Bosque Barbas de Bremen, Colombia

It was late one Monday evening, the sun had retired for the day and the overcast sky made it very comfortable to relax and switch off for the night. Earlier that morning we were scheduled to visit the Bremen forest with the hope of encountering the red howler monkeys that reside here but we cancelled and rescheduled for the Tuesday as the weather didn't start too brightly. A grey overcast sky with plenty of rain that morning and Sunday night twisted our decision to cancel the trip. By the time it reached 9.am, the sun came out to mock us and the day proceeded to improve with each passing hour. "Damn it", I thought, "today was the perfect day to get some great photos". The weather here can be unpredictable at times. Days can start off amazing and by evening it's raining with thunder and lightning. Or they start off wet and dreary but by midday the sun is beating down making you feel like a fool for deciding to wear a jacket! Having said that, the climate in general is perfect. Never too hot and never too cold, a tepid temperature all year round. Sure you have days where it rains all day but usually the following day it's sunny and heavenly again, plant life beams and the sounds of all kinds of exotic birds make their presence known as they sing with delight. We didn't think too much on it, convinced the Tuesday would be just as nice...

Getting back to Monday evening, the house was silent, everyone had settled in for the night except for the cat who had been sleeping all day and was now prowling the place for insects or anything that moved to torture and torment. Then the rain came, soft and delicate initially, tapping off the roof and windows but not long after it began it came down hard and it came down hard all night long. We normally have an early start, rising with the sun at 5.30am if not beforehand. I could still hear the rain beating off the house as I rubbed my sleepy eyes, I peeled back the curtains and peeked outside already knowing what faith was in store for me. The conditions were far worse than Monday morning and it didn't show any sign of clearing up anytime soon. We reached out to our friends in El Palacio del Barbas and asked how the conditions were in Filandia, while we waited for a response we dropped our daughter to kindergarten. Don Albero was quick to respond however and said conditions were better in Filandia and so our spirits were lifted.

(Dark and dreary day in Quindio)

Filandia is only a 30 minutes drive from Armenia so I prepared a filling breakfast for my wife and I before departing. For me personally, there is nothing worse when being on an excursion with your stomach growling and blood sugar levels dropping. The fact I had caught a head cold and was badly congested, being hungry and ill was not a combination I wanted to entertain while trekking through a jungle. My mother always said "you can't begin the day on an empty stomach" and today I was not about to prove her wrong. So off we went on full stomachs, packed with rain jackets, sunscreen, camera, water and most importantly mosquito repellent. We arrived to Filandia dry and prepared but the overcast sky and looming black clouds in the distance where threatening to dampen our moods and outerwear at any moment. We made our way to the town plaza just outside the church where Don Albero's son, who is also named Albero, would take us to the farm 'El Palacio del Barbas' and guide us on our 'Tuesday Trek'.

(On route to El Palacio del Barbas)

We rolled into Albero's 4x4 and set off for the farm, the bumpy and winding road descends from Filandia town and passes by numerous farms on it's way there. Plenty of wildlife show their presence too, especially birdlife, the taller trees offering the ideal lookout spot for falcons.

When we made it to the finca, its simple design is charming and calming. I could see myself being very content with a book, sipping on a cup of coffee with the sounds of nature on a warm day enjoying the atmosphere and ambience. Today however the sun was struggling to make an appearance through the clouded sky but at least it wasn't raining.

After an introduction to the estate Albero took us to the entrance of the forest to begin our trek, 'bosque' in English means forest and 'barbas de Bremen' literally means 'beards of Bremen'. It's named a forest but it really feels more like a jungle, like being in the movie set of The Predator at times. What is now part of a natural reserve was supposedly once a large estate that belonged to a German couple who purchased the land at the end of WWll. What happened to this couple we don't know but the natural fauna and flora invaded and took over the territory once more. Barbas, meaning beards, is the name of a river that runs through the reserve and Bremen, most likely named by the German couple is also the name of a city in Germany. Why beards though? Well legend has it that an old farmer went in search of a lost cow, when he didn't return the locals went in search of him and what they found were his partial remains, left on the rocks that lay beside the river, supposedly he was distinguishable only by his long beard. Sounded like a terrible ending for that poor farmer but there you have it. A river supposedly named after a ghastly event of what once happened here. But don't let that deter you, the only physical threat we encountered were the pesky mosquitos. Thank goodness for repellent.

