The highest road in the country crosses this ridge above the San Gerardo de Dota valley. The name means "mountain of death", after the hard treks people once made over it, and it is one of the coldest points in Costa Rica: as low as minus 6 degrees Celsius.
We bird it at km 70 of the highway south, where two families run lodges on the ridge itself. Paraíso Quetzal Lodge sits at 2,600 metres with five trails, four waterfalls and a hummingbird garden where a quetzal sometimes turns up. Mirador de Quetzales is on land its family has farmed since 1948, and the name tells you what it is for: a quetzal lookout.
Higher up, the ridge has birds of its own, which is why it gets a morning of its own.
The Timberline Wren in the bamboo, and the Wrenthrush, a bird so odd that the official list gives it a family of its own.
With them Long-tailed Silky-flycatcher, Collared Redstart, Flame-throated Warbler and Sulphur-winged Parakeet in noisy flocks. Every one of the six carries the list's regional endemic flag: birds of Costa Rica and the mountains just over the border, and nowhere else.
And at the km 70 hummingbird garden, sometimes, the Resplendent Quetzal.
| English | Scientific | Spanish | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timberline Wren | Thryorchilus browni | Soterré del Bambú | Regional endemic |
| Wrenthrush | Zeledonia coronata | Zeledonia | Regional endemic |
| Long-tailed Silky-flycatcher | Ptiliogonys caudatus | Capulinero Colilargo | Regional endemic |
| Collared Redstart | Myioborus torquatus | Candelita Collareja | Regional endemic |
| Flame-throated Warbler | Oreothlypis gutturalis | Reinita Garganta de Fuego | Regional endemic |
| Sulphur-winged Parakeet | Pyrrhura hoffmanni | Perico Aliazufrado | Regional endemic |
| Resplendent Quetzal | Pharomachrus mocinno | Quetzal |
Fly into San José and take the Pan American Highway south. Our trips to San Gerardo de Dota cross the ridge on the way, about 2½ hours to the valley. Pack a jacket; Mirador de Quetzales says so on its own card.
All year. It is cold up here in every month, so the jacket comes whatever your dates.
Two of our lodges are on the ridge at km 70, family-run, one at 2,600 metres; four more are down in the valley a few kilometres below.
Photo: Dantica Cloud Forest Lodge
San Gerardo de Dota
Cozy Bungalows with Fireplaces and Stunning Cloud Forest Views
★★★
Bungalows with fireplaces on a hillside above San Gerardo de Dota, close to Los Quetzales National Park, with trails through the lodge's own forest. Eleven of our birding reviews name it, one for "a hillside surrounded by serene forests and lots of birds".
Photo: Hotel Suria
San Gerardo de Dota
Welcome to the San Gerardo de Dota Cloud Forest!
★★★
Twenty rooms on 10 acres of farm, creek and forest in the San Gerardo de Dota valley, owned and run by Hilda Araya and her family. The simplest of our highland lodges, and the valley's birds are the same ones.
Photo: Mirador de Quetzales
San Gerardo de Dota
Located in Cerro de la Muerte
★★★★
On land the family has farmed since 1948 on Cerro de la Muerte, run as a lodge for over 25 years, and the name says what you are there for: a quetzal lookout. It is cold at this altitude, so pack a jacket.
Photo: Paraíso Quetzal Lodge
San Gerardo de Dota
A family-run birding lodge in the cloud forest at km 70 of the Inter-American Highway South
★★★
At 2,600 metres on Cerro Buena Vista, km 70 of the highway south, with an 80-hectare reserve, five trails, four waterfalls and a hummingbird garden where a quetzal sometimes turns up. The Serrano Salazar family has run it since 2005.
Photo: Savegre Lodge Natural Reserve & Spa
San Gerardo de Dota
A Cozy Mountain Retreat in the Cloudforest Offering Fantastic Nature Tours and Birdwatching
★★★
A 400-hectare private cloud forest reserve at 2,200 metres, with over 170 bird species recorded on it and the quetzal among them. Heated rooms and a spa with a sauna, which matters at that altitude.
Photo: Trogon Lodge
San Gerardo de Dota
Enjoy the Cozy Cabins at this Charming Family Lodge in the Cloud Forest
★★★
Wooden cabins on a family farm about 2½ hours from San José, with a clear river running through the property and the quetzal walks starting from the gate at first light. The lodge our birding reviews name more than any other, 29 times.
A few minutes on the form, and one of our Costa Rica specialists comes back to you personally with a first itinerary: the Highlands in the right order with whatever else is on your list, and how many nights each stop really needs. That first version is just a place to start.
Or call us: 1 (800) 996-1139 from the US and Canada, +506 4052-2140 in Costa Rica.
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