Name: Life List in Colombia: The Coffee Triangle & The Colombia Birdfair
Start: 2023-02-10T00:00:00.000Z
End: 2023-02-19T00:00:00.000Z
Location: colombia

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Join Mollee Brown &amp; George Armistead of Life List: A Birding Podcast, &amp; Chris Bell of The Birder’s Show, plus a great bunch of Colombian friends for a special event. 

colombia

Life List in Colombia: The Coffee Triangle & The Colombia Birdfair

Hillstar Nature

Hillstar Nature offers authentic wildlife experiences, from half-day trips to week+ tours to Earth’s most spectacular wildlife destinations. Arranging custom/private trips and scheduled departures, Hillstar Nature specializes in delivering trips that celebrate biogeography, especially where it overlaps with community. 

Shared room (price per person)

Single room (price per person)

<p>Join Mollee Brown &amp; George Armistead of Life List: A Birding Podcast, &amp; Chris Bell of The Birder’s Show, plus a great bunch of Colombian friends for a special event. </p>

About this trip

It was an amazing trip where we experienced all manner of natural wonders from a full solar eclipse to seeing 12 million bats pouring out of a cave to hundreds of great birds. 

Our guides, Whitney and Holly, really worked hard making sure we had the best chances of seeing the birds we were targeting, as well as making sure we ate it interesting and unique, local places. The amount of planning and replanning they did cannot be overstated.  They had a plan a, a Plan B, a plan C, D, E and F for just about every site, and sometimes we needed them!



Texas: Total Eclipse Birding

Great experience. Friendly, knowledgeable, extremely helpful tour guides. Tour leaders didn’t just point out birds but provided excellent ornithological information about individual species + cues to identification. Willing + ready to pursue a “Plan B” if “Plan A” wasn’t working out. Nice added “side trips” to make sure group was getting the most out of the tour.  Good selection of eateries. 

This was an amazing trip!  Timed both with a total eclipse and spring migration in Texas. I loved it. The food, the snacks, the sights and of course the birds! We had over 180 species in the week with several rarities mixed in. The food was also great (maybe too good!) We also had a bonus stop at the Rio Frio Bat Cave, which was almost as awe-inspiring as the eclipse, 10-12 million bats leaving their cave at dusk was quite something to witness. The guides were awesome and were super organized. They were up to date on the birds in the region and were able to pivot our plans quickly when conditions changed. This was one of the best birding tours I've been on, I'd do another Hillstar trip in a heartbeat.  

This was a great trip for birding! We saw some fantastic birds including the quetzal, and Josh, our guide, was very knowledgeable about hotspots and how to see a variety of habitats. Costa Rica is an easy country to enjoy, with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, and the people are lovely. I highly recommend Hillstar and this Costa Rica experience!

Costa Rica: A Birder's Paradise

We had a wonderful trip. It exceeded all expectations!

Costa Rica : Private 10-day trip with Josh Covill

Josh was an excellent tour leader.  He worked hard to assist members in our group with special dietary needs, as well as challenging mobility needs.  He has an amazing grasp of Costa Rica birds and their sounds, making sure we all got good looks at the birds. 
Our accommodations met our expectations, showcasing the diverse jungles, mountains and cloud forests of the country. 
I will hire Hillstar and especially Josh Coville for future bird tours.  

I really enjoyed the opportunity to be a guest in India. I was very privileged to be guided by experts  including George Armistead, Surya Ramachandran, and Harish Sharma who shared there extensive knowledge of the animals and other aspects of the wetlands. The wildlife viewing is phenomenal in Keoladeo National Park . 
The trip down the Chambal River was fantastic with great views of Gharial, Muggers, turtles and birds. The trip also included quick glimpses of river dolphin.


India: The Taj Mahal & Wondrous Wetlands

This was definitely a trip of a lifetime and has made me want to return to India with Hillstar Nature tours. 
   It was a chance to see a different diverse culture, enjoy the food, and the beautiful countryside and wildlife. I would recommend this trip to anyone who is curious, flexible, and loves the outdoors.

