Morocco - January 2025 - Itinerary and logistics

Morocco, 5th - 11th January 2025

The last time I went to Morocco was in late 2014, a whole decade has passed. Maybe it's because I went three times that year, and also the year before that. I was Morocco'd out perhaps? It was too long a gap. My first trip there in 2013 was the inspiration for this one - that was with Bradders, Mick and Richard. We had driven all the way out to the Erg Chebbi, deliberately arriving at Merzouga in the dark so as to be stunned the following morning. We were. You can read about it starting here.

So the plan was to recreate that trip, this time just Mick and I, to reaquaint ourselves with the various Wheatears and other passerines of the Moroccan desert that lies between the Atlas and the Anti-Atlas. The rough plan was to cross the Atlas on day one and then spend two days getting to Merzouga, a day there, and two days getting back, birding all the way and prioritising photography - this was the first proper outing where I could put the Sony mirrorless through its paces and prove that the limiting factor was me rather than it!

The birding was good but not great, there just didn't seem to be as many birds as I remembered and at many points it was really hard work. We wondered if we were too early, and if later in the year resident bird populations are augmented by migrant visitors. The vast deserts at Tagdilt and around Merzouga were virtually bird free for a lot of the time, and those birds that we did find were very hard to approach other than in a few isolated cases. From a photography standpoint these individuals saved the day.

Logistics

• A six day trip in early January.

• Flights: from Gatwick to Marrakesh on British Airways. Outbound it is an early afternoon flight that gets you there in the evening but without any time for birding, but not so late that you can't preposition into the foothills of the Atlas. The return flight leaves in the evening, more than enough time to cross the Altas in the morning and have some birding time to the north.

• Car Hire: A Kia Picanto from Avis as part of a BA holiday. A 4x4 would have been better, but the prices are astronomical. If you can't or won't stretch to a 4x4 then the next best thing is the smallest and lightest regular car you can get. You will suprised at where you can take it, and you can likely push it out if you get stuck. We treated it rather like a 4x4 and it didn't let us down at all!
• Driving: The Tizi n'Tichka pass over the Atlas and the N10 road are much improved in the ten years since I last drove them. There were also far fewer overloaded and really slow lorries to worry about. Marrakech remains pretty crazy but does not last long.  I would recommend avoiding Oukaimeden at weekends, as the road up to the ski resort is narrow and very crowded. There were frequent police checkpoints that we were generally waived right through, the exception being the one closest to Algeria at Bouanane which took a while but remained very friendly. These always tend to be at the start or end of a town, so always slow down as you approach a settlement. We were also intercepted by Moroccan soldiers on the N17 where it runs adjacent to the Algerian border, and were told that we should not have stopped on this section. Again it all remained very calm and we were were able to make our excuses and leave unscathed.
• Weather: Glorious all week. Cold at night, especially in the Atlas, but very pleasant by mid morning and never too hot. Snow in the high Atlas is not unknown and can block the road for a time, so plan accordingly and make sure you leave plenty of time to get back over.

• Accommodation: We booked the all of the accommodation in advance as we knew where we wanted to be. Merzouga has seen an explosion of tourist accommodation, the once seemingly remote northern Erg Chebbbi is now a thriving village rather than just Auberge Yasmina in splendid isolation. Expect to pay about €40 per night at most places for a twin room, which will likely come with an excellent breakfast. Particular shout out to 'Nomadic Birdway' in Imiter, it was outstanding and Brahim an excellent host.

• Cash: You can't get Dhirams outside the country so you'll need to get some when you arrive. ATMs took our cards no problem. Cash is genuinely needed when you are on the road - coffee and oranges cannot be paid for by card!

• Food: Breakfasts at the hotels were mostly great. In the evenings we found it easy to eat at the places we were staying though there is an obvious tourist markup associated with this. We also ate at roadside cafés a few times, half the cost and just as good. On the road we piled into wonderful oranges brought east from Agadir and sold off the back of trucks, and we also found mobile coffee vans to be a lifesafer, indeed one guy near Ouarzazate made me one of the best espressos I've had anywhere.
• Optics: No scope but one might have been useful a couple of times. This was trip that prioritised photography.

• Literature: eBird, an ancient Gosney guide, and prior experience!

