Minca: World-Class Birding in the Sierra Nevada
Minca — a hill village above Santa Marta — is the best birding base in Colombia; the Sierra Nevada's 20 endemic bird species and hundreds of migrants accessible from Minca make it one of the world's top birding destinations
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Santa Marta Endemics
Minca is the gateway to the Sierra Nevada's extraordinary endemic birds - the Santa Marta mountain tanager, the Santa Marta warbler, the Santa Marta parakeet and the white-lensed pigeon are among 20 species found nowhere else on earth
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El Dorado Reserve
The El Dorado Bird Sanctuary - above Minca - is the main birdwatching site in the Santa Marta area; the reserve's 1,800 m mixed forest has been the site of the discovery of new species and is managed specifically for endemic bird protection
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Bird watching at dawn
The dawn chorus of the Minca Forest – starting before 5am – is one of Colombia's great birding experiences; the combination of endemic tanagers, warblers and hummingbirds together with widespread species creates an avian dawn of extraordinary richness
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San Lorenzo Páramo
San Lorenzo páramo - at 2,200 m above Minca - is a highland ecosystem of extraordinary beauty; the cloud forest, bromeliads, orchids and the unique high-altitude birds found only in this small mountain system are accessible by walking
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Hummingbird Feeders at Minca
The hummingbird feeders at Minca's lodges attract up to 15 species of hummingbirds — the white-tailed startail, the Tyrian metaltail, and the lazulin crop are Sierra Nevada specialties that come to the feeders at dawn and dusk
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Coffee and bird watching combined
Minca's combination of excellent bird watching and visits to coffee farms - with the harvesting, processing and cupping of coffee on the farms - makes it a uniquely Colombian experience; the farms are carved out of the bird-rich mid-elevation forest at an ideal height for both coffee and birds