06 Oct 2019

Early Start and Birding Delights in the Arfak Mountains

This morning marked the earliest Heritage Expeditions has ever started a day ashore with the morning wakeup call for those heading up into the Arfak Mountains (which was nearly all of us) set for 0230 with the first Zodiacs departing Spirit of Enderby at 0330.

Once ashore it was a 2-hour drive high up into the Arfak Mountains aboard our 4WD vehicles which earned their keep on the upper reaches of the road. Arriving shortly after dawn to the refreshing coolness of the higher elevations in Melanesia, we made our way in small groups through the forest to hides where we could sit quietly and enjoy the displays of some of the most iconic birds in not just the region - but the world!

Everybody had their own unique experience and saw different birds as we moved through the morning from hide to hide, but in total the our voyagers had the privilege of seeing 6 species of Bird-of-Paradise , the Vogelkop Bowerbird with its architecturally-designed impressive bower carefully decorated with colourful items plus numerous other species. In addition to the unforgettable avian encounters there was the also the great forest to be enjoyed with its beautiful stands of old growth including spectacularly large wild banana trees and a fabulous array of insects our expedition team member Jessa was excited to introduce to everybody including the magnificent Bird-wing Butterflies gliding through the forest wherever there were flowers.

After braving the Sunday traffic of Manokwari we were back aboard Spirit of Enderby in time for a delicious late lunch and relaxing afternoon.