Hello

 

I am grateful to you for several reasons. First of all, that you are still receiving and reading my emails. For that, my sincerest - THANK YOU. It means a lot to me and gives me strength to carry on. 

Does it mean that things are getting back to normal? No, sadly not. Although we have had almost continuous groups since June, the size of the groups have invariably been one or two birders. It is like a curse!
It keeps us afloat - barely!
 
People, like yourself,  , have the leverage to tell friends that we and other bird tour operators and bird guides around the world have had a hard time, but that most of the popular birding destinations, especially in South America, are now again open for business. The birding is great, and the destinations and lodges are far less crowded than usual. That is the second reason why I am thankful to the everyone who receives and forward these email messages to their birding friends to let them know that there is light at the end of the tunnel and plenty of birding opportunities right now. 
 

I realize that it is perhaps not the best time for you to travel right now, but I am grateful if you can tell a friend about the amazing opportunity I am about to share. 

 

Remember that I asked in a previous newsletter if anyone is interested in Brazil or Peru. Well, it turns out we have a group of just two people... (once again - it is a curse 🤪)...who definitely are doing The Pantanal and South East Brazil with me for 18 days.

 

I have modified the itinerary in several ways: 

I enclose the new and special one time itinerary as an attachment in this email so you can have a look. 

 

The normal price for a group of 3-4 participants would be $6780 for 3 pax and $6200 for 4 pax. Since I am going to the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival and will promote this and other trips there, I am giving a great price of only $5600. The only additional things one has to pay for are beers and caipirinhas (and tips locally).  
 

If you are relatively new to birding you will probably enjoy the  Pantanal+Chapada for 6 days much more, rather than doing the full trip. The cost for the 6 days is $2850. The SE Brazil section is much more intense and focuses on getting as many of the endemic birds as possible. Cost for 12 days in SE Brazil is $3000.  

 

I put up a gallery with some of my photos from 2015 on Facebook that you can check out. 

Finally here is a short video of our encounter with a Jaguar on that same trip.

Once again, there are two available spots and which have to be booked before Sunday Nov 14 to get the discount. If you can think of any other person who could be interested in the whole trip or either section, please share this newsletter with him or her.

It is very nice of you helping me to break the 1-2 person tour curse. 😎
Thanks again for your support!

All is good! Nothing new to report regarding COVID in Peru. New cases are still on record low. More cured COVID patients are being released from the hospitals than new COVID patients entering.  
It has been over three months with very low numbers of new cases. 

It is easy to travel to Peru if you are fully vaccinated. There is no need for a PCR test to enter. Visitors from all around the world, except South Africa can enter with out prior COVID test if they are fully vaccinated. Visitors from South Africa can enter either by spending 14 days quarantine (unlikely option), or the same amount of time in a third country (perhaps Brazil with us?).  Regardless, I am quite sure the South Africa restriction will be taken off by the next update by mid-November.

It is also very reassuring that visitors from the UK are allowed to travel to Peru now, and that some Australians territories now are allowed to travel internationally. 

India has opened for charter tourism, and commercial flights to India will be operating from Nov 15 allowing everyone to go to India
.  
See the 7 Wonders Birding tour to Taj Mahal, Tigers and birding in India for Christmas if you want to get away that time of year.

We have a few more spots to the various programs from late November. Check it out if you want to join for a week or two. This it the program my (2) clients are doing.  

There are other tours in the calendar, like a few days in Lima next weekend, a Machu Picchu Abra Malaga DeLuxe tour in mid December, and of course the Northern Peru 10 days program over Christmas and New Year. 

Are you doing Flock to Marion cruise with South Africa Birdlife Jan 24-31? So am I!

I have put together some very exciting pre and post tours that you may want to consider. You are of course welcome to join even if you are not going on the cruise.

Our very exciting Aardvark and birding program for Jan 18-22 is up on the 7 Wonders Birding webpage. The lodging at Marrick Safari Lodge is booked. We are very lucky to get lodging here because there is a long waitlist. 

We can only hold the reservations until Sunday Nov 14. You need to book quickly if you want to go on this unique trip. 

 

For the Durban-Johannesburg post-tour, the itinerary is under production, and almost finished. We shall do the Sani Pass via Karkloof, briefly enter Lesotho, return and do the Zululand coast to Saint Lucia. Two nights will be spent at extremely diverse Mkuze Game Reserve, which is also excellent for wildlife. We continue to Royal Jozini Game reserve in Swaziland and finish with the endemics of Wakkerstroom before returning to Johannesburg for evening flights. 

We are visiting three countries in 7 days and will rack up the most important endemics and an amazing list of birds and mammals. 

 

There are only two spots left for this pilot trip with reduced price of only $1499 if we are four people in the car including myself and $2000 with three.  We shall to a large extent employ local guides in the reserves.

 

I will send more information on Monday.  I am sure you know of someone who is going to be on the cruise that may be interested in this trip. 

I always try to put something personal in the Kolibri Newsletter, so here is a report on my marathon training. As you may well know, I am aspiring to someday run a marathon in less than 3 hours. I may seem impossible at 61 years old, but bar for goals in life needs to be high.

 

Recently, my mind has been very focused on trying to get the business rolling as the world is opening up. I have come to realize that Marathon training is as much mental as it is physical. So if you spend a lot of mental energy on work, future projects, family issues etc, there is less left in the tank to think about how to train and how to relax. 

One way to mitigate brain drain is to get a coach. My online coach John Goldthorp of Fix Your Run, has been great in both providing a top notch training program, as well. as adapting it to my circumstances.

Lately though, because of more mental activity with the business, I have had a hard time to focus when I have to run 35km long run training sessions with some marathon pace inserted. John has come to rescue and shortened the time on the feet, and introduced a variety of faster shorter sections. It becomes much more fun to run this way. 

Philadelphia Marathon is only two weeks away, and although I have been less focused, I am also more relaxed about the race. I know I shall do well. At least, there will be no risk of heat stroke like in Berlin 6 weeks ago. 

 

I won't be going sub 3 hours this time, for sure, but I am aiming for somewhere around 3:20. 

 

After Philadelphia Marathon, I have no marathons scheduled until London Marathon in October, if I can get a spot in the ballot, that is. I shall know in February. 

Until then I shall ease down on the training intensity, and engage in just slow running 7 times a week (unless I am guiding of course). One nice thing about slow running is that one can listen to audio-books. I have read 43 books this year mostly while running - both fiction and non-fiction. It may not show, but at least I feel a lot smarter - hehe!

I am aiming for 52 books and 3650 kilometers by the end of the year. Both would be personal records.

That is it for this time. In the next newsletter in a few days, I will give you more info on the South Africa extension and an even more packed calendar of 7 Wonders Birding tours for 2022. 

 

Saludos

 

Gunnar

P.S. Oh, and if you will be in Texas for the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival, I shall also be there. Come and say hi to me in my stand at the Birder's Bazar. I am also giving a talk about Peru on the Friday afternoon, and I will do some guiding.