Upcoming Trips

The Lost World - Hoatzins, Caimans and Waterfalls

11 Day Guyana Birding-centric Wildlife EcoTour September 3-13, 2026

Chance Expeditions 

Please email Katie McGee at chanceexpeditions@yahoo.com if you are interested in this trip and would like to stay updated on Chance Expeditions.  

(Stay tuned for the Yucatan Explorers trip in 2027!)

Destination Overview - Guyana

Guyana is a biodiversity-rich country on South America’s northeastern coast, where over 80% of the land remains covered by pristine rainforest. Known for its low population density and strong conservation ethic, Guyana offers exceptional wildlife viewing, dramatic landscapes, and authentic cultural experiences. From coastal wetlands to vast savannas and ancient tabletop mountains (tepuis), the country is a premier destination for birding and nature-based travel.

Day One 9/3/26 - arrival in Georgetown

We’ll spend two nights at the comfortable and basic Status Hotel, about one hour from the Cheddi Jagan International Airport and just a few minutes from the Guyana Botanical Gardens, providing easy access to the country’s best urban birding site.

(overnight Status Hotel)

Day Two 9/4/26 - Georgetown

In the morning we will go birding in a renowned urban green space known for its diversity of resident and migratory birds, the Guyana Botanical Gardens.  We’ll search for the Blood-colored Woodpecker, White-bellied Piculet and Festive Amazon.  We may even get the chance to see semi-tame West Indian Manatees in nearby waterways. 

In the afternoon into the evening, we’ll take a boat ride for some birding on the Mahaica River.  This river is lined with Muck-mucka plants, the staple food of Guyana’s national bird, the Hoatzin.  These bizarre birds are modern day dinosaurs with a truly unique appearance and some amazing adaptations (like chicks with clawed wings that they use to climb trees!).  The river also provides habitat for waterbirds and primates such as the Guyanan Red Howler Monkey.

(overnight Status Hotel)

Day Three 9/5/26 - transfer to Atta Rainforest Lodge

Today we will travel overland from Georgetown to the famous Atta Rainforest Lodge on the edge of the Iwokrama Forest. This scenic journey of 10+ hours transitions from coastal plains to dense tropical rainforest.

(overnight Atta Rainforest Lodge - D)

Days Four and Five 9/6-9/7/26 - Atta Rainforest Lodge

Each morning and afternoon we’ll have birding excursions at this world class birding location with top notch guides in the Iwokrama Rainforest.  We’ll visit the famous Canopy Walkway and have chances of seeing the Guianan Cock-of-the-Rock (one of the world’s most spectacularly colored birds), Guianan Toucanet, Pompadour Cotinga, Crimson Fruitcrow, as well as the Black Spider Monkey and other jungle mammals.  We’ll also meet some of the stately, old growth trees that Guyana is known for.

(overnight Atta Rainforest Lodge - BLD)

Day Six 9/8/26 - transfer to Caiman House

Today we’ll transfer from Atta Rainforest Lodge to Caiman House (a trip of 2-3 hours), my favorite place in Guyana.  We’ll learn about the unique mission of Caiman House, a community-based conservation lodge, and follow Black Caiman researchers onto the river to watch them in action as they capture a caiman to tag and record measurements.

(overnight Caiman House - BLD)

Regional Focus - The Rupununi

The Rupununi Region in southern Guyana is a mosaic of seasonally flooded savannas, winding rivers, wetlands, and rainforest edges. This region supports iconic species such as Giant Anteaters, Black Caimans, Giant River Otters, and hundreds of bird species. It is also home to Indigenous communities whose traditional land stewardship has helped preserve the area’s ecological integrity.

Days Seven and Eight 9/9-9/10/26 - Caiman House

Each morning and late afternoon into evening we’ll have wildlife viewing excursions that focus on the diverse habitats of the Rupununi, providing an excellent balance of birding, wildlife spotting, and landscape exploration.

