North Hill, Anguilla – This morning, the resident bananaquits greeted me in my garden. Here, they are better known as sugar birds, because they love the sweet stuff. The other day at the beach bar, I saw them trying to…
16 Best Things to Do in Costa Rica
Come to Costa Rica to discover magnificent landscapes, endless outdoor activities and creatures great and small. This smallish Central American country offers a world of adventure, from water sports to mountain hikes, from rainforest wildlife watching to cloud-forest birding. And when you’re…
Misty Mountain Majesty
Monteverde, Costa Rica – It’s such a joy to be back in Monteverde, one of my favorite places in Costa Rica. Monteverde always manage to thrill me with its misty mountain majesty, and impress me with its community dedication to…
Riddle
Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí, Costa Rica – Spending the day looking for birds at the world-famous rainforest preserve, La Selva Biological Station, I made up a riddle. How do you find a keel-billed toucan in the rainforest? Answer: Follow your…
La Vida Rural
San Miguel de Sarapiquí, Costa Rica – What a thrill to be back in Costa Rica for a Lonely Planet guidebook update! This whole thing came about rather unexpectedly, so I am traveling solo (for now), during the rainy season,…
Best Times to Visit Cape Cod
What are the best times to visit Cape Cod? Daydreams often include long sunny days at the beach, strolling on the sand, frolicking in the water and eating plenty of seafood. In reality, this idyllic picture only exists a fraction…
Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary
Topsfield, Mass – The grandparents came to visit! We celebrated this somewhat rare occurrence by meeting our cousins at the Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary. We had been to this Mass Audubon property years ago (nine years ago!) for maple sugar…
Snowy Owls on Plum Island
Newburyport, Mass – Daddio doesn’t like skiing or scuba-diving. But he does like to play golf. And more than anything, he loves birdwatching. For Daddio’s birthday, we should do what Daddio likes to do. So I planned a birdwatching outing…
Harold Parker State Forest
Andover, Mass – We took our first pandemic field trip to Harold Parker State Forest. Unlike some other states, in Massachusetts, we are not stuck at home. At least not yet. State parks and some private reserves are still open…
Birding at the Venice Rookery
Venice, Florida – One of our favorite annual activities is birding at the Venice Rookery. Just before sunset, hundreds of birds come home to roost on this tiny island, managed by the Venice Audubon Society. This outing offers prime bird…