Tigers & the Jungle

Overall a great trip! Hotels were spectacular, especially Termales del Ruiz. 
Our guides were among the best and the group was awesome. 
Highly recommended. 

Colombia: High Times in the Cordillera Central

Fantastic trip with an uber number of bird species observed every day. Top notch guides, Josh and Christian, were not only knowledgeable but patient and helpful to those of us with less birding experience. Choices of locations and places to stay were excellent. Working with indigenous guides added a great dimension to the trip. I highly recommend this trip to any avid birder! 


Colombia Santa Martas 2024

If you want to learn huge amounts about the birds, mammals, ecology, and culture of India - and have a total blast while doing it, THIS is the trip for you!  George Armistead is a gifted teacher.  He makes people at all levels of learning feel welcome and excited about what they're seeing.  Out in the field, he keeps up a regular commentary, naming birds and mammals as they're seen (are there any he can't identify?) and adding fascinating commentary from the world of ornithology.  The trip was organized to a T.  It's hard to make a trip like this go smoothly, but ours certainly did.  Manisha, our Indian guide, was a wonderful complement - extremely knowledgeable about birds and mammals, full of local information, and a great addition to the fun of it all.  Accommodations and food were outstanding.  Overall: 10 stars out of 5!

Jewels of Gujarat: A Safari in Western India

We really enjoyed the trip. The Asiatic Lion encounters were terrific. The birding was great, too. The accommodations were very nice and the staff at the lodges were wonderful. The food was delicious! Thank you, George, for a great trip!

We had a wonderful time. I never expected to have such great views and encounters with the Bengal Tigers. The birding opportunities were great, too. George and Surya were great leaders and the staff at the Lodges were so attentive and helpful. The accommodations were great, as was the food. A truly memorable trip!

Really enjoyed traveling and birding with the Hillstar team in Uganda. The local guides added a lot to our education and were friendly and open and knowledgable. I especially enjoyed the mix of birding and safari for the bigger African specialties.  Having two night stays at most of the guest houses and lodges was really helpful and some of the locations had amazing views that made a person want to stay back from the birding and just take in the land and skyscapes. A couple of the places made it necessary to employ noise cancellation technology at night because of street noise. There was plenty of food, almost too much! but not much variation, especially if you are vegetarian.  Luckily, at this time of year, the jeeps were comfortable enough without needing a/c! Our group of 9 had a combination of birders and photographers and it worked out nicely. Most of the parks and stops were very birdy and it was easy to add many lifers to your list. I would highly recommend this tour to serious birders.

Uganda: Silverbacks, Shoebill & More (Deposit)

I have taken many birding trips and this was the best.  I saw a lot of new species and met some great people and local bird guides.  I would recommend George Armisted and Hillstar as the way to go.  Everything except air travel and alcohol is included; saves the hassle of having to carry "tip" money

Colombia: The Chocó & the Western Andes

Great trip with fantastic photo opportunities.  Terrific guides and very comfortable accommodations.

Colombia: High Times in the Cordillera Central (final payment)

I had a wonderful time.  The bird guides were knowledgable and passionate about their subjects and made it a fascinating trip.  I appeciated that they led us through areas with low traffic since Acadia NP is a popular destination and they made sure they gave individual attention to all participants. My only suggestion is that the food could use some improvement.

Acadia’s Iconic Birds, Whales, and Scenic Views (July 21-25, 2023)

Thanks to our knowledgeable,friendly guides Molly, and Seth, this trip was truly memorable. The area of Maine is beautiful and I was able to see many life birds. 
   It was my second trip to Maine and I plan to return.

We had a great time. Holly and Seth were wonderful. They had to deal with fog and rain with cancelled boat trips. Weather!

Acadia’s Iconic Birds, Whales, and Scenic Views

Great tour! Saw lots of birds and animals. Fantastic scenery. The guide Josh was terrific. Most hotels were superb.