 

Itinerary
Day 0: Arrived in Marrakesh in the evening and then drove about an hour south to the Ourika Valley, staying at the Aurocher Oukaimeden hotel chosen specifically as there had been a Maghreb Owl reported there. After dinner we took a torch and managed to find it! 
Day 1: Morning up to the ski resort at Oukaimeden. Whilst we found all the birds we were looking for it was hell on earth with thousands of day-trippers from Marrakesh. Getting back down was a nightmare with the road reduced to one lane in several spots due to land slip, a nearly three hour traffic jam, much of it at a standstill, to cover what should have taken half an hour. Afternoon over the Atlas via the Tizi n'Tichka pass, then overnight at Ouarzazate.

Day 2: Birded water bodies around Ouarzazate in the morning before heading east to Boumalne Dades. Afternoon at Tagdilt before continuing east. Overnight at Errachidia.
Day 3: We spent the morning enacting a stupid plan to try and see a bird in Algeria, taking the N17 for a couple of hours east to where it runs right next to the border. The border is closed, you can't cross it all, nor even stray near it as we subsequently found out from some soldiers. We birded Oued Zelmou before heading back west and taking the Ziz Valley down to Erfoud and Merzouga. Overnight at Merzouga.
Day 4: All day around the Erg Chebbi. Morning in the desert to the north looking for birds around Tisserdmine, and then the afternoon around the Dayet Srij which had plenty of water in it. Overnight at Merzouga.
Day 5: Early morning at a seasonal lake on the west side of the dunes for Sandgrouse. Then tried the 9km Wadi west of the main road opposite Yasmina. Afternoon back to Imiter and the Tagdilt tracks. Overnight at Imiter.

Day 6: Early morning on Tagdilt again, and then the gorge outside Imiter known as the Falcon Nest Escarpment. After breakfast birded our way west to the start of the Atlas road, finishing at the P1505 loop late afternoon. Overnight at Tisseldei near Amerzgane so as to get over the pass nice and early the following day.

Day 7: Over the Atlas looking for new birds for the list which took all morning. Midday at Ait Ourir concentrating on the dump, and then a short session south of Marrakesh before our early evening flight.

Social Media

2024 is finally over! This is probably one of those statements that blog readers might be whispering in relief, rolling their eyes for good measure. But take it from me that nobody is as pleased about this as I am. I did what I said I would do, I've caught up months and months, and frankly who cares if blogging is on the way out. Not here it isn't, or at least not yet. I do sometimes wonder if it isn't time to switch medium but then I think about how inept I am at most things. Writing I can just about manage. Videos with either me in them or behind the camera? No thanks. Podcasts? I don't think the world needs that, and anyway I don't have the discipline for a regular slot, which is how all podcasts seem to operate. It's not that I lack the confidence, it just doesn't fit with how I work. It's not my style.

Neither are the short format things like Instagram, SnapChat or Tiktok, or whatever else now exists that I am unaware of. I am insufficiently glossy and my pout is awful. I've only ever had one social media account that I used in earnest and that was Twitter. Then it became X. Shortly thereafter it became a cesspool and I stopped using it. For a while I had no social media accounts at all, and so by the time I created a BlueSky account in February 2024 I'd rather forgotten what it was all about. In a year I've managed just over 21 posts, the last over three months ago at the point of the US Presidential election. I just.....I just can't be bothered. Yes, that sums it up. I cannot be bothered and I don't miss it. And I would imagine that it does not miss me either. The world does not need to know what I think about the state of it, and I'd almost certainly use it for that and not about what I'd seen in Wanstead (as I see nothing in Wanstead). And then people would moan that I'm only supposed to talk about birds and to keep politics out of it, as they sometimes amusingly do here. I find it incredible that so many birders would prefer to bury their heads in the sand rather than discuss the very real problems we all face, but perhaps birding is their escape, a way to forget what real life is actually like. I can sort of get on board with that on one level but deep down I think it's pathetic. Regardless, it is simpler for everyone that I don't bother, and in all honesty I am not finding keeping my side of this bargain very taxing at all. Social media can get stuffed, for starters it is responsible for so many things I intensely dislike. I have many thoughts about many of these things of course, but I can easily keep them to myself and my immediate circle. If you have visited here for any length of time then you will likely know where I sit. Maybe this need to broadcast nuggets of my immediate thoughts will return. Equally it is perhaps safer in today's polarised world of recrimination and hate that it doesn't. Who's the pathetic one now?

