Los Andes is a private plantation located on the slopes of the Atitlán Volcano, whose peak is a spectacular viewing point of Lake Atitlán. This plantation provides shelter to coastal birds such as the Cabanis’ Tanager (Tangara cabanisi), whose distribution is limited from the east of Chiapas to the west of Guatemala along the Pacific watershed. The agricultural systems (coffee and tea) alternate with native vegetation. These woods are of particular importance, since they shelter animals and plants found nowhere else in Guatemala.

Location: Municipal District of Santa Barbara, Department of Suchitepequez
Area: 610 hectares (Conap 2006).

TOPOGRAPHY
The topography is very pronounced and the elevations go from 900 to 1,500 m.a.s.l. Because of the slope of the terrain, rivers become waterfalls.

CLIMATE
The temperature varies between 18º C and 24º C. The rainy season is from May to November and the annual rainfall is above 6,000 mm (Anonymous 1999). Heavy rains alternate with clear days. The soil, which is of volcanic origin, is very fertile and is well drained to abosorb the heavy rains.

NATURAL SPOTS
• COFFEE TOUR: You can visit the coffee plantations and get to know all about coffee processing and can also participate in the picking of the coffee cherries (November through January) and in the taste tests.

• TEA TOUR: A tour of the tea plantations will allow you to participate in its production process. Tea leaves are picked throughout the year. At the end of the tour you can enjoy a delightful cup of tea.

• ATITLAN VOLCANO: This volcano with an almost perfect cone is a twin (joined at the base) of the Tolimán Volcano. The summit, at 3,537 m.a.s.l. (Prahl and Suarez, 1989) is a perfect lookout point for Lake Atitlán and the volcanoes surrounding it.

CONTACTS
To visit the plantation a reservation must be made. E-mail helloandes@intelnett.com Web page www.andescloudforest.org All expenses must be cancelled at the offices of Los Andes, S.A. Address: 7a. Av. 14-44 Zone 9 Edificio La Galeria Level 2 Local 21. Groups between 10 and 15 people are recommended.

For an organized tour, contact one of the tour operators listed below:
Estela Rosales, TESSA, tessamanager@yahoo.com.mx
Irene Rodríguez, Operador Latino operadorlatino@terra.com.gt
Bitty Ramirez, La Via Maya, info@viamaya.com
Sandra Muralles, Mayaexotic Travel Operaciones info2@mayaexotic.guate.com

GETTING THERE
When leaving Guatemala City, take Highway CA-9 to the Pacific, continuing on the new Palin-Escuintla toll expressway, then take Highway CA-2 going to Mazatenango. When you reach Cocales (Km 113), turn right towards Patulul (a 2-hour drive from the city). At Km 173 you will find an all weather road to the left, which goes past a number of plantations, so it is easy to get lost (there are no road signs at present). Keep on going to the right. For this last portion of the road you will need a 4-wheel drive vehicle. At the entrance to the plantation there is a barricade. Site Map

BIRDING SPOTS
At Los Andes you will find birds such as the White-throated Magpie-jay (Calocitta formosa) and the Spot-breasted Oriole (Icterus pectoralis), which inhabit the South Coast, as well as other migratory orioles, among them the Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula) and the Orchard Oriole (Icterus spurius). These birds usually feed on the fruit of the Inga sp. trees. You will also see hummingbirds such as the Rufous Sabrewing (Campylopterus rufus) and the Violet Sabrewing (Campylopterus hemileucurus). The road down from the plantation is a good place to watch coastal birds.

In the garden, the birds seem to prefer a particular shrub, which is 3 meters high and similar to the Poinsettia with its red “leaves” and a number of small white flowers. These shrubs are full of Red-legged Honeycreepers (Cyanerpes cyaneus). There are also two species of Amazilia looking for food in these bushes: the Azure-crowned Hummingbird (Amazilia cyanocephala) and the Berylline Hummingbird (Amazilia Beryllina). The Berylline Hummingbird defends its territory (a couple of flowers) from the Red-legged Honeycreepers and other hummingbirds.

On the way to the hydroelectric plant (Coralito River Trail) you will pass tea plantations and then go through a wooded area. The slope of this road is quite steep, but it is worthwhile to go to the lower part. The abundant water of the Los Andes Plantation gives them the advantage of being able to generate their own power. If you go by car to the hub of the plantation it will take you 20 to 30 minutes. Along the road you will visit tea and shaded coffee plantations, as well as see chinchona or quinine trees and “macadamia”.
Before reaching the cloud forest, you will enjoy unique scenery all along the way down to the coastal area and, on clear days, you can even see the Pacific Ocean.