Montana: Glacier to Grasslands

This would be a great trip for dedicated birders.  ME is a beautiful state and Acadia is a super National Park.  The guides Holly and Seth are humble experts in their field and patiently impart their knowledge with compassion.  Wholly out of the control of the guides or Hillstar,  the July 2023 weather in coastal ME was horrendous with dense and almost continuous fog essentially preventing any meaningful bird or landscape viewing for almost all of our five days.  Holly and Seth worked so diligently to still provide field bird viewing and substitute touring locations, but there is only so much they could do with five days of fog.  They had back up plans and worked so diligently to reschedule each cancelled boat trip for puffins and whales.  Thankfully we finally did see the famous puffin birds.
The Schoodic Institute is a refreshing base camp in a pristine world of its own isolated from the touristy buzz of Mad Desert Island.  The housing and cafeteria are dated and only adequate so be prepared for no frills summer camp for adults.  Most meals are modest classic grab and go breakfast and lunch with a limited option sit down evening meal in the cafeteria.  To their credit there was always a vegan option and a consistent salad and juice option.  The minimal number of tourist at the Institute do not support more than a barely adequate experience.  I was surprised that despite being in fresh seafood heaven there was not even once seafood prepared by the cafeteria.  This trip is focused on birds and nature and not on food or site-seeing.  We found the facilities to be very clean and spacious but did not have shampoo, extra towels or a hairdryer in our apartment.  The food staff provided yogurt with an expired date.  Our trip guides worked diligently and immediately remedied all of these shortcomings.  The one fancy meal was a superb experience at a classic dockside lobster pound restaurant with lobster boats moored outside verifying the fresh quality of the multitude of seafood options.  Our guides, Seth and Holly went well above and beyond their job description to make up for the weather and shortcomings of the guest facility services.  You should jump at any trip led by them.

Terrific trip and kudos to Joshua Covill for his thorough knowledge of all things Montana.  His natural history skills are excellent, especially anything bird-related, although it would be difficult to rank one particular area over another.  In addition, his personal skills are first rate: patient, well-spoken, organized, flexible, a good teacher - he has it all.  

Thanks, and looking forward to another Montana itinerary.



This trip exceeded my expectations (and they were high!).  The scenery was outstanding, the birds were great, and Josh as a leader is excellent.  Montana is not a culinary destination, but we still ate very well.  The accommodations were quite good, with one sub-par one-nighter, and we really can't complain about that one given the lack of other options.  I particularly liked the Stage Stop Inn in Choteau.  Back to Josh:  this is the guy to use for any and all Montana trips.  He knows the state and its birds, loves it, and is inspirational in his enthusiasm for sharing his knowledge and love of the area.  Good move, George Armistead, for hiring this one!



This was an amazing trip. Our guide Joshua was very knowledgeable, not just about birds, but he shared info on geology, mammals and even a little local history. He made sure everyone found the bird we were looking at in the moment, had yummy snacks and provided details on the day's itinerary. I plan to take another trip with Hillstar!

Had a great trip.  Seeing all the birds in breeding plumage was a real treat.  The leaders were excellent at finding the target birds and making sure everyone got a good look.  Nice scenery, especially in Montana.  I would definitely consider another Hillstar trip in the future.

Prairies (June 2-9, 2023) Final Payment

Wonderful Colombians every where you go, informative and educational trip and very good food....

This was an exciting trip with hundreds of birds species seen, beautiful vistas, yummy food and a fun and knowledgeable small group of people. Our local guides were top notch, experts in bird guiding and super friendly and fun to boot. Accommodations ranged from average to fantastic as did the food. We had quite a bit of local food which was really good. The tour of the coffee farm was thorough and super interesting, covering everything from growing to harvesting and processing. I'd highly recommend this trip ... no matter where you are in your birding journey.

Great guides, good equipment, excellent results. I took my first pelagic trip on an outing organized by Hillstar out of Ocean City, MD. Zach, Mikey and Matt did a great job of telling us what to expect and putting us on the birds we encountered. Captain Monte navigated through some choppy water to get us out among the birds and dolphins. I recommend this operation and plan to do it again.

