Information about Tanager Tours
Contents:
- About Us;
- F.A.Q;
- Recommendations.
ABOUT US
Wim ten Have is Dutch. He leads the company, makes contact with the clients and is responsable for the organisation of the tours
Bird watching has been his hobby since the age of 18. This pastime has taken him across Europe, through different parts of Africa, the United States, Costa Rica and Ecuador. In July 1998 he decided to make Peru his new home.
He took his time to study the birds of Manu and started at the end of 1999 guiding tours for birdwatchers. Nowadays Tanager Tours is a company with tours all over the country, there are many more people involved now and the result is that there is not much time left for Wim to guide groups.
David Geale is a life-long Canadian birdwatcher, spent his time with birdwatching in Peru since the year 2001. In that year he led tours to many areas in Peru for other companies and in 2002 he has started to be the principal bird guide for Tanager Tours. Studying biology , he has to divide his time between his study in Canada and guiding and doing research in Perú.
Juvenal
Ccahuana (Juve) began work as a driver for bird watching groups
a long time ago. Nowadays he has an unrivalled knowledge of nearly
all the established birding sites in Peru. He functions as a driver as well
as a second guide. For trips in Central - and North Peru we send him often
without a guide.
He is also an outstanding mechanic - an essential requirement on trips on
Peru“s rough back-country roads.
Lucho is our driver in Lima. He knows the birding sites in the vicinity very well and is also able to do tours without guide.
Mike Catsis is a British biologist and has visited the Neotropics and Peru many times. Living in the U.K. he does the marketing in that country. British clients should contact him in the first instance with their enquiries (mikecatsis@hotmail.com).
Raśl Cuela is the driver for the Arequipa area. His knowledge about the birds and the birding sites here makes an extra bird guide superfluous. For the communication in English we send often with him a local general guide.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What do I have to take with me?
Aside from binoculars and photo-equipment (the important bird watcher stuff) we advise:
- flashlight with spare bulb and batteries,
- extra battery packs if using video-camera or digital camera
- sleeping bag (for the mountain area),
- day pack and water bottle,
- plastic bags (to keep everything dry),
- insect repellent and sunblock,
- a small medical kit,
- water resistant shoes, not necessarily boots,
- rain gear (the best is a simple poncho),
- sweater or jacket (for the higher altitude),
- long pants and long-sleeved shirts.
On the flight Cusco-Boca Manu there is a baggage limit of 10 kg. Please keep this in mind as excess baggage can be expensive.
What are the weather conditions?
In general the weather is fine with the exception of the period Januar till April. That is the mean rainy season in the mountain area as well as in the rain forest. It seldom rains the whole day and the bird activity can be very good but the major problem is that the unpaved roads are in bad condition.
The temperatures are comfortable. At higher altitudes it is pleasant in the daytime and cool at night. In the rainforest, the reverse is true. Generally speaking, it is not as hot as one might expect. Amazonia Lodge and Pantiacolla Lodge lie at an altitude of 450 m. and don“t experience the heat of true lowland rainforest. When cold winds called "friajes" blow from the mountains it can feel strangely cold.
Is it dangerous in Peru?
No. The terrorist activity has virtually ended. The country has stabilised and is now a safe place in which to travel. Despite the problems with the elections in the year 2000 Perú continues in his process to be a recently started democracy. The cities, like all other cities in the world have problems with robbery, but it is not commonplace and seldom violent. Outside the cities, crime doesn't exist.
Is the trip dangerous, diseases etc.?
The boats and cars that we use are well maintained, the drivers are experienced. . The journey -however- is the most dangerous part of a trip, much more so than seldom encountered venemous snakes or the strange tropical diseases you could catch.
The incidence of Malaria is extremely low and there are few mosquitos at 450 m anyway. Mosquito nets are still provided in all the lodges. There is a far greater risk of being bitten by other insects such as the 2cm izula ant.
