Birdwatching Tour in Cajas National Park from Cuenca

This was a great trip with a very knowledgeable guide. Edison not only knew about the local birds, but also about local history and local plants.

If you would like to enjoy a full day of birding in El Cajas National Park, Edison of Polylepsis Tours is the man. Super friendly and comes with an uncanny knowledge of the birds and other natural wonders of the park. We would definitely book another tour if we return.

We had an absolutely fabulous day birding in Cajas National Park. This is the second trip that we have used Polyepsis Tours and Edison. He knew exactly where to find the most critical birds to add to our list and to photograph. The highlight was the Violet Throated Metaltail, of of only a handful of endemic species on mainland Ecuador. The photos are amazing and unfortunately exceed the upload limit. We would absolutely use Edison again on a future trip!!

For all birdwatchers or wildlife photographers (like me) this is the best option if you travel to southern Ecuador. Edison, the owner of the agency, is not only an excellent guide but also a very good person. I went with some friends to look for endemic birds of the area, he took us to the best places where we could take advantage of the natural light having better chances to have good pictures. 100% recommended.

This tour allowed me to visit Cajas in the best possible way. I was referred to Edy, my guide for the day, though a mutual friend with the promise of "This man knows his birds, you will get what you want to see.", and to my joy they were 100% right. On the day of the trip, I was picked up on time and we were birding by 6:40am on the outskirts of Cajas. I had 6 life birds, one of them endemic, in my first hour alone. Edy knew exactly where to go for the species I wanted, and was 100% sure that I saw each and every bird we encountered. On the tour we visited a local restaurant where he introduced me to a local corn and egg dish that I LOVED, and had hot chocolate. He was great at pausing when I wanted to take pictures of the park, and his English is really good as well. I highly recommend this tour to any birder in Cuenca. I will be going back to Edy for my next trip.

A group of four beginning birders were looking for a bird-guide for the Cajas, and Eddy Juca of Polylepsis Tours came strongly recommended. Eddy was organized, pleasant, speaks excellent English, and is a very knowledgeable birding guide. We spent a bit over a half day with him. He picked us up around 6 am and drove us up to several locations in the Cajas ranging from a lake at 10,000 feet to grasslands and another lake at 13,000 feet. He provided binoculars, had a spotting telescope, and really helped us see the birds he had spotted, using a laser pointer to help guide our eyes to the bird in question. He provided us with a bird list after the tour and a number of excellent photographs including the two included below. We saw and with his help, identified 29 species between 6 am and 1 pm. We finished the trip with a snack at a pleasant restaurant high in the Cajas, and then he dropped us off at our homes. An altogether outstanding outing!

We made the tour in the national park Cajas with the guide Flavio and it was a fantastic experience. We really like “birdwatching” and he is a knower of the subject. He knows the names of the specimens, where to look for them and hears the singing of the birds to call the birds. If you don't like to see birds, stay calm! The guide knows the plants of the place, the history of the park and the best places to take photos. Indicate the Tour for any type of traveler.

Excellent view, in a few hours we saw great diversity of birds and especially picaflores. This park is one of the world’s most preferred places for birding and rightly so. The guide who was Edison Juca along with Ibeth Alarcon directed us very well, with patience so that we can all observe each bird that was presented, looking for species unique to the area or low frequency species of observation. Her guide has environmental awareness, something I value since I am a biologist and also a birdwatching guide in Argentina. The landscapes that can be seen in that park are incredible because of its lagoons, I was also treated with a lot of kindness by the group, typical of Ecuadorians, and I was lucky enough to share the outing with Biologists, Park Rangers and Tourist Guides.

Cajas has one of the most dramatic and memorable landscapes I’ve ever seen. It looks somewhat like Scotland on the equator. Edison took us to three altitudes, each with different birds. In one morning we saw close to 40 species, including an edemic and near endemic. Edison is a super bird guide, but we also appreciated his deep knowledge of the area, especially the flora, which is spectacularly beautiful and interesting. Highly recommended.