But the longer format as is seen here will remain, and people who have the mental capacity to cope with more than a single sentence at a time may find something to interest them. A riposte, such that I can manage it, to the age of vacuity and soundbites. I find brevity difficult, always have, it is for the most part hugely unfulfilling - I've never pandered to the masses, why start now? There will be gaps in service of course, but just because I can't produce a paragraph doesn't mean I'll be satisfied with 160 characters or a meme. I'd prefer to suffer in silence. 

I don't know why I am writing all this by the way, I suppose I am in one sense staying true to the ethos enshrined here since 2009 which is that whatever comes out comes out. What I had intended to say was that with 2024 out of the way I could crack on with Morocco. If you go back to the top and re-read the first four sentences you will see where I was headed. Then I appear to have become distracted. Coming back to the point, I had been feverishly blogging all of the trips prior to my January 2025 trip to Morocco so that as a reward I could flood the internet with images of Wheatears. This I am now ready to do, viz.

Get ready.

A weekend in Castilla-la Mancha

In early December 2024 I flew to Madrid for the weekend. This was a repeat trip to an area I have been to before, the hills to east of Madrid near Guadalajara and the plains to the south, near Toledo. Getting to Spain is so ridiculously cheap and the birding (and weather) so much better than the UK that it is an easy decision for a short winter trip. This time I took Mick with me as he was keen to try for Wallcreeper and Bonelli's Eagle, both species I had seen last time. We flew on Friday afternoon, arriving too late for any birding, and drove east to the small town of Sacedon which was close to the main area I wanted to go birding the following morning. This is the gorge to the west of the Embalse de Entrepenas, and where I'd seen both of the birds above last time. Wintering Wallcreeper hadn't been reported this year, but Bonelli's Eagle is still regular in the area. 

We awoke to heavy fog! Heavy enough to have a nice coffee and breakfast in a local cafe knowing we wouldn't be missing anything. Sure enough once we got there it was still heavy enough that you couldn't see across the gorge. This also made it very cold and rather miserable, not quite what I had had in mind! We gave it a go anyway, walking down the track from the dam to the bridge, a gentle slope with the gorge on your right. There was plenty of bird activity despite the murky weather, with Rock Bunting, Coal Tit and Crested Tit in the pines around the car park at the top end, and Crag Martins leaving roost on the cliff above and heading down the river. We found Firecrest, Nuthatch and Short-toed Treecreeper as we descended, and near the bridge as the landscape widened out I finally ticked Dunnock for Spain! There were Cetti's Warblers down here as well, a Grey Wagtail, and a Kingfisher flew up the river. We walked back up, were we imagining it or was the mist perhaps slightly thinner? It must have lifted a little as we were able to see Chough and our first Griffon Vulture. Of Wallcreeper there was no sign, and talking to a couple of local birders they confirmed that the regular wintering bird had not returned. So much for that plan! Last time it had been pure fluke, I had booked the trip without knowing about the bird, and few weeks or so before I travelled I had scanned eBird and been amazed to see this pin very close to where I had been going anyway. Oh well.

By now it was midday and time to try a new spot. We bought some provisions to make sandwiches in a local town and then drove the short distance to the Embalse de Buendia and walked down to the shore, a fair old hike of about a mile. Here we realised that not having a scope was really going to hold us back, the reservoir was enormous and the waterfowl mere dots! I used the camera to zoom in on various of these specks and in this way was able to positively identifty Cormorant, Grey Heron, Great Crested Grebe, Mallard and Gadwall, but it was pretty hopeless and rather unsatisfactory. We put down a particularly bright Chiffchaff as Iberian and were later shot down by the local eBird reviewer, fair enough really, it hadn't made a sound. Other than that we recorded a few Crested Lark, a pair of  Black Redstart, a Raven and Common Sandpiper. In the fields and hedges either side of the track were large numbers of Finches and Corn Buntings. At a speculative roadside stop a short distance away we added what turned out to be a flock of Spotless Starling and some Sardinian Warblers.

Mid afternoon we arrived at Hoz Angosta, a narrow gorge above the Embalse de Entrepenas. This had seemed a very productive eBird spot but we couldn't replicate the success of previous birders. Of note was a huge kettle of Griffon Vultures, and within this a single Bonelli's Eagle for a short while which we confirmed with photographs. We moved on to a further spot, the Arroyo del Canizar, but this was equally unproductive. Sometimes birding is just like this, the time of day or the particular weather conditions just don't work. It hadn't been a bad day, far from it, but it had felt like hard work for the 56 species we had seen. We needed a new plan.

