Birds and Bears Tour - tour in detail

This is a week long itinerary, focusing on Brown Bears and sedentary birds in the Slovakian Carpathians and, in Hungary, mainly migratory species.

Your outward flight will be to Bratislava, from where you will be transferred to the Tatras and check-in at your hotel in time for the evening meal. Bratistava is about 150 miles from your hotel.

Evening Bear Obsevation depends on time of arrival to our hotel.

We will stay in the High Tatras, below the highest peaks north of the Alps. Our hotel is situated in the heart of the Tatra National Park, from where we will have fairly easy access, not only to hides, but also by cableway to the alpine zone, still covered with snow. Although not a large mountain range, the High Tatras rise dramatically from the valley of the Vah river, up to 7800 feet.

We will be watch for Brown Bears from comfortable hides, overlooking small clearings. The bears are fed with maize and honey in spring and although they will be quite close, our position will be such that they are not aware of our presence. We will be in the hides for about two hours prior to dusk. It takes between two and ten minutes easy walk, according to which hide is visited.

The forest is mixed here, but in the Tatras in general there are many tree species, dominated by large areas of spruce. The mountains of Central Slovakia hold good populations of Wolf, Lynx, Red Deer, Roe Deer, Wild Boar and some other smaller mammals. We will have a good chance to see Otter, Chamois and Marmot, none of which are rare here.

During the day we will look not only for sedentary birds, but some migrants. The birding is easy grade, with short trips. There is no doubt that Hazel Grouse is the most elusive bird here, but with luck it we may well see it on forest tracks. Golden Eagle inhabits higher elevations and we will most probably see it from the cableway in the Tatras. Alpine Accentor and Water Pipit are the commonest birds of the alpine zone, but Lesser Spotted Eagles usually hunt in the meadows near to our hotel. Small owls, Pygmy and Tengmalm’s, will be our main target. Both are rather vocal in spring, but we will rely on our local guide to locate them. The sought-after ´peckers are common in the forest - Black, Grey-headed and especially Three-toed Woodpecker are abundant in the Tatras.

We will be also looking for Dipper and Grey Wagtail along the rapid mountain streams. Many commoner birds can, however, be seen outside our hotel. Ring Ouzel, Nutcracker, Crossbill, Firecrest, Crested Tit and Goshawk are just a few to mention. One option is an early morning Black Grouse lek, but Wallcreeper will require half a day. It breeds on limestone rocks and whilst there we will surely find some Bear´s Ear Primroses and Slovak Pasque Flower. Peregrine will also add to our list of raptors.

We head east tu huge Volovske Hills mountains. With a local guide we will hike along forested mountain tracks searching for Black, Grey-headed, Three-toed and White-backed Woodpeckers and there are a few places for Ural, Tengmalm's and Pygmy Owls as well. We hope to find Nutcracker and Hazel Grouse.

Today we visit fascinating rock formations of the Slovakian limestone karst region called Slovensky Kras. The Karst has wonderful limestone valleys with old beech woods that are home to Middle Spotted and White-backed woodpeckers, Tengmalm’s Owl, Collared and Red-breasted Flycatchers. The jagged crags are home for Rock Thrush and Rock Bunting, while Hoopoe can be seen almost anywhere. With our expert local guide, we will also search the region for Ural Owl, Eagle Owl, Pygmy Owl, Hazel Grouse plus other species of woodpeckers. Interesting Butterflies abound in the area. As the Slovak Karst is one of the best spots for bats in Europe we might optionally catch and ring bats as well as Corncrakes while listening to the monotonous song of River Warbler.

We will have time to check roadside birds like Crested Lark, shrikes, visit a colony of Bee-eaters, and then spend a few hours near to the frontier, where birds range from Eagle Owl to Little Bittern. We will have plenty of species on our day list after arrival at Hortobagy.

We expect to arrive Hortobagy National Park centre at about 2 PM.

We will have time to check roadside birds like Crested Lark, shrikes, visit a colony of Bee-eaters, and then spend a few hours near to the frontier, where birds range from Eagle Owl to Little Bittern. We will have plenty of species on our day list after arrival at Hortobagy.

There is no need to introduce this superb area, which has become famous across Europe in the past decade. We will be accompanied by a local expert leader, who will be able to show us literally every species available at the time of our visit. This particularly applies to those species that a private visitor would be unlikely to find.

We will drive towards the heart of the Hortobágy National Park. Amidst the ancient steppe with its mosaic of small woods and wetlands, we'll look for numerous birds like Red-necked Grebes, Bittern, White-tailed Eagle, Long-legged Buzzard and Saker. A local Rook colony also holds some Red-footed Falcons, while Lesser Grey Shrikes breed nearby.

Great Bustards prefer short grasslands and such habitat is also ideal for Montagu's Harrier, Stone Curlew, Collared Pratincole and Tawny Pipit, whilst the marshy depressions are a favoured nesting area for Aquatic Warbler.

Around the small farms which are scattered throughout the puszta, Little Owls, Lesser Grey Shrikes and Crested Larks are typical birds. Many raptors can be seen around the Darassa-puszta region. Long-legged Buzzard, several eagle species including Short-toed, plus Saker ,are the birds to look for.

Flocks of water loving birds can be found, with Pygmy Cormorant amongst the colony of Great Cormorants, Caspian Tern and Great Black-headed Gull among the shorebirds, plus marsh terns and eight heron species. The reeds here are noisy with the songs of Bluethroat, Moustached, Savi's, Great Reed, and Marsh Warblers. The colonies of Spoonbill and Great White Egret offer unforgettable views. The pond systems of the Hortobagy also have Sea Eagle, Marsh Harrier, Ferruginous Duck, Red-necked Grebe, crakes and many others all around.

We will leave Hortobagy after brief morning birdwatching. Attracted by the water and vast areas of open landscape, new birds are arriving every day. Indeed, it is likely that we will add some new species to our list on this last day before we head back to Budapest for the return flight home.

Departure Date

10-17 May, 2008

MEETING POINT: BRATISLAVA AIRTORT

Generally easy to moderate walks

Weather can be cold in the higher regions while generally favourable at lower elevations