5 Night

Catalan Guided Bird Watching Holiday (5 Nights)

The “Wild Coast”, Medieval Villages and Mountainous Interior

Nights: 5 Nights B&B

Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive at Girona Airport or Figueres Train Station where you will be transferred to you accommodation in Sant Pere Pescador. Surrounded by areas of authentic natural beauty and bordered by the River Fluvià, Sant Pere Pescador keeps a perfect balance between land and sea, between the greens and yellows of its orchards and the blue and gold of its extensive beaches.

Immerse yourself in the history and culture of the village, take a walk through the countryside and discover the wide-open landscape on the banks of the River Fluvià, with its apple orchards and nature trails, and its glimpses of windsurfers and sand-dunes… discover all the details that go together to make up the everyday life of this village.

Accommodation: Rural Guest House (Casa Rural), B&B, Sant Pere Pescador. The house is situated next to the River Fluvia and surrounded by fields of fruit trees. It is right at the beginning of the natural reserve “Parc de Mig de Dos Rius”, where there is a great diversity of fauna.

The house was constructed in the 19^th century and is completely restored and furnished with care. It has five rooms all en-suite, heating, television and air conditioning. The dining room is very sunny with views to the garden; the living room has a chimney, television, music equipment and board games. In the lounge you will be able to relax, read or simply enjoy the view. The Guest House also has a swimming pool that is open in the summer.

Day 2: Today we will visit the Aiguamolls Reserve of the l’Empordà Natural Park.

We will visit several ponds, rice plantations and the Mig de dos Rius Reserve which is close to the area visited in the morning (we’ll choose locations depending on the season and the level of the water)

This park is situated between the Mediterranean Sea and two small rivers, “la Muga” and “el Fluvià”. From the salted coastal lagoons at the seashore to the forested interior, it is a shelter to migrating birds, a good area where wintering birds are safe and an excellent breeding ground.

Because of its situation, just below the Pyrenees, it is an excellent shelter before or after crossing the mountains, but when the northern wind (the famous “Tramuntana”) gets stronger, the role of these marshes gets even more important as there is a strong fall out of migrating birds. Furthermore, like the few wild areas close to the seashore (Camarga, Salses and Canet in France and The Llobregat and Ebro Deltas) the “Aiguamolls de l’Empordà” is a place for the migrating birds to rest and recover.

Birds present the whole year round are Balearic and Mediterranean Shearwaters, Cory’s Shearwater (rare in winter), Bittern, White Stork, Greater Flamingo (young ones), Purple Gallinule, Stone Curlew, Moustached Warbler, and Penduline Tits.

During breeding season there are Little Bitterns, Puple Herons, Garganeys, Short-toed EagleKentish Plovers, Rollers, Bee-eaters, Lesser Grey Shrikes (really rare), Great Reed Warblers and Reed Warblers.

Wintering birds are Dives, Black-necked Grebes, Gannets, Great White Egrets, Glossy Ibiss, thousands of ducks, Lapwings, Golden Plovers and other shorebirds, Bearded Tits (although it is becoming fewer every winter) and Reed Buntings.

During the migration, we get many of the birds which migrate along the Mediterranean seashores. The most important are Squacco Herons, Black Storks (every year we get a few of them), Spoonbills, Garganeys, Ospreys, Red-footed Falcon Wiskered, Black Terns and every year some White-winged- Black Terns.

Apart from birds, there are other kinds of wildlife that live in the reserve; we have Reed Deer, Eurasian Otter, Butterflies and other insects making visiting this reserve a very enjoyable experience.

Day 3: We will visit the Serra de Roda, the inner area of the Cap de Creus- Serra de Roda Natural Park, then return to the Aiguamolls Reserve of the l’Empordà  Natural Park.

Day 4: We will visit the coastal area of the Cap de Creus and the Serra de Roda Natural Park.

The “Cap de Creus” is the most easterly point of the Pyrenees. For birdwatchers, there are many chances to be surprised, with typical and rare species from this habitat, some of them are here all year round, and others in winter or during the breeding season.  Furthermore, you can also experience the huge migration show: Cap de Creus is an excellent place to see the birds recovering from their challenging travel and searching for a good place to settle, whenever in autumn or in spring.

During the whole year you can discover the Cap de Creus and its birds. Interesting birds likely to be found here during the whole year are Mediterranean and Balearic Shearwater, Cory’s Shearwater (though it comes back very rarely in winter), Bonelli’s Eagles, Pelegrin Falcons, Thekla Larks, Black Wheatears (really rare and close to disappearing), Blue Rock Trushs, Sardinian Warblers, Dartford Warblers and Rock Sparrows.

Breeding birds are Pallid Swifts, Red-rumped Swallows, Short-toed Larks (rare), Tawny Pipits, Black.eared Wheatears, Rock Trushs, Spectaded, Subalpines and Orphean Warblers, Woodchat Shrikes and Ortolan Bunings.

Wintering birds include Razorbills, Gannets, Great Skuas, Alpine Accentors and some years you can see Wallcreepers.

Geology and botany are also very interesting in this area. Obviously insects in this Mediterranean landscapes are both plentiful and important. Humans have been here since long ago, leaving many megalithic monuments, Romanic monasteries and emblematic places like Cadaqués and Port Lligat, which captivated Artists like Salvador Dalí.

Day 5: Today we will travel inland into the Pyrenees with peaks nearing 3000 meters.  We will walk up in the high mountains from the Coll de Barraques (depending on snow level in spring – winter).

We may observe the Griffon Vulture, Golden Eagles, Lammergeier, Peregrines and other raptors. We have the Jackdaw, and in some places Chough, and when we walk higher into the Alpine meadow and rocky zones, Wheatears and Rock Pipits will accompany us while we hear the shouts of the Marmots calling from the screes.

The Wallcreeper is one of the Pyrenees stars, always scanty and difficult to locate, we will look for it in the most appropriate areas.

In the forest areas, where Capercaillie and Tengmalm’s Owls live, we can listen and observe Black Woodpeckers and Crossbills, as well as other birds of the mountain forest. Citril Finchs and Ring Ouzels will be seen easily in more open areas.

Besides the Marmot, also we can see Chamois, and in some places Muflons.

Day 6: Pick up and transfer to Girona airport or Figueres Train Station.

What your holiday includes:

• Transfer to and from Girona Airport or Figueres Train Station
• Services of an experienced Ornithologist
• Five nights’ B&B accommodation
• Local maps
• Personal information pack including information about local history, culture, traditions, restaurants, shops and local attractions etc

What’s not included:

• Flights
• Holiday Insurance
• Meals (except breakfast)

Prices 2010:

Extra night prices 2010 (extra nights can be booked)

Please ask for details.

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