We’ll take boat rides on the Rupununi River for chances of Giant River Otters, Arapaima, Agami Herons, and giant Victoria amazonica waterlilies, and we’ll take a driving safari across the Rupununi Savannah in search of Giant Anteaters, with a stop at wetlands for a chance of Buff-necked Ibis and Pinnated Bittern.  On the Caiman House grounds, we’ll get to see their facility for rescuing, rearing and releasing hatchling Podocnemus river turtles.

(overnight Caiman House - BLD)

Day Nine 9/11/26 - return to Georgetown

We’ll leave Caiman House for an afternoon flight from Lethem, a town on the Brazilian border (a 2-3 hour drive from Caiman House).  The domestic flight will last about 1 hour.. 

(overnight Status Hotel - B)

Day Ten 9/12/26 - Georgetown

We will spend our final day flying to and birding at the iconic Kaieteur and Orinduik Falls.  These picturesque waterfalls are located in the table mountains, or tepuis, that inspired Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World.  While exploring viewpoints and surrounding habitats, we’ll have the chance to look for endemic Golden Rocket Frogs that live in giant bromeliads near the falls, as well as White-chinned and White-tipped Swifts that hunt over and roost under the falls.  

(While flights are generally reliable, there is a chance of weather delay, so if the flight from Lethem to Georgetown is delayed a day the waterfall trip will be bumped.)

(overnight Status Hotel - L)

Day Eleven 9/13/26 - flight home

Included:

all in country transportation and flights

meals indicated on itinerary

bottled drinking water

Guyanese expert guide and American trip leader

ebird checklists

Not included:

international flights

travel insurance

meals not indicated on itinerary 

alcoholic beverages

gratuity for guides, leaders and housekeeping

Trip Cost - $5,500

Deposit of $2,500 due at booking, remaining $3,000 due by August 13, 2026.

Private rooms at Status Hotel available, shared rooms only at Atta Rainforest Lodge and Caiman House.  (If you do not have a travel partner, you will be paired with a same sex roommate.)

Recommended Field Guides and Reading:

Birds of Northern South America: An Identification Guide: Plates and Maps (Helm Field Guides)

Birds of Tropical America: A Watcher’s Introduction to Behavior, Breeding and Diversity, by Steven Hilty

The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (inspired by Guyana’s tepui mountains)

Meet Your Guides:

Kenneth Butler, Guyanese Naturalist Extraordinaire and Award Winning Tour Guide 

Kenneth Butler is an internationally respected naturalist guide from Surama Village in Guyana’s North Rupununi. Born and raised in a community deeply connected to the surrounding rainforest, savannas, and wetlands, Kenneth developed an early and enduring passion for wildlife, culture, and conservation.

At a young age, Kenneth moved to Georgetown, where he completed his formal education, including training in electrical engineering. Despite pursuing technical studies, his deep connection to nature remained central to his identity. Every opportunity he had to return to the forest strengthened his desire to work in conservation and eco‑tourism.

After gaining work experience in Georgetown and other parts of the country, Kenneth returned to his home community of Surama. In 2009, he formally entered the tourism industry as a tour guide with Surama Eco‑Friendly Lodge, marking the beginning of a distinguished career in nature‑based tourism.

In 2015, Kenneth became a freelance tour guide and founded Green Diamond Nature Tours, a company dedicated to responsible tourism, conservation awareness, and authentic cultural experiences. Through this platform, he has guided visitors from around the world, showcasing Guyana’s extraordinary biodiversity while promoting sustainable tourism practices.

Kenneth’s professional expertise spans ornithology, herpetology, mammalogy, ecology, and indigenous culture, making him one of Guyana’s most knowledgeable and versatile licensed naturalist guides. He works closely with the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) as a Facilitator and Master Trainer, playing a key role in training and mentoring new and emerging tour guides across the country.

His leadership extends beyond guiding through his involvement in national tourism development initiatives, where he contributes his experience to support sustainable tourism planning, capacity building, and guide development across Guyana.

In recognition of his professionalism, dedication, and contribution to Guyana’s tourism industry, Kenneth Butler received the Guyana Tourism Awards – Best Tour Guide of the Year (2021).

Today, Kenneth Butler continues to be a leading ambassador for Guyana’s natural and cultural heritage, combining deep local knowledge, strong conservation ethics, and exceptional guiding skills to deliver meaningful experiences for visitors while supporting community development and environmental stewardship.

