A flying overnight visit was made to one of my favourate european locations - Castro Verde! Or more precisely the rolling plains of Baixo (Lower) Alentejo.
This area is easily visited via cheap flights to Faro from the UK. Return 'booked on-line' flights cost me just over £100 from East Midlands. I flew out with BMI Baby at 7.05am on Saturday 14th May, arriving at just after 10am, then I flew back with Jet2 at 6.20pm on Sunday 15th May, arriving at 9.30pm.
Everything went smoothly flight wise, although I preferred Jet2 who seemed to have taller seats and fractionally more leg room. BMI Baby had leather seats but I found deep-boned thrombosis setting in as they were hard seats - and this was only a shortish flight! Their seats were short aswell, so I could not gain any shut-eye being 6 foot tall. My head had nowhere to rest on. I always find this intolerable & a lack of care for anyone of relatively tall stature.
Pre-booked car hire via Travelsupermarket.com cost a 'cheeky' £28 for the 2 days, with Argos Car Hire. All the main car hire companies have their own kiosk in the arrivals hall, but with the minor ones you must go out of the front of the arrivals hall, across the first car park which has green rain covers over car parking slots, to a second uncovered car park which has just a single kiosk. A walk of 200 metres from the arrivals hall. My Fiat Punto was fine and I also prepaid extra car insurance for £9 when I made the booking - this is through Mondial. Petrol cost me around £55 over the two days.
I had pre-booked one of the 3 hotels in Castro Verde via www.booking.com at Hotel Vila Verde which was modern, small but friendly and ideal, with local TV in room and air conditioning. It cost around £30 for one nights B & B. They offered me breakfast at 6am, which was great for birders hoping to get out early. Breakfast was adequate (continental style with freshly cooked bread rolls). I made up a few ham and cheese rolls for my lunch as it was all self service.
I will say this now - there are many reports highlighting this area, but I think birding was far better in the early morning OR early-mid evening. Even though it was only mid-May, it became hot from 10am - 5pm and birding was quieter - so if you are doing a day trip from the Algarve either get there early or arrive by 6pm. It only takes an hour on the toll road E1 (5.35 euros currently).
Take the 'Castro Verde' turn off the E1, then on the dual carriageway take the 'second' turn off for Castro Verde. Then, at the unsignposted t-junction turn left into Castro Verde and follow signs via a couple of roundabouts for N123 Mertola.
Ensure you get a map so you can explore the web of local spots I highlight.
ADDENDA - PLEASE READ SIMON WAITES POST BELOW THIS REPORT TO CLARIFY THE POSITION REGARDS ACCESS TO THE LPN LAND CONTAINED IN MY REPORT
Birding starts in earnest as soon as you are out of Castro Verde on the N123, but beware the road although not busy, is a fast road. If you pull off, do remember to rejoin on the right! It is easy for UK drivers to forget this after pulling off so frequently.
The key birding areas are within 15kms of Castro Verde on the N123.
3 bridges on the N123 are worthy of stopping at, all level-surfaced bridges with railings, over rivers. The 1st bridge (see photo) after several km's is a key birding area, park just after it on the right by a white farmhouse and walk back - scanning either side. I had Rufous Tailed Scrub Robin here on my visit in June two years back, but not today. The sound of the Alentejo is at its best here - Corn Buntings, Bee-eaters, Hoopoes, Swallows and Red-rumped Swallows (which were easy to find by any river bridges), Woodchat and Southern Grey Shrikes, concealed Nightingales and Cetti's Warblers. A superb spot!
Within a short distance there are two smaller river bridges which offer more of the same. Park in a single bay on the left just after the 2nd bridge, and on the right by the disused entrance to a long-grassy field by the 3rd bridge. You can see anything from these bridges, Quail & Little Bustards may be singing from the grass & raptors are never far away - Montagu's Harriers, Black Kites, Common Buzzards, Kestrels etc. If you are lucky you may find a Spanish Imperial Eagle. Booted and Short-toed Eagle & even Bonelli's Eagle may be encountered, as well as Black-shouldered Kite on occasion. Spotless Starings, Spanish Sparrows, White Storks, Cattle Egrets abound.
After the three N123 bridges you can take a right turn for Sta Barbara de Padroes, with the village of Rolao inbetween. Then, instead of turning right at the t-junction for the former, turn left and head straight on until you come to the village of Guerreiro, where there is a large LPN sign. To be honest Great Bustards can be seen at points anywhere around these villages, as I found out on my last visit, but this time I saw no Bustards except on LPN land itself. At Guerreiro, the obvious dirt track away to the left eventually leads through 'open' LPN gates across rolling plains, and onto the village of Sta Marcos de Ataboeira where 'open' LPN gates lead out again onto the N123 (there is a 2nd set of LPN gates 100 metres west on the N123 that seem permanently closed). The track just highlighted is stoney and rivetted in places, but I managed fine in the Punto, though taking care of course. These two gates seem always to be open (at both the Guerreiro & Ataboeira ends), as locals use it to transfer between the two villages. So as long as you stay in your car on the track, I cannot see the harm, though that may not be the official view. So what did I see on this track - well 19 Great Bustards, 3 Little Bustards (but I only saw these 3 in the evening of the 14th & just 1 on the morning of the 15th), Calandra Larks, Monties, Griffon Vultures, 2 Short-Toed Larks, Little Owl.
