I had visited this place in February of this year but I felt convinced this morning that I would spot something new today. And I did, I saw a Spotted Redshank for the first time.
You need to be in good shape if you want to walk all the way from the entrance gate to the National Park up to the furthest watchpoint near the mouth of the river San Pedro. Be prepared for more than 10 kilometres if you go to this point in a straight line and want to come back along the seashore.
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| A sandwich Tern in the Bay of Cadiz ready for a dive |
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| Diving into the water |
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| …and off he goes with a great catch |
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| The entrance gate |
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| Four Eurasian Collared Doves gathered near the entrance gate |
The track is used a lot by runners, walkers and cyclists, but after a few kilometres you find yourself alone.
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| Some school kids canoeing on the river San Pedro |
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| An information board next to the track |
The most common bird I saw today was without a doubt the European Stonechat, a species that is always willing to pose on top of a fence or branch.
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| Female European Stonechat taking to the air |
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| Female European Stonechat preening |
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| Singing on top of a branch |
After about 2.5 km there is a long wooden bridge that allows you to cross the San Pedro river if you want. Today I decided only to get closer to the bridge to see which birds were around. On the other side the landscape is quite different: a lot of trees and hence different types of birds.
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| Wooden bridge over the river San Pedro |
There were some interesting wader birds on the river bank. Not surprising as you know that the river bank is full of delicacies, small and big ones.
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| Some interesting creatures living in the mud |
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| A juvenile Common Ringed Plover having a closer look at the crabs |
During my walk I saw many Sardinian Warblers, but they can be very hard to photograph. Unlike European Stonechats, they prefer to hide in the bushes when they land. |
| Sardinian Warbler |
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| Eurasian Whimbrel |
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| Another watchpoint just before reaching the final one |
At the watchpoint at the very end of this track I sat down for a moment to spot any wader birds, but this time I wasn't as lucky as in February of this year. I decided to walk back along the beach. Doing so I was able to see some Sandwich Tern performing some spectacular dives into the sea to catch fish (see photos at the beginning of this post). Very present were also the Sanderlings.
As I was about to return to our headquarters, I spotted a beautiful formation of Spoonbills high up in the air.
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| Seven Spoonbills practising formation flying |
I recommend visiting this place if you are up for a long walk. Take enough water, especially in summer, as there is no shade along the track, but there are a few benches to rest. Apart from mid-summer, I'd say this place is worth a visit all year round.
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| A beautiful piece of art inside the building next to the entrance showing an Osprey |
Henry.