Albero reminded us that the howler monkeys don't always make an appearance and proceeded to tease us by saying they were very active the day before.... I'll be honest I was worried we might not get to see them. It had rained very hard the night before and early that morning, nevertheless we remained hopeful. When entering the forest you take a number of steps downwards and almost like stepping into a portal you walk inwards from a quiet farm but outwards into a dense jungle. If you didn't know better you would think it was a part of the Amazon.

The trail which we followed at times felt impossible to distinguish from the surrounding forest, without a guide you'd be horribly lost in no time.

As we continued our walk towards the Mikos waterfall, we encountered all types of plant life and invertebrates, some camouflaged so well that they were almost squashed by us as we passed them by. Variations of butterflies float and dance among the ambient light while the sounds of different birds echos across the forest.

Camouflaged butterfly Bosque Barbas de Bremen

Downward we went on our trek and Albero's eyes continued to scan the forest canopy for our elusive forest friends. Sometimes the pace feels slow as he pauses, looks and listens for any sign of their activity but as we made it to the waterfall their elusiveness was creating a feeling of disappointment and doubt was steadily creeping in that today was not our day.

So far our trail has been taking us downwards but that changes after the visit to the waterfall and it's fresh pool that you are free to bath in and enjoy. On a hot day I can see how that would be appealing but today was not a day with the need to cool down in these waters. Now a steady pace uphill takes over that eventually passes over the top of Mikos waterfall and continues upwards through the forest.

We were now about 2 hours in and although the trek had been an enjoyable experience, the thoughts of not witnessing the howler monkeys was becoming more of a reality and I was beginning to accept it. My congestion was no place for this humid jungle and it was slowly wearing me down as we continued climbing upward. My ears needed popping constantly, the same feeling when ascending/descending in an airplane, my blocked nose making the breathing difficult and the need to sniffle was wearing thin. Looking at this photo you can tell i'm not looking so fresh!

Thats when things began to reach a turning point, Albero's keen eye and knowledge of the forest paid precedence. He spotted them and pointed them out to us, initially I couldn't make them out, scanning the canopy wondering, where the hell are they! Eventually I did but had the big male not decided to investigate us I think I'd still be standing there searching! A small group consisting of an alpha male with 3 or 4 females and juveniles. Despite being bright orange, the density of the foliage can make it difficult to see them until they themselves move into sight. The females and juveniles paid little attention to us, allowing the alpha male to come and investigate our presence and awaiting his orders to retreat or hold their ground. Like a big orange ball he made his presence known by making his way to a branch that allowed us to see his impressive size while he stared right at us making a number of grunts.

Finally, it hadn't all been in vain. We even got to see a female with a baby on her back as she made her way to another part of the forest to forage. The big male grunting as though he was making it clear if he approved or disapproved of their movements. We continued to watch them as they interacted with each other and their environment before moving on to leave them in peace.

We left on a high, the entire trek was worth it just to see these guys, they are much bigger than I thought they would be, especially the alpha male. As we made our way in the direction of the exit Albero picked up the grunts from another family. We moved as silently as we could to the noise being emitted from the forest where we got to see another family. These guys were much more vocal than the previous family. Perhaps the alpha had detected us and was being vocal about our presence or maybe he was responding to another family in the area, we weren't sure but one thing is for sure the more time we were with them the more vocal they became.

We stayed until the family decided it was time for them to move on but what an end to a day that wasn't promising much in the beginning. We made our way back to the farm on a high. I was only disappointed by not having a zoom lens for our DSLR camera but I only have myself to blame for that. It makes a good excuse to perform this trek at least one more time.

When we reached the farm we had trekked for almost 3.5 hours. Albero handed us a banana each from their farm and served us a cool glass of agua panela. Needed too as my hearty breakfast had well worn off and the hunger was creeping in. We chatted for a bit before Albero dropped us back to Filandia where we said our thanks and goodbyes. Now it was our turn to forage for food as we searched our options for lunch in the warm and friendly town that is Filandia.

We managed to capture these guys on video too, head over to our social media sites to see more. @paradisecolph