situations or events which occur such as but not limited to adverse weather, non or poor appearance or wildlife, Acts of God, war, acts of terrorism, riot or civil commotion, fire, strike and government or other official intervention which are not within our reasonable control and will affect our ability to provide the services.  Where this occurs we will where possible attempt to recommence performing the services as soon as we are able to. In such circumstances there may be a delay before we can start or continue performing the services.  Sometimes we might have to bring the start time for the services forward.  If we are able to start or continue performing the services or bring the start time forward but you choose not to participate for any reason you will not receive any refund. 
  3. Expulsion from Services 
    You agree to act in a suitable and proper manner whilst participating in the services with particular reference to the safety and welfare of wildlife and the enjoyment of the service by other participants and their safety.  Should you be in breach of this we reserve the right to expel you from the services and in those circumstances you would not receive any refund. 

  4. Cancellation by us   
    If we cancel the services you will receive a full refund. If Andy Rouse is not able to lead the tour for reasons of health or any other unforeseeable event then the tour will still take place and a suitable guide replacement will be provided of the same quality and experience. 

  5. Cancellation by you
    1. Once we and you enter into a binding contract you will not be able to cancel the contract.  This is so that the services we are providing can continue for the benefit of other clients.  In the case of trips to India, any money paid by you will not be refunded whereas paid as a deposit or in full payment. In the case of trips to other destinations, unless covered by specific terms in the brochure, can only be refunded once a replacement has been found for the tour. In all cases once your balanace has been paid then all monies become non refundable. 

  6. Insurance 
    It is your responsibility to ensure that you have adequate travel or other insurance to cover all eventualities where you do not receive a refund from us.

  7. Restrictions and Assumptions 
    We will assume that all information and facts that you provide are accurate and true such as your level of fitness or health if this is relevant to the particular services.  It is your responsibility to draw to our attention anything which may be relevant or which may affect you from participating in the services we provide before booking and making your payment to us. 

  8. Exclusion and Limitation of Liability 
    1. We do not exclude or limit liability for our negligence or negligence omission which causes you personal injury or death.
    2. We will not accept liability for any loss of or damage to photographic or any other equipment no matter how caused during or as a consequence of the services we provide.  
    3. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have adequate insurance to cover loss or damage to photographic or any other equipment before participating in the services.
    4. In circumstances where we may be liable for any loss or damage suffered by you which is a reasonably foreseeable consequence of a breach by us of this Agreement, our maximum liability will be the amount of payment received from you for this particular service.

  9. Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999
    For the purposes of the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 this Agreement is not intended to, and does not, give any person who is not a party to it any right to enforce any of its provisions.

  10. Entire Agreement 
    These Terms and Conditions of Business constitute the entire Agreement between us and you and shall apply to all services provided by us. The invalidity or un-enforceability of any particular term of this Agreement shall not affect the other provisions herein.

  11. Law and Jurisdiction
    This Agreement shall be governed and construed by the Law of England and you and we agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the Courts of England and Wales. 

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