Griffons galore at the Foz de Lumbier, snow around the Irati forests, Northern thrushes mingling with warblers and a rip off camp site but at least I got a shower!



Progress , though I ain't gone far!

Posting from a public library in Arguedas because the wifi signal in the local bar here was just too feeble. I've made decent progress through Northern Spain and now find myself just outside the Bardenas Reales ... just done a quick reckie and have to say this is one of the most surreal places I've ever been! I can see now where the Spanish Steppes got their name and perhaps also where Salvador Dali got some of his inspiration! That's all to come tomorrow and for a later post so here's a bit of catch up.

The day after I last posted I woke up to a couple of inches of snow on the ground, it didn't last for long but while it did the countryside views were dazzling!

Redwing, Roncesvalles

I did't much fancy venturing too far away from Roncesvallles in case the weather got worse so I spent a morning tramping the woods again ... it was bloody freezing! One or two good birds about though, plus a Red Squirrel across the road.

Best birds of the morning was a huge flock of 300 Bramblings in the forests around Roncesvalles and some great looking Redwings, quite a few thrushes here in fact with both Song & Mistle Thrushes in amongst the Blackbirds. No Fieldfares though.







Bullfinch, Roncesvalles

Now here's a bird I've never seen in Spain before, its just a Bullfinch but hey 2 cracking males in a forest in the Pyrenees with snow on the ground and the sun coming out was just magic! Had a couple of Chiff Chaffs and a strange sounding woodpecker in the same sheltered spot..... bit like a Lesser pecker, but not quite?? We'll never know!

Chiff Chaff, Roncesvalles

Black Redstart, Roncesvalles

Black Redstarts all over the place as expected, but none more handsome than this one in the car park at Roncesvalles


　

　

　
















Eating quite a lot of this ... very nice with a hunk of cheese and some decent bread!

Chorizo Sausage

The weather cleared up in the afternoon so I headed off to my next destination - the Foz de Lumbier, one of two massive gorges around here that are said to be good for Lammegeir and Wallcreeper. No joy with either as it turned out but I did find a half decent camp site, so was able to wash and get my tackle together with some degree of much needed civilised order!



Foz de Lumbier

The gorge at Lumbier was spectacular to say the least, hence the tourists ... hence I suspect no Wallcreepers but if you like to see Griffon Vultures this is the place to come. I counted just shy of 250 on the cliffs. I had Dipper and Firecrest here too to take my species list over 100 but generally I'm finding the birds very tricky to see let alone photograph! The Griffons were reasonably easy though ... so I filled my boots!

Here's a couple of the Gorge itself ..







Foz de Lumbier





Griffon pose ... some say these are the ugliest birds going?

Griffon fly past

Perfect metropolis for Griffons!

Griffon fly past2

Griffon fly past3

Griffon party ... almost a caption contest here!

Like I said, the Griffons were easy ... perched around on the cliff faces and floating over the gorge all of the time.



Camp site cost me close on 40 euros for 2 nights ... yes I had electric hook up but still that's a bit steep I thought for what must be low season, got charged VAT, some other 10% tax ....felt ripped off and it was some time before I regained my normal cheery self!



En route ... somewhere in the Navarre!

At some point the sun came out as I was driving and as luck would have it I was passing some lovely looking cliff faces and outcrops in the Navarre ... surely the prettiest part of the Pyrenees...













Next up was Las Canas, a wetland area just outside of Lograno. Not a bad little spot and I had some good birds there, just a shame it drizzled all day and with black clouds overhead the light was appalling ..... too bad, I had cracking views of 2 male Hen Harriers, so good in fact I could see the bright yellow legs on one when it conveniently perched in the middle of a stubble field (with hindsight I should just have forgotten it was dusk and taken a picture anyway because I didn't see 'em again the next day!). Not processed any pics from the last 2 days yet but with this gloomy light and persistent drizzle I'm not expecting much.

New birds for the trip here were Lesser Short Toed Larks .... stack of them (200 I reckon), Woodlarks (20+), Red Crested Pochard, Merlin and some probable Citril Finches but they do look so vedry much like Siskins!

