Darien National Park, Cana Field Station, Pirre Cloud Forest
5 days / 4 nights
From $1,795 per person, double occupancy for 2013

Day 1: Panama City - Cana Field Station, Darien National Park
This morning you will be picked up at your Panama City hotel and transferred to the Albrook domestic airport where you will board your chartered plane to Santa Cruz de Cana, in the world biosphere reserve of Darien National Park, where Ancon Expeditions manages a field station. As you fly in you will be able to admire the vast forest cover of Panama's largest park (1.3 million acres). Cana is located at the foothills of Pirre Mountain, which stands like an island in the most remote area of Panama. From the plane you will be on the lookout for king vultures and macaws. After getting settled in the field station you will explore the Boca de Cupe Trail and surrounding areas. Specialties here include Blue and Gold, Red and Green, Great Green and Chestnut-fronted Macaws, Black-tipped Cotinga, Swallow Tanager, Red-throated Caracara, Streaked Antwren, Dusky-backed Jacamar, Ornate Hawk-Eagle and others. Overnight at the Cana Field Station. (L, D)

Day 2: Cana Field Station
Today is a good day to explore the Mine Trail where rusting machinery was left over to be overtaken by the jungle after the British gold mine ventures collapsed at the beginning of the last century. Specialties of this area include Great Curassow, Crested Guan, Dusky-faced Tanager, and Olivaceous Piculet. Also the Seteganti Trail with open scrub areas and mature forests are good for various woodpeckers such as Crimson-bellied and Red-rumped, Red-Billed Scythebill, Brown Violetear. Overnight at the Cana Field Station. (B, L, D)

Day 3: Cana Field Station - Pirre Cloud Forest Camp
Today you will begin your slow-paced, 5-hour hike to the Pirre Cloud Forest (all provisions are carried by porters). At 3,937 feet (1,200 meters) above sea level, the Pirre Cloud Forest is a good place to look for specialties and endemics such as the beautiful Treerunner, Tooth-billed Hummingbird, Slaty Antwren, Tody Motmot, Yellow-eared Toucanet, Rufous-breasted Antthrush, Immaculate Antbird, Rufous-vented Ground Cuckoo, Pirre Warbler, Pirre Hummingbird, Pirre Bush Tanager, Greenish Puffleg, Orange-bellied Euphonia along with rarities such as Narino Tapaculo and the Yellow Green Grosbeak. In the afternoon you will hike to the top of Pirre Mountain in search of the Golden-headed Quetzal, Gray and Gold Tanager, Sharpbill, Chlorophonia and several tanagers among other highland species. Tonight you will have the option of taking a night hike to look for night monkey, kinkajou, crested owl and other night creatures. Overnight at the Pirre Camp (Screened tents with sleeping mats) (B, L, D) NOTE: Participants who do not wish to hike to the cloud forest camp will have an opportunity to explore the area around the Cana field station further.

Day 4: Pirre Cloud Forest Camp - Cana Field Station
After breakfast you will start your descent to the field station with more birding along the way. This afternoon is spent looking for birds around the main camp. Possibilities include Gray-cheeked Nunlet, Spotted Barbtail, Barred Puffbird, Yellow-green Tyrannulet, Jet Antbird, Black-crowned, Fulvous-bellied, Ochre-breasted and Scaled Antpittas, White-fronted Nunbird, Cinereous Becard, and Golden-headed Manakin. Overnight at the Cana Field Station. (B, L, D)

Day 5: Cana Field Station - Panama City
Take advantage of your last morning in Cana by hiking on trails near the station while breakfast is being prepared. After breakfast, your charter flight will take you back to Albrook airport in Panama City after some last minute birding along the airstrip. A transfer vehicle will be waiting in Panama City to take you to your hotel. (B)

2012 Departure dates:
Mar 17-21, Mar 21-25, Mar 30-Apr 3, Apr 10-14, Apr 14-18 Apr 18-22, Apr 22-26, Single supplement - 215