And then there is one more cloud forest on the list to see: Monteverde Cloud Forest. We are staying in the village of Sint Elena, and Monteverde Cloud Forest is just a little further away. It isn’t too stormy this morning, and the sun breaks through around 9:00 AM. A good day for a walk, with slightly thicker clothing. We arrange a shuttle bus to Monteverde and are in luck, because there are other guests who have already reserved the shuttle, meaning we can board half an hour later.
It is a great wish of mine to see hummingbirds. A number of them fly around in the garden of Casa Balbi every day. But at the entrance to Monteverde Cloud Forest, there is a hummingbird café where they are lured with nectar and fly back and forth. It is amazing to see the fluttering, chirping, and speed. Just like the colors when they spread their wings. When a hummingbird sits still, many look brownish or greenish. Because of this, they do not stand out at all in the cloud forest, but when they start flying, you see the beautiful colors. Bright purple, bright blue, red, green, white—they seem to have every color. Very beautiful. I managed to capture a few in a photo.
I do not post videos on this website, but I put them on the Instagram page. Even if you do not have an account, you can watch them there.
In this cloud forest, we see, once again, many shades of green. And so many plants with large leaves or trees that make us look small.
We hiked the longest route, the Continental Divide Trail, which is 4.2 kilometers long and features significant elevation changes. There is a viewpoint offering a beautiful view where you can see both sides of the mountain: the Pacific coast and the Caribbean coast. Unfortunately, we are sitting right in the middle of a cloud and the deck is closed.
It is beautifully green; whichever cloud forest you visit, it is worth it.
If Monteverde, Costa Rica, is on your wish list, don’t wait years. Because of climate change, the cloud cover is slowly rising higher and higher. As a result, it is expected that in a few years, the cloud forests will transform into rainforests. A stay of two nights would have been too short for us, which is what most tourists do. We recommend two or three full days. Monteverde is truly a beautiful green mountain.
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