On the trails it is advisable to carry insect repellent (at least with 25 % DEET) even though it may not be necessary. The real problems are mainly irritations like the chiggers on the trails and the sand flies on the beach. They cause itching, but, you problems can avoided by covering exposed parts. Long pants, long sleeved shirts and socks are advised at all times.
And what about high-altitude sickness?
When you are going to the Junin area near Lima, the Colca Valley near Arequipa or the Abra Malaga pass near Cusco you are coming above the altitude of 4000 m. above sea level. The best is to acclimatise some days at an altitude of 3000 m. or more (for instance in Cusco) before going on a trip. The road to Manu is not a really big problem.
More questions?
Send an e-mail to info@tanagertours.com
Recommendations
Markus Lagerqvist from Sweden:
Tanager Tours excellently arranged the first part of the trip. We never
had any incidents and Wim ten Have turned out to be a good birder and very
caring guide. Apart from Wim guiding us we also had our own driver and a
good cook. See also his report.
Jay Lamb from the U.S.
I very much enjoyed my trip to Peru and wanted to say that you are an excellent
guide. I have no reservations at all about recommending you to others.
Bernard van Elegem from Belgium
Mijn laatste zeven dagen waren net als de rest van de reis uitstekend. Juve is
inderdaad een fantastische kerel.
Jan Vermeulen from the Netherlands
I think we all agreed that the trip was a success. This was due for the most
of the part in a good group to travel, but also due to the professionalism
and caring attitude of our guide Wim ten Have. He is the expert at Pantiacolla,
knew every call and song and with his help we identied many species there.
See also his report.
Ole Frederiksen from Denmark wrote to Wim
First of all we would like to thank you for an excellently planned tour
of Southern Peru.
We were very impressed that everything was going so well. We are sure that we
all had one of the best holidays that we have ever had - if not the best!
It was also because of your "staff" that everything went so well. From
Juve to the two boatsmen and the people at the lodges. And coming to Arequipa
and Lima we found that Raoul, Pilar ,and Lucho were very kind and clever guides,
too. We really enjoyed being with them. Finally we want to say that we very much
enjoyed your company during the fortnight we spent in the rainforest. We will
recommend Tanager Tours to everyone who is planning to go on a birdwatching-trip
to Peru.
Judy Lehmberg from the U.S.
Dear Wim,
I am the Lima airport waiting for my flight home and found an internet connection
so I wanted to thank you again for a wonderful time. I have had a lot of
experience with teachers and guides and it is very rare to find someone as talented
as you and as nice. I will never forget this trip and the patience, enthusiasm
and honesty you have displayed.
Diane Luck from the U.S.
We had a great trip and David is an excellent guide. His ability
to identify bird songs and calls is amazing.
Rob Goldbach from the Netherlands
Wat mij betreft was het een zeer geslaagde onderneming! Hartelijk dank voor
al je inzet voor ons. Dave deed het prima, al komt hij bescheiden over. Doordat
je meteen goed contact met hem kunt hebben volgt er een soort kameraadschap wat
voor ons, vogelaars, erg belangrijk is; liefst wil je dat de gids "one of
us" is, en dat lukt hem goed.
Alan Brown from the U.K.
Thank you again for a great trip. Well organised (and particularly
when you had to put in place the emergency contingency arrangements at the
last minute), good company, brilliant driver/birder and most of all fantastic
birding.
Helge Kvam from Norway
and thanks a lot for making our holidays to such a great experience!!! Everything
was nice and without trouble, mainly because you and Juve organised it so well.
Dave Pearson from the U.S
Charlie, Rob and I thank you and Juvenal VERY much for the exciting bird
trip and the excellent logistics and planning. It was independent enough so we
felt like we were having to learn the birds well, but organized enough so we
never felt over whelmed. Great job.
Alan Drewitt from the U.K.
Just a note to say thanks for organising our trip. We had a great time And
saw nearly all of the target birds. Juve and Frank did a tremendous job and we
were very impressed by their diligence, tenacity, patience and knowledge. Apart
from a few vehicle problems (eventually overcome by Juve) we had A smooth trip
and I will certainly recommend Tanager Tours to others intending a visit to Peru.