That plan was to drive to totally different area and to go birding somewhere else. We didn't need to go especially far, I think it was under two hours, heading south to the plains southeast of Toledo near Alcazar de San Juan. We found a cheap hotel in Miguel Esteban close to the first pin, a series of shallow lakes that had a good list of birds.

The following morning we went directly there, a matter of minutes east of the town. Whilst you cannot get into the lakes there are series of viewing portals (of terrible design!) that allow you to look in, just about. As expected our trip list began to increase rapidly, with Shoveler, Water Rail, Moorhen, Greater Flamingo, Marsh Harrier, and my top Spanish target, Wigeon!  

We headed south to the Laguna de Salicor. Once again a scope would have been ideal, but we managed to positively identify Pintail, Shelduck, Redshank and Lapwing from the crest on the north side, and along this track was a flock of Great Bustard in a rocky field. Once on the southern and eastern edges we were able to get a lot closer to the water and found a small group of Little Stint, another Spanish tick. Better still we jammed in on a flock of Pin-tailed Sandgrouse in a field, and in trying to get a better view of these found a Little Bustard in the same place entirely by accident. Add in a covy of Red-legged Partridge and this was clearly a top spot for gamebirds. Red Kite were especially common in this area, we had a brief Spanish Eagle and some Common Buzzards, and Larks were all around - Crested, Calandra and Skylark. Oh, and the small matter of hundreds of Common Crane flying overhead! The Spanish steppes are simply wonderful.

Pin-tailed Sandgrouse

Outside the town of Alcazar de San Juan lie the Laguna de la Veguilla and the Laguna del Camino de Villafranca. The latter is vast but is quite dry, the former has more water and thus more wildfowl. Huge numbers of Shoveler were present with perhaps 75 White-headed Duck and 50 Pochard. We couldn't find the rumoured Ferruginous Duck buth there were plenty of places it could have been hiding. Also here were eight Black-necked Grebe, double figures of Little Grebe, and five Marsh Harrier. The best place to look from here is the hide on the east side, which is reached either by foot from the south or by car from the north. At the much larger Laguna slightly north were hundred of Gulls, 120 Dunlin, 80 Little Stint, 100+ White Stork, a Water Pipit and a small number of Ruff.  

Common Crane

Heading north we stopped to look at the Laguna Grande de Villafranca de los Caballeros. The main lagoon had hundreds of Coot but little else, but from a hide on an island at the north end reached via a short boardwalk we found a small flock of Red-Crested Pochard and a Great White Egret. Further on, at the Laguna de Tirez, the dominant species was Common Crane, with flocks of hundreds all over the place. Also here were a small number of Kentish Plover, a pair of Hoopoe, Iberian Grey Shrike and three Kestrel. 

All of these lagoons were very close to each other, we were still some distance from Toledo let alone nothern Madrid where Barajas is located. We needed to be there by 4pm and so approaching half one we needed to make some ground. If we made good time there might be an opportunity to get a final birding session in, even with Mick's crazy notion that you need to get to an airport at least four days before a flight! So it was that we found ourselves at the Parque Forestal Valdebebas near Barajas. It was quite hard to find the way in, but I managed it eventually and in doing so added Iberian Green Woodpecker to the trip list. Mick spent five minutes taking rubbish pics of Monk Parakeet and then went and sat in the car itching to leave. Once I returned 20 minutes later I shredded his already mangled nerves by driving in circles around Barajas trying to find the car rental return, which I think I managed on about the third attempt. We just about made the flight with only two hours to spare....

Monk Parakeet

In total we saw 97 species. Had our time in the mountains gone better we would have cleared 100 but you cannot have it all your own way. Spain is fabulous for birding. The sites we visited were so easily accessible and not very far away from major cities, yet we saw virtually nobody all weekend. This is the way I like it. That there were Bustards, Cranes, Harriers, Larks and Wildfowl was simply an added bonus. 

The Peleponnese - November 2024 - Trip Report

In January 2023 I found a cheap flight to Athens and drove all of the way around the Gulf of Corinth, as described here and here. In mid-November 2024 I found another good one that also left on Friday after work, and this time decided to go a little bit further south to explore the Peleponnese. No targets, no particular aims other than exploration. I did have my new Sony camera lens by this point so this was an opportunity to try and find out how it worked.