Maryland Pelagic: February 18

It's hard to imagine how this trip could have gone better!  George and Mollee we great, fun and knowledgeable and our Colombian guides were even more fun and knowledgeable!!  The accommodations were great as was the food.  The van we did most of our touring with was large and had plenty of room for legs and bags and our driver was great.  And of course, the bird sightings were fantastic.  I saw 315 species and I think the group total was somewhere around 375!

I can't recommend this tour and this group highly enough!


Wonderful trip. Experienced, knowledgeable and friendly guides. Eager to help novice and experienced birders.  Would recommend for anyone interested in birding. 

Delaware Pelagic: January 22

Great trip and Naturalists were exemplary! Thank you. 

I enjoyed my trip.  The guides were very friendly and helpful.  They helped me see new birds and explained some tips on how to recognize them.  I felt safe and I would recommend this trip for anyone new to birding as well as for anyone who just enjoys birding.  

This was a near shore pelagic trip perfect for first timers to get a feel for this type of activity.  The guides, Holly, Mikey and Zach were personable, knowledgeable and worked hard to find birds, whales and dolphins for all to see.  If you're on the fence about joining a pelagic trip, sign up for a near shore.  

The Gambler is a sturdy, beautiful, and well-captained and crewed ship, I felt safe and admired its capacity. Just right for the number of people and the trip.  We sailed a triangle across the inner shelf.  The leaders knew the best places to check for birds.  On the deck above, Tom and Scott and others scanned the area continually, and usually relayed the news to all.  They had the best views.  The cabin was warm and there was free food, and some to buy.  The weather was good.
I was disappointed that the birds were so distant and I had hoped for better views.  From the shore I rarely get a close view and was hoping somehow to get more satisfaction.   Perhaps I expected too much.  

New Jersey Pelagic: January 14

Very well run. Great spotters (Tom Johnson & George Armistead are world-class!). Friendly, knowledgeable, skilled crew. Really outstanding boat!  Fun fellow birders, including several friends. 
Really excellent overall experience. Highly recommended! 

We had a great trip. The staff was very accommodating and we did cover the areas that we were supposed to. We did get some great birds including an Icelandic gull. This was due to staff constantly chumming during the whole trip. Would definitely go again.

I enjoyed the trip and even picked up a lifer (the Black-headed Gull). But there needs to be much better communication on board. I was surprised to look at the e-bird lists and realize how many birds I missed because I was unaware they’d been spotted. Perhaps better use of the ship PA system would help.

Fun, local (to me) trip despite less than ideal weather. Leaders worked hard to get everyone on birds

Wonderful trip led by excellent guides!  The weather was also nearly perfect, which made our experience on the boat pleasurable.  Thank you for a great trip!

Maryland Pelagic: December 30

Great day out on the ocean.  Zach and Jonathon were knowledgeable and friendly spotters and the boat was comfortable.  Great alcids, gulls and shearwaters…perfect pelagic trip!

This was an amazing trip! I saw so many new bird species with the help of all of the kind, skillful spotters on deck. The crew were very nice and immediately helped me out when they noticed I had sea sickness. I will definitely book another trip with them again in the future. 

This was a great day.  We were lucky with smooth seas and decent weather.  I was especially happy with the leaders, Zach and Jonathan, both in spotting birds and in calling out directions.  Zach was particularly attentive to each of us personally to make sure we were getting on our target birds.  Also, the communication before the trip was excellent.  Plenty of notice that a reschedule might be necessary.  More please!



The trip went well, though sometimes communications were lacking.  A consistent weakness of pelagics out of Ocean City and Lewes is the failure to use the boat's PA system.  This can be heard throughout the boat.  Shouted sightings from the bow often do not reach the stern.  Use of the PA corrects that.  Some arrangements needs to be made with the Captain.  That said, if the Morning Star is used again, the Captain should not be the announcer, as he was largely unintelligible. 

Life List in Colombia: The Coffee Triangle & The Colombia Birdfair

Life List in Colombia: The Coffee Triangle & The Colombia Birdfair

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