I'm in good spirits, and so I should be ... what a wonderful adventure I'm having and its only lack of time and opportunity to post that prevents me from including more of my experiences over here. Maybe I need a camp site with wi fi access so I can sit down and do this from the van.... ah the luxury of that thought!

Bomb through France, Le Teiche, Cap Ferret and the Navarre Pyrenees ... stunningly beautiful Autumn colurs and Cranes a plenty!

Ok so here's the first of several updates during my road trip to Spain.

Thought my first bird on the trip was bound to be some kind of gull at Le Havre but no .... 6.00 am and by the lights of the ferry I spotted a flock of about 15 Meadow Pipits gainfully following the boat in the wind and the rain ... they looked buoyant enough so good look to em, and good luck to me too as I point Southwards for a spell!

Feels great to be on the road again and with 5 weeks of travelling, birding and photography to come. I expect these 'bulletins' from Spain to be brief due to limited internet access ....no way am I gonna get stung with using my iphone!

So, Le Havre and the usual beat down through France - nothing much to report apart from biggish flocks of Lapwing. I drove on all day, determined to get somewhere half decent and arrived in the Gironde area by 9.00pm. Next day I explored Cap Ferret and the Le Teiche reserve and had a good day. Plenty of waders about, including c450 Black Tailed Godwits, c330 Avocet, 12 Spotted Redshank, 6 Greenshank, 3 Spoonbill & 3 Glossy Ibis, plus good numbers of Dunlin, Sanderling, Ringed Plover, Turnstone, Grey Plover and Curlew.

Unexpected birds here included a single Audouins and Little Gull and a Great Skua harrying gulls across the sand dunes at Cap Ferret.

Good selection of wildfowl at Le Teiche too ...including Pintail (unexpected), Wigeon and 1 Black Necked Grebe.


Pintail, Le Teiche

Black Necked Grebe, Le Teiche

Black Tailed Godwits, Le Teiche

I should have expected Common Cranes of course but wasn't ready for maybe 2000 overhead in the day!

Common Cranes over Le Teiche.

Wee birds in short supply but 1 Chiff Chaff at Cap Ferret and several others at Le Teiche were welcome, as were 5 Marsh Harriers at the same place.

Drove all evening on the 13th, across the border and into Spain, arriving somewhere in the Navarre Pyrenees by 10.00pm .... knackered by then!

Spent all next day (14th) exploring the Navarre Pyrenees around the Selva d'Irati area. Not the best of weather or light to be honest but I made the best of it and witnessed some super Common Crane migration ... maybe 3000 overhead during the day. Good to hear their evocative calls in the air again, often above the clouds and more often than not accompanied by equally humungus flocks of Wood Pigeons.

Stunningly beautiful part of the Pyrenees this and with the abundance of Beech trees around here the Autumn colours are absolutely gorgeous!


One less attractive aspect is the sound of many guns going off in the woods and the presence of more khaki clad huntsman than I'm comfortable with! At one point, as I was driving up a forested mountain slope, every time I stopped to admire the scenery and marvel at the almost continuous Common Crane passage, I was descended upon by the same group of gun touting, cigar smokin 'Elma Fuds' in their beat up vans! .... its to be hoped they were after the many thousands of Wood Pigeons that also pass through here every Oct / Nov but they did seem to have eyes for the Cranes and Red Kites too!









Griffon Vulture, Navarre

Raptors in the air were indeed mainly Red Kites with maybe 50 seen in total, also a few Griffon Vultures (20 ish) but no sign of no 1 target bird Lammergeir today!

I've seen many groups of dark thrushes flying over too but can't identify in the poor light .... ? Blackbirds ? Mistle Thrushes ? Ring Ouzel? ... a mystery but as ever, its always fun when there's stuff about you can't identify!

















Star birds for me today were a small flock of Crested Tits in amongst Coal, Great & Blue's Tits and my first Crag Martins for ages just across the border early this morning. Stacks of Robins about and lots of Black Redstarts too, in fact there are plenty of birds about and I've already got past 80 species for the trip!

Another post soon .... it snowed the day after the above post so got some mega snow shots!