As before I arrived in Athens at some crazy time, I think I picked up my rental car at 2am or thereabouts. I'd booked a hotel of sorts about half an hour away and so didn't get to bed until really late. For those that know me well this will strike you as most unlikely as I normally go to sleep before my children. Nonetheless I made it and so a few hours later I awoke to a pure blue sky and weak sunshine. Why anyone lives in the UK is beyond me.

I birded around the hotel whilst I got used to the light and being awake so soon after going to sleep. I was on the northern side of Athens near Acharnes, not far from Pan's cave and the Monastery of St Cyprian. My destination lay much further away though, and after a quick scout around - mostly Chaffinches - I set off west. I drove past Corinth and then down into the Peleponnese, with my first stop the Nestani Plateau at about half eleven. Nothing special here, just an opportunity to add a few birds to Arcadia - things like Hooded Crow, Stonechat and Linnet. I made a detour south of about 20 minutes to ensure I could colour in Lakonia, another area of Greece on the eBird map. Off the main road I climbed up into the hills for a few miles and stopped somewhere that felt promising. Again, nothing special, just Tits, Warblers and Finches, but that was all my silly plan required.

My real destination was the coast at Kalamata which I reached at about 2.30pm, much later than I had anticipated. This is entirely normal and always happens on every birding trip, you cannot avoid spending that little bit too long at each place you stop. It might only be a matter of minutes in each place, but then add in a few unplanned stops and it adds up to hours.... 

I headed west of Kalamata to the Koultouki river estuary and Bouka beach. I'd identified this spot earlier on as being promising and so it turned out. As well as birds it was notable for van nomads, almost the whole of the beach road being a camping spot for a series of enormous camper vans, converted buses, and full on overland expedition lorries. Many were from Germany and France, and some contained entire families with schooling presumably performed by the parents en-route. I am partially nomadic myself at times and I can see the attraction of swapping a dreary grey northern-european suburb for the warmth and clarity of the Aegean. The trucks with their huge ground clearance and enormous tyres were no doubt going further, perhaps contemplating as far as the Cape, the only things really standing in their way being paperwork and corruption rather than any physical obstacle. Some had dirt bikes on the back and satellite dishes on the roof, and you needed a ladder to even get into them. I briefly contemplated leaving Wanstead and following them but I have too many plants to fit into a lorry.

The birding was decent, better than I had experienced all day, with some classic european species like Zitting Cisticola and Moustached Warbler. I played with camera a bit, this was the first real opportunity to test it out in nice light. Naturally I flunked but I'd like to think that I learned a few things. Looking back on it now I recognise this as the beginning - that night in the hotel I read up about the things I'd struggled with and made some changes that now, several months later, are beginning to feel a bit closer to second nature. There is still some way to go. As ever the main issue was that the birds refused to pose at point blank range in front of me - extremely selfish of them.

After walking the edge of the reedbed and the tidal creek I walked out onto the beach. Here there were a few Kentish Plover, Sandwich Terns fishing in the bay, and a small flock of Linnet. Nothing earth-shattering but it was just very pleasant in the late afternoon sunshine. Some young Austrian vanistas were engaged in yoga, and a retired couple were setting out a table for dinner by the side of their camper with a view to die for. What a life! Looking inland vast numbers of Starlings were starting to gather pre-roost over the Messini Fields, Skylarks swirled over the short grass, and a burst of Cetti's Warbler carried over from the marsh. I retuned to Kalamata quite content and had an early dinner on the promenade.

The following morning I returned to the same spot. Morning yoga was underway - these are the kind of young people who I suspect may find the prospect of doing a day's work at some future point rather stressful but for now they need not worry about that and good luck to them. The retirees were not yet awake. It was a lot more birdy that in the late afternoon, and I dumped the car at the beach and wandered inland. Three Kentish Plover had been joined by two more but at the expense of a Sandwich Tern, groups of Little Egret and Cattle Egret flew overhead, and Marsh Harriers were quartering over the reeds whilst Buzzards did the same over the fields. Zitting Cisticola were more numerous, or certainly more vocal, and the Skylark flock had been augmented by two Crested Lark and a ton of Meadow Pipit. There were Stonechat everywhere, Sardinian Warbler was new, and Grey Wagtails were feeding on the edge of the water whist Serins jangled overhead. In the Messini fields - low level agriculture, hardly any machines involved - the Starlings had dispersed and were everywhere you looked, Black Redstarts sat up on small buildings, Meadow Pipits and Pied Wagtails scratched in the furrows and Blackcaps had decided that southern Greece was far enough and, like the Austrians, were enjoying life in this relaxed spot.