Jan van de Leur and Puc Relou from the Netherlands
Nu we weer terug thuis zijn en bijgekomen van de toch redelijk enerverende
reis willen we je laten weten dat wij ontzettend hebben genoten en dat wij heel
veel vogels hebben gezien die wij anders zeker zouden hebben gemist.
Stuart White from the U.K
We got back safe and sound after our 3 weeks in Peru, just to
let you know we all had a fantastic time, and would have no hesitation in
recommending your company to others hopefully we will get a trip report on
the net soon and recommend your services.
I am sure you know, but we all think David is a brilliant guide, his knowledge
of calls and general birding skills were first rate. The four of us have
birded all over the world and used quite a few guides. Without a doubt he
is the best any of us have met. He and Juve added a lot to our peruvian experience,
and they were both very professional, helpful and friendly at all times.
Keith Shepherd from the U.K
You have an excellent guide in David, his enthusiasm was and helpfulness,
not to mention his phenomenal birding skills, was great, and I was pleased
that most of the group were able to keep up with his early morning starts
and see a vast array of birds.
Henk Hendriks from the Netherlands
Ik wil je zeggen dat ik terugkijkend op mijn (onze) trip er in feite alleen
maar goede herinneringen aan heb overgehouden. Niet alleen hebben we veel
soorten gezien maar ook zeer veel "goede"soorten en dat alles in
een goede sfeer zowel onder elkaar als met Juve.
Lauri Hanninen from Finland
Especially I'd like to mention David who was a superb guide. He was exceptional
in finding birds, indentifying them, pointing them out to us and telling
about their identification.
Furthermore Lucho was the most interesting person we met on the trip. We
had a brilliant time with him.
Vicki and Jim King from the U.S.
After staring at a blank calendar for May and our wish list for a scarily long time, without knowing how to fit it altogether, we discovered Tanager Tours, owned by Wim ten-Have. Wim helped us figure out a way to organize our time so we could get to all of our birding destinations and the Inca Trail/Machu Picchu. Tanager Tours arranged all of our domestic flights and hotels, which very comfortable, reasonably-priced and well located. Tanager Tours also provided very competent driver-guides for two shorter trips: Lucho took us from Lima to the Paracas Peninsula and Raul picked us up in Puno and drove us to Chivay/Colca Canyon and then on to Arequippa. Both were helpful and knowledgeable guides and their vehicles were spacious and comfortable. Thanks to them, we were spared the trauma of renting a car and trying our survival skills in the crowded and chaotic traffic and on the difficult roads we often traveled.
Perhaps best of all, Tanager Tours organized our 13-day trip to the Manu Reserve area, which its website refers to as Manu Complete (Cusco to Puerto Maldonado, with a return flight to Cusco). Our guide was David Geale, who has lived in Peru for seven years and is very involved in conservation. David is only 25, but we were the 21st group he has guided in the Manu area. His comprehensive knowledge of the birds, excellent birding by ear skills, ability to spot the birds in the dense, often dimly lit forests, ability to describe where the birds were, and commitment to helping us see them – all made him an outstanding guide. Our driver for the five days we traveled down the Manu Road was Juvenal Ccahuana (Juve), who was utterly unflappable and an ace-birder as well. At the time of our trip, David's Peruvian list was over 1450 and Juve's was over 1400. After leaving the Manu Road, Tanager Tours provided us with a river boat and two boatmen for the rest of the trip. One ran the motor and steered from the stern while the second was stationed at the bow, with a 12' bamboo pole to use to help guide the boat in the shallows.
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TANAGER TOURS | |
| Las Cantaros A 27 int. 101 | ||
| Palmas del Golf | ||
| Trujillo - Perú | ||
| Phone: | +51 44 423752 | |
| e-mail: | info@tanagertours.com | |
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