2008 Tour Narrative
In Brief: I’m sure that we’ll all long remember our stunning encounters with Satyr Tragopan, Beautiful Nuthatch, Himalayan Monal, and Ward’s Trogon. I wrote at the end of last year’s tour report that “perhaps the memories that will linger longest won’t be avian at all: perhaps our most savored memories will be of the Bhutanese scenery, of hillsides cloaked in dense forest with magnificent snow-capped peaks as a backdrop, and of our crew’s magnificent efforts to keep us happy and entertained.” The same goes this year, though even those memories will find it hard to compete with the stunning birds our tour enjoyed.
In Detail: For the second year running, Satyr Tragopan romped home as the easy-to-predict winner of the “Bird of the Tour” poll: once again we were blessed with exceptionally lengthy views of this normally secretive forest denizen. We saw two tragopans on this year’s tour, and the first, a resplendently red male, showed superbly, coming close, then going away, close and away, as we gradually lured him to the edge of the forest. Seen well by everyone, including our Bhutanese guide and driver, this magnificent specimen even made a bolt around the rear of our coach and across the road!
Two other Bhutanese specialities, Ward’s Trogon and Beautiful Nuthatch, tied for second place in the same end-of-tour poll. The trogon, a fabulous male, was the first of the tiny Himalayan Kingdom’s specialties to give itself up after we scrambled 50 yards downslope; the ensuing scope views left no doubt that the effort was justified. The nuthatch took a while longer, but then showed himself again and again and again—and this time all seven of our Bhutanese lunch crew also saw it, most of them for the first time. Extended scope views of Beautiful Nuthatch while a cooked lunch waited just 40 yards away: birding in Bhutan is often easy, but rarely as easy as that!
Himalayan Monal was ranked fourth. There was some debate about how many individuals we had seen, but whether it was five or “only” four, we enjoyed spectacular encounters with this huge, gaudy, multi-colored pheasant. The first was a female that flew directly overhead moments after we’d clambered out of our coach. She was soon followed by her escort, almost as close as she was; it was still only minutes after sunrise, and we thought that the light could have been better. We needn’t have fretted, since a couple of oustanding encounters ensued on the same conifer-clad hillside later that morning. “Stunning” just doesn’t quite do this bird justice!
The tour started very well with a fabulous flight along the southern edge of the Himalayan mountain chain, with spectacular views blessing the Kathmandu-to-Paro leg of the journey. Once in Paro, we were met by Khandu, our knowledgeable guide, and Chador, our superbly skilled driver, and then we were off. Soon we were watching the first of our sought-after Bhutanese birds, an Ibisbill, at a site Khandu had taken our groups to previously. Lunch was a tasty introduction to Bhutanese cuisine, and we didn’t have too long to wait before our second hoped-for encounter, this time a Wallcreeper, or rather three Wallcreepers. Cracking views, and this was the only time we’d encounter this gorgeous sprite. Moving on to Thimpu, we weren’t the only ones enjoying a special day in Bhutan: it was the country’s first-ever national election, a historic day indeed; even though all the shops were closed, we still had a quick look around the capital.
We were up early the following morning, and the Dochu La, our first Bhutanese pass, beckoned. True to form, it yielded some jewels, with a superb pair of Fire-tailed Myzornis and a party of inquisitive Yellow-billed Blue Magpies, Hoary Barwings, and some fly-by Snow Pigeons being particularly memorable.
Spending the following two nights at a charming guesthouse not far from Punakha, once Bhutan’s winter capital, gave us the opportunity to go birding up the Mo Chhu Valley. We saw a few migrants bound for the Tibetan Plateau, among them an adult Pallas’s Gull and a juvenile White-tailed Eagle, but it was the region’s residents, such as Spotted Wren Babbler and Slaty-bellied Tesia, that gave us most satisfaction. After a hectic morning in this bird-rich valley, Khandu took us on an insightful guided tour inside the magnificent Punakha Dzong. Our tour took longer than we expected, due in part to some of the young monks being punished for swimming in the dangerous river that flows beneath the imposing building!