It was time to leave this haven, this escape from real life. Northern Europe was calling me back, specifically a flight leaving from Athens in about seven hours time that I unfortunately needed to be on much as bumming about in Messinia undoubtedly appealed. By early afternoon I was in Arkadia, perhaps a third of the way back, and stopped off at Lake Taka to try and boost the trip list a bit. This is a vast reservoir with steep sides and a driveable track all the way round. Here I found lots of Little, Great Crested and Black-necked Grebe and Coot, and in the flatlands surrounding the raised reservoir a couple of wintering Water Pipit gave themselves up around some shallow pools.

I just had time to swing in at Nea Kios saltflats at the top of the Gulf of Argolis, a bit of a detour but worth it for two more Water Pipit as well as nice views of Curlew, Grey Plover, Redshank, Greenshank and Greater Flamingo, and then it was a two hour drive in the fading light back up to Corinth and around to Athens. I'd perhaps not seen as many species as I had expected, and unlike my last visit I hadn't been able to take in any of the great sites of antiquity, though I did drive right past Mycenae and bought some biscuits.

Mid-February updates

Somewhere near Flagstaff

Writing, you may have noticed, has taken a back seat. This is not because the flow has slackened but because there has been no time and something has to give. The big news is that the major item on my to-do list miraculously resolved itself about two weeks ago. This was also the item that has caused me the most angst of any the things I set myself to accomplish, both now and with a previous version of the same thing in 2021. I will confess that I just did not have a clear idea of what to do, how to approach a seemingly intractable impasse and which combined with it being almost entirely out of my control made me very uncomfortable. I hate being powerless and the fact that it also had whole-life implications for one of my children made it especially unbearable. Somehow it came good though, and my long-honed emergency admin skills then came to the fore. It was less stressful than last time, no COVID and without quite the same time pressures, and to be fair I was ready and had the benefit of prior experience but nonetheless it was extremely nail-biting. But it is done, and irrevocably so. I got back from America on Wednesday. As before I can't quite believe it. 

I'm exhausted. The trouble with unplanned emegency galivanting is that it has to be fitted in around regular planned galivanting and other aspects of a busy life. I thought I did rather well to make my dinner date with Mrs L on Wednesday and the Marriage of Figaro afterwards, even if she did have to prod me awake a couple of times. But any time I might have dedicated to birding in Wanstead recently simply hasn't happened and my progress up the patch leaderboard has been glacial. Perhaps completely frozen. I am not overly concerned, it is a marathon and not a sprint, but those winter birds like Siskin and Woodcock might not be around for all that much longer. I've also not seen a Pochard yet..... A couple of short sessions should get me back on track though, even if a quick glance at my diary does not shed a vast amount of light on exactly when these might occur. We shall see.

For now I am in bonny Scotland again which is doing my Wanstead list no favours whatsoever. I am of course in Fife, however the weekend was mostly spent birding in Ayrshire which other than absurd levels of dog ownership has much to recommend it. Vast beaches for starters, and if you could find one that was not covered in dogs from dawn until dusk these would be sensational. More on this later as it does not fit with the chronology and I need to be very firm until I manage to get to Morocco. This is now on the near horizon as I am finished with Greece, however I am unable to publish it as my photos are in London and I am not yet technologically sophisticated enough to reside entirely in the cloud. Cloud cuckoo land perhaps....

Loch Lomond

So now what?

So that was Mexico. It seemed to spill out really rather quickly so I took advantage. 25 posts in January must be some kind of record? In fact let me check that...... indeed it is. You have to go back to 2017 to get close, where somehow I spouted out 24 that January. One of those was this one about Redpolls which some of you may remember. In my highly biased opinion it is well worth re-reading, especially as it came true last year!

