Our Ten
‘Favorite’ Collecting Places
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Many times I’ve been
asked and many times I’ve dodged the question: “What is
you favorite place to collect?” I have to say that
I am hard pressed to tell you my favorite anything,
food, music, plant, animal or person. I just don’t tend
to categorize things that way. But as I am sort of
scraping the bottom of the mental barrel for a story
this time, the question seemed to gain more weight and
legitimacy. So, I have challenged myself to pick, not
one (impossible) but ten of our favorite ‘collecting’
places.
Still this is not an easy task. We have visited thirty
countries on collecting trips of one form or another. To
narrow the field I have restricted the choices to those
countries where we were collecting plants and not just
reptiles. Further, I have decided to keep the list in
the new world, as most of our trips to Asia and
Australia have been at least in part, buying trips. So
basically, this leaves the tropics of North, Central and
South America. Still, with over a hundred trips to this
region, each in it’s own way ‘the best’, it is very
difficult indeed to pick a favorite spot. So with no
further fanfare, and in no particular order, here are my
choices for ten favorite places from a collector’s
standpoint. |
The
Colombian Amazon as pictured above, this is definitely one of
our favorite places. The bromeliad diversity may not be as great as
some places, but there are plenty of other things. This is a man’s
kind of country; big adventure and just enough mystery and danger to
keep you on edge. The Ticuna village above was a camp for a few days
where we slept and stored our supplies. Wally Berg broke some ribs
here and I broke my neck, but hey, I would go back in a heartbeat as
they say.
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The
Colombian Amazon
teems with wildlife and plants. Living
off of what we could get from the native
people and catch ourselves made the
adventure even greater. Five men for two
weeks in a fourteen foot boat makes for
cramped quarters, but no complaints were
ever heard. Our collections included
many choice plants that we still grow
and propagate today. Best of all we have
memories that will never fade. Just
check out Wally with our boat full of
plants.
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Sometimes we had piranha
for dinner... |
...and sometimes they had
us! |
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A shopkeeper shows off a jaguar skull
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Land Rovers are the vehicle of choice
in Belize
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Belize is so small that I will include
the whole country as a favorite area. Not hugely rich in
bromeliads, nonetheless, the ones you will find are abundant and
nice. There are lots of orchids and many other plants as well.
Best of all it is largely unspoiled with plenty of jungles and
wild areas that teem with wildlife. The roads are challenging
and a trip to the interior is still something of an adventure.
The people, often American or European expats, can be quirky but
are always interesting.
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The Darian Gap, the ‘missing link’ of
the Pan American Highway in southern Panama is one of the
least explored and biologically most diverse areas left in the
Americas. Few have traveled there and going is indeed rough,
mostly by canoe and on foot. A countryside filled with exotica,
from the plants and wildlife to the indigenous people. Home of
the red Tillandsia kegeliana and many new Guzmania
species.
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Copan and the western valleys of Honduras are a
biologically rich and diverse zone where new species of plants
await discovery. A ruggedly beautiful country with craggy
mountains, deeply cut valleys and the mysterious ruins left by
the ancient Mayan civilization. The glorious Tillandsia
copanensis hails from here as does the remarkable
Beaucarnia goldmanii in nearby rocky gorges. Our choice for
the vastness of it’s unspoiled regions. |
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