Revue Magazine 2010-11 (November)

Through the mist the only sounds that we could hear were made by water.
Gurgling streams and rivulets and drops, cascading down.
Resplendent Quetzal cont. from page 42
Everywhere there were giant tree ferns,
many growing to more than 40 feet in
height. More than a century ago the English
naturalist William R. Brigham saw
these forests and wrote:
“Tropical vegetation cannot well be
described. The real trouble that meets the
novice on the threshold of the tropics is the
utter inadequacy of the English language to
express the variety and luxuriance he sees
in the vegetable world. Even in color his vocabulary
fails him and he must include in
the name of ‘green’ so many distinct tints
that he often fails to try.”
It was very silent. Through the mist the only
sounds that we could hear were made by
58 » revuemag.com
water. Gurgling streams and rivulets and
drops, cascading down from one leaf to another.
We continued to slog up the muddy
trail and it was a surprise when, after what
seemed like a very short time, we came to a
clearing where there stood a little thatchedroof
cottage out of which arose a plume of
blue smoke. Rosendo Chun’s place!
He was not home but his two daughters
came out to greet us with steaming mugs of
hot coffee. I used the rest of the daylight to
try to locate a quetzal with no luck. It was
raining steadily and all the forest creatures
were staying inside their warm nests and
burrows. ...continued on page 62