Chance Expedition’s Katie McGee can personally attest that Kenneth is an amazing herpetologist, entomologist and birder, as well as a kind and patient soul.  He was hand selected to be the perfect guide to show us the wonderful wildlife of Guyana.

Katie McGee, Trip Leader and Chance Expeditions Founder

       Katie McGee is a lifelong animal lover and self proclaimed bird nerd.  She has a decade of experience planning elaborate international wildlife viewing trips that often include volunteering stints with local rehabilitation or conservation organizations.  Some of her favorite places in the world are Madagascar and the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.  (You can read about some of these adventures in her books The Sharks of Mexico, Reniala, and Maetang To Koh Chang, available on Amazon.)  

She works at Newport Aquarium as a Dive Technician and has the privilege of SCUBA diving with some amazing animals, such as Arapaima, Sharkrays, and Denver the Loggerhead Sea Turtle.  Before that, she worked with her favorite animals, dogs, for twelve years at Kyle Veterinary Hospital in southwest Ohio.  She volunteers extensively with wildlife, from monitoring Monarch butterflies to bottle feeding orphaned raccoons.  She is currently studying zoology at Oregon State University and training to become a bird bander.

Katie began birding seriously after her first trip to Madagascar in 2019, where she was so impressed by the knowledge of her guides that she wanted to pursue becoming a birding guide herself.  She enrolled in the master naturalist course for her home state, Ohio Certified Volunteer Naturalist, and started guiding bird walks at her local nature center in 2021.  In 2025, Katie attended a professional development course for women birding guides at Panama’s renowned Canopy Lodge led by Big Year record breaking birder Tiffany Kersten.  Shortly after, Katie started her company, Chance Expeditions, with the goal of building well researched wildlife viewing blitz itineraries geared towards small groups of birders interested in seeing all the wildlife a destination has to offer. 

Shelby Bessette, Assisting Trip Leader and Conservation & Ecotourism Professional

Shelby is an experienced field guide who is continuing to deepen her work in international ecotourism, bringing a strong foundation in safety, ecological insight, and participant support to birding-focused expeditions. She draws on more than a decade of experience as a coastal scientist, hunting guide, and conservation educator in the southern United States, primarily along the Texas coast. Her professional background spans applied conservation, habitat stewardship, and environmental education, with extensive collaboration among state and federal agencies, nonprofit organizations, and land managers.  

A Texas Master Naturalist since 2017, Shelby has contributed hundreds of volunteer hours to conservation and research efforts, including sea turtle and marine mammal stranding response, coastal monitoring programs, and bird banding in the Rio Grande Valley—an experience that solidified her path into the world of birding. These hands-on field experiences have shaped her guiding style, which emphasizes ethical wildlife viewing, situational awareness, and thoughtful interpretation.

In 2025, Shelby attended a professional development course for women birding guides at Panama’s renowned Canopy Lodge led by Big Year record breaking birder Tiffany Kersten, where she met Katie McGee, Chance Expeditions founder.  This experience further strengthened her commitment to guiding birders and international ecotourism. Shelby and Katie quickly recognized a shared birding trip destination and began collaborating on an international expedition to Guyana—a place they both feel deeply connected to and a great place for the company to launch their well-researched, small group, wildlife-rich itinerary trip.

As a guide, Shelby is known for her calm presence, strong organizational skills, and ability to support both novice and experienced birders in the field.  On The Lost World tour, Shelby will assist Kenneth and Katie by supporting bird identification, maintaining checklists, assisting with logistics, and ensuring participants feel informed, safe, and engaged throughout the journey. Her role is rooted in collaboration, professionalism, and a shared passion for showcasing the extraordinary wildlife of a country she has come to love.

Guyana represents a meaningful bridge between professional guiding and personal connection for Shelby, who has local ties through her brother’s expatriate work in the region. These relationships help foster authentic cultural exchange and support collaboration with local communities and guides. Together, Shelby and Katie aim to introduce travelers to Guyana as an exceptional birding destination, highlighting its biodiversity, landscapes, and conservation values in a respectful and immersive way.