The “Quetzal and Tangara” Trail, which is some 3 meters wide, that will allow you to enter the habitat of birds such as the Resplendent Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno), the Emerald Toucanet (Aulacorhynchus prasinus), the Mountain Trogon (Trogon mexicanus) and the Common Bush-tanager (Chlorospingus opthalmicus). In these woods there are plants of the Lauraceae (avocado) species, which provide food to the flycatchers, quetzals and trogons. The “caliandras” with red flowers and long stamens, are visited by the hummingbirds. One of their faithful visitors is the Green-throated Mountain-gem (Lampornis viridipallens). To find birds more speedily, it is advisable to identify the trees which serve them as feeders, among which are the wild avocado (Lauraceae) and the “guarumos” (Cecropia peltata).

In these woods and due to the iridescence of their feathers, the quetzals blend in with the vegetation. As you go along these paths, try to locate their nests in the holes made in rotten tree trunks or the artificial nests. The quetzals widen the holes made by the woodpeckers. If it is mating time (March-June), you will be able to see the males with their long tails and perhaps some courting display. During the courtship, the male flies over the canopy of the forest and descends making a spiral with his long tail. The summit of the woods offers a view of the tree tops and is an excellent place for watching the Cabanis’ Tanager (Tangara cabanisi) and to observe it looking for food. You will also be able to encounter other birds, including the Blue-throated Motmot (Aspatha gularis).

Upon climbing higher up the Atitlán volcano, you can see the Acatenango and Fuego volcanoes, which are located in the Departments of Chimaltenango-Sacatepéquez and Chimaltenango-Escuintla-Sacatepéquez, respectively.

SERVICES

Los Andes Plantation

SERVICE	RATES (SINGLE)	FACILITIES
Lodging Oliver’s House	US$85/person/night	Double room, breakfast, lunch and dinner all included (water, coffee and organic tea throughout the day) Bathroom, hot water, electric power, spring water swimming pool, Internet, local guide
Forest Tours	Included in the previous rate	Quetzal & Tangara trail: on the way you would find 2 observation decks. There are 45 artificial nests to encourage Quetzal reproduction. Coralito River trail: birdwatching, tea plantations and visit to the hydroelectric plant which provides clean energy to the reserve.
Coffe, tea and macadamia tours	US$15/group/day US$10/group/half a day (maximum 5 persons per guide) Visit to the coffee processing plant, from November to January; tea plant, from march to september; and plantations and woods, year around.	Breakfast and lunch can be fixed to take.
Transportation	US$30 to and from the road to Los Andes.	Trip in pickup of the Workers Solidarity Association of Los Andes (maximun 5 persons in the truck bed)

ATTRACTIONS ALONG THE WAY:
NATURE
The tea warehouse is located at the beginning of the all weather road, where you can take a brief rest and start learning about tea production.

On the all weather road, in the area of the San Francisco Miramar plantation, there are a number of rivers and giant ficus trees (Ficus spp.) with lianas hanging from their branches. You will be able to admire 3-meter tall “heliconias”, whose red flowers are very striking. This is a good place to become familiarized with the species of coastal birds. You will be able to see the Long-tailed Manakin (Chiroxiphia linearis) which is only found in the Pacific watershed of Guatemala.

ALTERNATIVES

Atitlán Volcano
If you are in a good physical condition and you like mountain climbing, this is the ideal moment to climb to the summit (3,537 meters above sea level) of the Atitlán Volcano. This volcano has an almost perfect cone and is joined at the base with the Tolimán Volcano. The woods, mostly pine, end some 500 meters before reaching the summit. After that you will find rocks and a crater of some 250 meters in diameter. From the summit you can see Lake Atitlán and the San Pedro and Tolimán Volcanoes.

Access: From the Los Andes Plantation you can climb directly to the summit of the volcano. This is the easiest ascent of this volcano, which takes about eight hours, while the descent takes around five hours.

Lake Atitlan

SUGGESTIONS

• The best time of the year to watch birds at this plantation is February-April. The male quetzals have very long tails and the migratory birds become more visible and acquire their mating plumage.

• The quetzal’s nesting season is from April to June. From November to January the trees near the quetzal observation tower are filled with fruit.

• Use an insect repellent, long sleeved shirts and trousers to avoid mosquito bites.

VISITORS REVIEWS

I visited Los Andes in the spring of 2006 and was very impressed with the diversity of birdlife present there. Even the grounds around the main house were alive with hummingbirds, warblers, and other species attracted to the native plants in the gardens. But it is the system of trails in the cloud forest above the tea and coffee fields where the best bird watching occurs. Our local guides knew the favorite haunts of the resplendent quetzal (which has been studied at Los Andes by ornithologists for a number of years) and the rare azure-rumped tanager, both of which we found, along with more than 40 other species, in a morning of birding.

I can highly recommend Los Andes as a bird-watching destination in the western highlands of Guatemala.

--Bill Thompson, III
Editor
Bird Watcher's Digest