After a hard hot afternoon in the field on the 14th, I returned to check in at the hotel where I showered. I grabbed a beer and a sandwich nearby and was out birding for three more hours at 6pm. This time I checked out the 2nd main LPN area, around 3kms north-eastward out of Castro Verde on the E802 Beja road. Keep your eyes peeled - the 'old Beja' road runs directly to the right and parallel to it. But there is a ditch inbetween. You need to transfer to it at the first opportunity. I did so and then took a mud-baked winding track to the right for a mile until I turned round at a large white warehouse. Birding was excellent early evening here - I had 3 Rollers, 2 Quail, more Monties, 2 Tawny Pipits, Larks, Corn Buntings and shrikes galore, a few Bee-eaters. A few Lesser Kestrels showed well flying to and from a farm building.
I rejoined the old Beja Road, and after a further mile towards Beja, I came to an LPN sign & another right turn and track. I had been unsure whether the track just taken was the LPN land, but now I realised it had not been. Access to & from the main E802 is tarmacced here, whereas at the previous track it had not been. Anyway I took this LPN track across rolling plains, and stopped after just 200 metres as I heard a calling / 'farting' Little Bustard on the left, which I located five minutes later. Again, at least 2 Rollers showed superbly and the same birds were seen as at the previous track. A mile down this track you come to a small white farmhouse and old red combine harvester (which of course may not always be there). From here a track leads off to the left and also straight on. Both lead to barriered gates, which clearly lead to prime LPN land, but it is not neccessary to go past them anyway. I heard at least 2 more Little Bustards calling before the gates. This is a great area to watch Monties and Rollers. See photos of the landscape below.
It was 8pm by now so I decided to revisit the LPN land at Sta Marcos de Ataboeira on the N123, and I accessed once again through the open gate at this village. Amazingly, over the first mile, I had 3 more Little Bustards (as mentioned a few paragraphs above) - 2 were males and one was a juv / female type. 19 Great Bustards were present & Quail were calling all around. At Guerreiro again, I headed back to Castro Verde, grabbing a few bottles of beer at a petrol station. I could have enjoyed a meal at one of Castro Verde's restaurants, but remember this was a 'budget' trip so a Snickers bar had to do.
On 15th I was out by 7am, again enjoying Bee-eaters and other birds at the 3 bridges on the N123 Mertola road. I was pleased to enjoy good views of one of the three Little Bustards still calling on the LPN land from Sta Marcos de Ataboeira, and 4 Great Bustards were watched closely, one was displaying!
I then checked out areas on a circular route between Guerreiro, Figuerinha, Sao Jao and Mertola, adding Short Toed Eagle and more Bee-eaters, and hearing another Little Bustard. Azure-winged Magpies were not common close to Castro Verde, but increasingly so under roadside eucolyptus trees as I moved towards Mertola.
At Mertola, I followed signs for 'Park Naturale de Guadiana' - a huge mistake as it only led me around hair-raising steep and narrow cobbled streets in the beautiful old town. My Fiat Punto could hardly cope and I was very stressed on the steep slopes as I came to dead ends, tried to reverse in tight corners etc! Don't do it!
At Mertola, I followed signs for N123 to Castro Verde again, but taking the northwards signposted turn for 'Pulo Do Lobo' off the N123 quickly. The pool is a bit of a anti-climax but birding on the 20km route to and from it can be pretty good - I had Short-toed Eagle, Black kite, more Monties, Iberian Green Woodpecker, singing Woodlark, a stunning Golden Oriole, & Turtle Dove. Stop overlooking pine forest and scrub wherever you can, it may be profitable.
It was time to head back for my 4pm Faro Airport check-in, birding on the way from miner roads, and then checking Ludo Farm by the airport, where I found Sardinian Warbler, Blue-Headed Wagtail and routine gull and wildfowl species, as well as Little and Common Tern.
I was back home at 10pm. A lovely short break overall, although I had not had Rufous Tailed Scrub Robin or Black Shouldered Kite as I had last time. The scenery is superb and relaxing, though I guess there is only so long you can watch the speciality birds the area has to offer.
A few photos and the birdlist are attached below.
Photos of Castro Verde using my simple 'lickle' Samsung 7- times zoom digi-camera......
1) Rolling LPN land off E802 'Old Beja Road'. Taken from the LPN track.
2) The small white farmhouse on the same LPN track off the 'old Beja road'.
3) The 1st river bridge on the N123 Castro Verde-Mertola road. Park by the white farmhouse and walk back.
4) LPN Bustard sign at Guerreiro. From Guerreiro the track leads across to Sta Marcos de Ataboeira.
5) Another photo of extensive plains off E802 old Beja road. I drove on a farmhouse track to this white warehouse and turned round, birding all the way.
Bird photos........ok I know they are poor but gives you an indication of what can achieved with a decent camera...........
1) Little Bustard
2) Displaying Great Bustard
3) Bee-eater
4) Roller
5) Woodchat Shrike
All classic 'plains' birds!