The following morning, after a few hours adding a handful more Tibet-bound waterfowl, we climbed towards the Pele La, where a Yellow-rumped Honeyguide was well appreciated. The undoubted star of the show, however, was Ward’s Trogon, although the lingering Black-necked Crane in the Phobjika Valley pushed it close. This bird had apparently attempted to leave the very same morning, but we were grateful that it returned, perhaps to try again the following day.
The Pele La the following morning saw us searching for more high-altitude specialties, and our primary target, Himalayan Monal, gave itself up in spectacular style within a couple of minutes of our arrival. After a hearty breakfast (who among us didn’t eat too much on this tour?), it was the turn of a couple of Great Parrotbills to give equally impressive, lengthy views. This, our first parrotbill of the tour, was followed by a slightly less satisfying encounter with its smaller cousin, Brown Parrotbill—and then we ate again. It was only day four in this, the Land of the Thunder Dragon, and we were well on our way to having another fabulous Bhutan tour.
We made a pause in our journey south of Trongsa to study a Russet Bush Warbler and then our first Blue-capped Rock Thrushes before continuing on through Zhemgang and its small dzong. Though we didn’t find our primary quarry, Beautiful Nuthatch, on our way south, we scored superbly with this enigmatic species the following day. Other goodies on the Zhemgang road included some fabulous encounters with our first Rufous-necked and Great Hornbills, a pair of Blue-bearded Bee-eaters, our first Rufous-chinned and Scaly Laughingthrushes, Cutias, Long-billed Wren Babblers, and Yellow-throated Fulvettas, and several parties of the rare Golden Langur provided some much appreciated non-avian distraction. Our introduction to Bhutanese camping went smoothly: everyone slept, the tents were sufficiently spacious and comfortable, and, as if we could ever doubt it, the camp crew was hard-working and capable.
Heading back up to Trongsa, we continued our eastward traverse. Our next port of call was a comfortable Bumthang guest house, replete with log-burning stoves and buckwheat pancakes. We would spend the next six nights under canvas.
Over the years, we’ve found that the drive over Bhutan’s highest road pass, the mighty Thrumsing La between central and eastern Bhutan (effectively between Bumthang and Sengor), provides some of the best opportunities to encounter pheasants. 2008 was no exception. We had excellent views of a female monal walking the road shortly after light, and not much later Chador spotted our first Blood Pheasant, a close-range female sheltering on the roadside from the increasingly heavy snow. We would go on to see seven others, including several males, before our own concerns shifted to the snow. Reassured that it was safe to continue over the pass, we journeyed on and up, slowly, very slowly. The snow-clad forest vistas were stupendous, and we made it over to the east without major incident, thanks to our driver’s impressive skills and sensible judgment.
We had just one primary target left on the Limithang road, the often vociferous Sikkim Wedge-billed Babbler, and we managed to find a pair even before we reached our second camp site. Frustratingly, not all of us saw them, and we were unable to re-find them the following two days. Our final full day at this camp, however, was genuinely first-class, with a Whistling Hawk Cuckoo, umpteen Greater Rufous-headed Parrotbills, several Gray-sided Laughingthrushes, and a Red-faced Liocichla being pick of the bunch.
At our next camp, the hoped-for Black-tailed Crakes performed superbly, and the following day we headed off towards our fifth and final campsite at Narphung, pausing en route to admire a Speckled Woodpigeon, another Brown Parrotbill, a couple more Spotted Laughingthrushes, a party of Gray-headed Bullfinches, and some distant Fire-capped Tits. Unlike last year, we were blessed with glorious weather at Samdrup Jongkhar close to the Indian border, where we eventually found a few Dark-rumped Swifts, two new hornbills in the shape of Wreathed and Oriental Pied, umpteen Asian Fairy Bluebirds, and several Common Hill Mynas, to mention but a few.
All too soon it was time to say goodbye to the crew who’d taken such superb care of us over the previous weeks and to leave Bhutan. The drive back to Gauhati in Assam was enlivened by a few birds; Delhi brought us no new birds, and we settled briefly in to our comfortable hotel before returning to the airport and heading home.
- Paul Holt
Updated: May 2008