Last night we were very comfortable, warm and slept well, early to bed and up for 5:00 breakfast in the mess tent. The crew brought us bowls of warm water to wash up, provided towels on the cots. They think of everything. Birding, walking and a picnic lunch as we work our way all the way to the Indian border to Gelephu for the night. We saw some great birds today including the large Rufous-necked Hornbill, hard to miss as it glided through the valley at lunch. A...

Last night the dogs were worked up; one particulary would not stop barking at 2:30 am. Dogs are respected, well-fed, believed to be the stage of life right before becoming human. Even so, recognizing there is an overpopulation, a dog sterilization program started five years ago. Early birding around Punakha in hopes of glimpsing a White-bellied Heron (similar to our Great Blue Heron). Rare and endangered, there are only 60 individuals left in the world, 39 in Bh...

Leaving at 5:00 am, we head to Dochu La, a temple complex along the main east-west highway. In addition to the temple, Dochu La has 108 stupas built after the Assam (India) militant occupation in 2003 in order to ward off future bad events. The Bhutanese are superstitious people, even abandoning homes if something bad happens and the astrologer says they need to move. Arriving at Dochu La, the sunrise breaks through the clouds eventually giving us clear albeit b...

Up and out by 4:30 am to catch the Blood Pheasants along the road to Chele La (pass), 12,500 ft. The Pheasant pairs turned out in high numbers, always good-lookers. The male has grey and white feathers, blood red feet and throat. Blending into the snow at this altitude yet standing out once you find him. The female is brown with a deep red throat. Early success at daybreak. Rain turned to snow, fog banks moved rapidly obscuring or clearing mountain vistas within ...

Never in my life did I ever expect to see Mt. Everest. It was so off the radar that I never entertained the possibility of expecting to see Mt. Everest. At the ticket counter for DrukAir at 2:30 this morning, Megan suggested we sit on the left side of the plane in order to see The Mountain. What a sight as we flew east to Bhutan. Sunrise through the tops of the clouds around 5:30, then the white tips of the Himalayan chain out my window. The in-flight magazine ha...