On our last day, we stopped at three high-elevation habitats: an oak-dominated cloud forest (3100 m), a páramo site (nearly 3500 m), and a bog (2500 m).
top image: cloud forest canopy, taken by Emily Earl
brief stop before a long bus ride into the mountains
the first thing we saw at the cloud forest was a crowd of hummingbirds at some feeders, including this Magnificent Hummingbird
the delicate aroma of the cloud forest soil was unsurpassed among all the soils we sampled in CR
Nick claimed that he tasted every soil we dug up in CR; the cloud forest soil was the finest
The cloud forest at 3100 m had a canopy of oak trees, but tree ferns were abundant in the sub-canopy layer
In the the páramo, it can be dismally cold and wet any day of the year. We were actually pelted with hailstones as we walked here, which seemed a bit freakish for a tropical climate
after getting soaked in the páramo, we descended 1000 m to a lovely bog
our last day in CR, but still ecstatic about each new plant we encountered, like this Chusquea bamboo
tapir tracks are often found in this bog, and sharp-eyed observers can spot the animals too