GUATEMALA ADVENTURE

[orchidsusa]

A new story entry has been added:

[drupal=54]GUATEMALA ADVENTURE[/drupal]

GUATEMALA, AUGUST 10-17, 2002
FELLOW PLANT ADVENTURERS WANTED!!!
even travelers plus three Guatemalan plant experts who included Jeronimo Lancerio ? Bromeliads, Romeo Soto ? Movie producer and environmentalist and Jorge Pontaz ? Landscape architect, agronomist and greenhouse owner. Plus the lucky seven ? Anne and David Joffe of Sanibel Island, Florida, owners of She Sells Sea Shells, a world renowned seashell business. Professor Barry Wilson, PhD. ? Orchid Hobbyist, Matt Richards ? Horticulturist and Orchid propagator, Steve Beam ? a director of the Miami Beach Botanical Gardens and landscape architect, Scott Joffe ? Orchid Grower and co-organizer of the trip, and myself, Steve Guiness ? Plant collector, grower, floriculturist and co-organizer of the trip..
Our mission and objective was to explore and rescue fallen and distressed plants and remove plants that are in areas about to be cleared for farming and other projects. With permits and permission from the government of Guatemala and all legal and required paperwork for export, we set out.
Most of the group arrived Saturday August 10th except for Matt. After flying from Ohio to Los Angeles without stopping in Dallas due to inclement weather, he arrived in Guatemala City Sunday morning August 11th. This gave him one hour to shower and leave with the rest of us. We were finally ready to head off on our adventure!
Sunday August 11
Off on our plant adventure! We headed East towards Teculatan in the Motagua valley in the shadow of the Sierra de Las Minas mountains to the farm of a friend where we were allowed to search his property for plants. We had a delicious wood fire grilled barbecue chicken lunch with all the fixings. On the farm the vegetation is dry-subtropical and thorny with temperature in the range of 24-26 degrees Celsius (76-78 Fahrenheit). Orchid species in the area were Oncidiums and Encyclias. We also found a huge Cyrtopdium Punctatum growing on a rock in shallow soil as a Lithophyte. The common name of this orchid is Cow's Horn because of the large horn like pseudobulbs.
(see #1).
Monday August 12
On the drive to Cerro San Gil near the town of Dona Maria, there was a fallen tree. We received permission from the land owner to remove plants from. This area is lower and more humid than the previous day. We saved many plants from the fallen tree including Brassavola Nodosa (Lady of the Night), Encyclia Adenocarpum, Encyclia Nematocaulum and Schomburgkias.
Next we proceeded to Cerro San Gil. On the drive to the park, Matt spotted some large Catasetums in flower and we had to stop and take pictures, they were too nice not to. (see photo # 2-3)
Cerro San Gil is a private ecological reserve funded by United States aid and Fundaeco, a Guatemalan non-profit foundation. It is the largest remnant of tropical rain forest remaining in Guatemala. It is located near the Caribbean Sea between Rio Dolce and Puerto Barrios and covers 3348 acres. Romeo told us that we were the first group to ever be allowed to collect in the area which is very hot and humid with an annual rain fall over 3,600 mm. per year and temperatures of 27 degrees Celsius (80 degrees Fahrenheit). The rescues were limited but we did find one Encyclia Cochleata.
The jungle here was great; a pristine tropical area untouched with over 340 species of birds and an untold number of Aroids, Begonias, Ferns and many different species of tropical trees. Barry, Steve Beam, Jeronimo, Ana Silvia, Jorge and Romeo decided to spend the night at the request of the two Biology students that were stationed there. There is a primitive biological station located on the trail and they stayed there. Arrangements were made to pick the up the next morning at the Rio Carboneras.
The rest of us headed to Rio Dulce for a hot shower, nice dinner and comfortable bed at the Mansion Del Rio!

[Tindomul]

Great journal! But I didn't see the photos. I'm glad you got the chance to do some work with wild orchids!!

[orchidsusa]

Guatemala pictures at Plant Adventures to Exotic Destinations
go to past trips, Guatemala trip photos, 2002, or see Decembers pictures 2006.

sg

[Tindomul]

Nice photos of some very cool trips!

[Orchonubee]

Wow, what a great adventure. Wish I could have tagged along, wide eyed, with my digital camera!

[orchidsusa]

Why not join us one one of our trips...take a look at the photos,

Plant Adventures to Exotic Destinations

steve

[Ross]

Sounds like a dream come true! Can't say much for the cactus digs (been there - done that) but the orchid trips sound great. Maybe one day.