Itinerary
Day 1 – Welcome to BOLETAS - We'll meet you at Barcelona airport, birding en route with good chances for raptors and several species of steppe birds, followed by a welcome dinner and overnight at "Boletas" in Loporzano.
Day 2,3 - Loporzano, Vadiello and Guara Range - Walk from Loporzano to a nearby riverbed with good chances for a wide range of birds: from Lammergeier to Black Wheatear or Golden Oriole to Tawny Pipit. Walk along one of the most emblematic rock faces of Sierra de Guara Natural Park. Several stops on the way at interesting spots situated in the heart of the park. Large groves of holm oaks, mediterranean scrub and pine woods. The ravines of the rivers Flumen and Mascún are regarded as the most rugged and inaccessible of all in the pre-Pyrenean ranges. Spectacular rock formations with abundant birdlife. Numerous raptors, mainly Bonelli´s ( last pair in the central Pyrenees ), Short-toed and Golden eagle ,Lammergeier, a large colony of Griffon Vultures, Egyptian Vulture, Red-legged Partridge, Scops Owl, Eagle Owl, Alpine Swift, Bee-eater, Hoopoe, Wryneck , Thekla Lark, Black Wheatear, Black-eared Wheatear, Blue RockThrush, Rock Thrush, Tawny Pipit, Firecrest, Dartford, Spectacled, Sardinian, Subalpine, Orphean Melodious , Olivaceous , Bonelli´s, and Garden Warblers, Golden Oriole, Southern Grey Shrike, Rock Sparrow, Spotless Starling , Red-billed Chough, Rock Bunting and Ortolan Bunting. Overnight at “Boletas” in Loporzano.
Day 4 – The famous Mallos de Riglos & San Juan de la Peña - Transition of mediterranean woodland to alpine woodland in San Juan de la Peña with good population of raptors and one of the best sites to watch Black Woodpecker & Citril Finch. Drive to the Mallos de Riglos. Mixed route which combines short walks and a visit to Loarre Castle (XI century). Holm oak woods, mediterranean scrub, reforested pine woods and huge towering cliffs (MALLOS) in one of the most spectacular panoramas of all the pre-Pyrenean range. Abundance of raptors with some of the most important vulture populations in all the Iberian Peninsula . Great variety of woodland birds. Black Wheatear, Alpine Swift, Crag Martin, and thrushes. Overnight at Hotel “Acher” in Hecho.
Days 5,6 - Valleys of Hecho & Anso and Portalet Coll - High mountain areas. Narrow, winding valleys with large wooded masses, mainly pine and beech groves. In the open areas we find cultivated fields or grazing lands, alpine meadows above 2,000 mts. The valley of Hecho , formed by the river Sobordan basin, turns in to a deep gorge at the "Boca del Infierno", one of the most beautiful ravines in the Pyrenees . Most outstanding are rock loving birds WALLCREEPER and raptors that occupy the rock cliffs such as Lammergeier, Golden Eagle and Egyptian Vulture. Good opportunities to watch alpine and woodland birds like: Black Woodpecker, Red-backed Shrike, Dipper, Crested Tit, Firecrest, Ortolan Bunting, Rock Bunting, Ring Ouzel, Snow Finch ,Citril Finch, Alpine Accentor, Water Pipit. In this area, we can also spot the only population of White-backed Woodpecker in the Aragonese Pyrenees. A region still populated by the last of the Pyrenean bears, we will see Marmots and Chamoix. Overnight at Hotel "Acher" in Hecho.
Day 7 - Los Monegros; Ebro Valley Steppes - We leave the high Pyrenees crossing the pre-Pyrenees driving through the extensive cereal plains of Monegros , which includes the visit to the salt lakes in the central area, the most arid land in the Ebro depression with chances to see the elusive Dupont´s Lark , desert vegetation. Just before dinner we shall familiarise ourselves with the nesting area of Dupont's Lark. Before dawn on the following day we will return to this impressive steppe area where the spectacle of sunrise coupled with the mysterious song of Dupont´s Lark creates a unique magical ambience. Overnight in Alcolea area.
Steppe birds: Black-bellied and Pin-tailed Sandgrouse , Stone Curlew, Little & Great Bustard , Montagu´s Harrier, Lesser Kestrel , Calandra, Dupont´s , Short-toed, Lesser Short-toed & Thekla Larks.
Water birds: Purple Heron, Black-crown Night Heron, Little Bittern, Black-necked Grebe , Red-crested Pochard, and an important population of White Stork. Penduline Tit, Bearded Tit, Great Reed Warbler.
Mediterranean raptors: Egyptian Vulture, Short-toed, Booted, Bonelli´s & Golden Eagles, Goshawk , Black Kite.
Days 8 and 9 - The Ebro Delta - We'll drive from Alcolea today, to visit the areas north and south of the Ebro Delta. Birding en route we'll have chances to see many migrants before arriving at the delta with its littoral wetlands, the third most important in the western Mediterranean, after La Camargue in France and "las marismas del Guadalquivir " (Coto de Doñana). It is an alluvial plain of about 32,000 hectares , which goes out 20 Km . into the sea. A large part of this surface is cultivated, with a predominance of rice fields ( 20,000 Hectares ). The rice fields are of great importance as a feeding area for many waterbirds, and there are still large surfaces of natural environments (beaches, wide expanses of sand, bays, flood marshes, salty surfaces, small littoral lakes and riverside woods) with a rich and diverse birdlife – Herons, Egrets, Bitterns and Waders on migration etc. Its not only important as a breeding area (about 28,000 pairs of waterbirds), but also has a wintering population of gulls. Eleven species of Gulls and Terns nest here regularly. For some species (Sandwich Tern), the breeding colonies at the delta are the only ones in the Iberian Peninsula . For others such as Audouin's and Slender-billed Gulls, they are of great importance. For Audouin's Gull it is the most important colony in the world. In recent years, a large population of Greater Flamingo has been nesting again in this area, and the Delta has become its third most important breeding site in the western Mediterranean . There are very good chances to see Pallid Swift, Glossy Ibis, Savi's and Moustached Warblers. Overnight in Deltebre
Day 10 - Time permitting, we can look for any birds we did not see previously, before driving back to Barcelona Airport (a couple of hours) for your return flight home.
Dear Josele,
We can not thank you enough for all you did to make our trip to Spain a huge success. Your energy, patience, and enthusiasm carried us along and was much appreciated. We thoroughly enjoyed every moment. And we saw an incredible variety of habitat and the birds found in each. You are an excellent guide but also a very nice person. We look forward to seeing you again. We will look for you at the Bird Fair.
Sincerely and with our best wishes for your continued success.
Mary & George Boletas week & Ebro Delta - 2006