As I mentioned the real reason for bashing out so many travel posts in quick succession is that I have a lot of juicy photos of Wheatears lined up that I am very keen to publish, all taken with my new Sony setup, but in order to allow myself this treat I pledged that I would first catch up  to the present day. The whole thing is ridiculous. I still have to quickly write up Greece (Novemeber) and Spain (December) , two weekend jaunts at the end of the year but Mexico was in October 2024 so I have made excellent progress as at the end of last year I was still wittering on about June. I am aware that these travel posts don't appeal as much as, say, dipping Yellow Warbler but that isn't really the point. Schadenfreude has always been irrationally popular. 

That said, and I bet I forgot to mention it, I did see the Yellow Warbler. It popped up again a couple of days after I had missed it and I nipped straight down and got it within the hour. And with a much smaller crowd which felt a lot nicer. I think that might have been the last day it was seen, not sure. So 2024 was not afterall a blank year in terms of new UK birds. Clearly my advancement up the UK twitcher leaderboard has slowed to a crawl but I may yet rediscover a thirst for it. Or not as the case may be, and either of those two outcomes is fine by me, I'll just take it as it comes. Right now my priorities lie elsewhere but that could change. As this blog makes abundantly clear I much prefer birding abroad. Or in Scotland. The southeast of England is just really hard work, simply too crowded.

Much of 2025 is expected to be spent here

Anyway, welcome to February. January seems to have passed in a blur - mainly due to the location of the photo above - and no doubt this month will too. It is good to be busy. I have a modicum of travel planned but it is another busy month at work and I also have to get the 2023 London Bird Report done, an annual contribution to birding in London that takes a surprising amount of time. No doubt I will end up having to burn the candle at both ends to get it done. On the plus side I have very happily found a successor, and so she and I will tackle 2023 together before I hand over the reins. See you in March!

Mexico - Northern Yucatan - October 2024 - Trip List

We saw exactly 200 species over the six days, the extra diversity versus our last trip being the northern coast around Rio Lagartos. I cannot recommend this area highly enough, easy relaxed birding and loads to see, and I don't think we encountered anyone whilst out on the various tracks. Cozumel was excellent too, very glad that we added that on at the beginning as the two endemics got the trip off to a great start. Other than the scumbag police near Tulum we had no issues whatsoever.

Of the 200, 12 were lifers, versus 30 last time. This was not a productive trip in that respect but neither was it expected to be, compared to somewhere like the Pantanal where so much was new. My Mexico list now stands at 245 having only visited the Yucatan twice, so to have seen over 40 new birds across those two trips feels OK. I am not sure I would do other areas of Mexico by myself but I need to research that more fully - the FCDO webpage about safety and security is extremely lengthy.

Trip List

Mexico - Northern Yucatan - October 2024 - Day 6 - Wakax Hacienda and home

Day six and there is not a lot to tell. We had a long walk around Wakax Hacienda before breakfast, once again heading out into the forest via the yoga retreat and then returning via the lagoon. A Ferruginous Pygmy Owl was calling at dawn, and we also heard (but did not see) the Collared Forest-Falcon near the main swimming pool again so it must be resident on the estate. A Yellow-lored Amazon flew over and in a fruiting tree by the main lagoon we found Altimira Oriole, Hooded Oriole and Melodious Blackbird with upwards of ten Yellow-throated Euphonia. We also found a second lagoon off the entrance track that was being developed, presumably into something akin to the first one, with bridges, boardwalks, viewpoints and so on, and on this one were well over 200 Vaux's Swift coming down to drink. We also found a Carolina Wren in a brush pile. 

By now I think I had given up with my camera, all week it seemed to have been getting heavier and heavier, especially when compared to Mick's lovely new and extremely lightweight (by comparison) Olympus mirrorless kit. The end was drawing near I felt. Indeed once I got back I made the momentous and very sad decision to get rid of the DSLR and join the modern revolution. So this trip was the last with Canon - that 500mm f4 had served me brilliantly for over ten years, and when I finally sent it off I very nearly had second thoughts, especially when I saw the pittance that I was offered for it - lots of scratches and scuffs to the paintwork, and as everyone with an sense knows it's absolutely vital that a camera lens is totally pristine on the outside in order for it to be able to take a sharp photograph. Grrrr. 

Social Flycatcher

Tropical Kingbird

We took a leisurely breakfast at the restaurant and then set off again on another foray into the forest. This produced much the same set of birds as the first, or so it felt, but there were good numbers of Lesson's Motmot near the yoga platform, a pair of Turquoise-browed Motmot, three Pygmy Owls all piping away, lots of White-eyed Vireo, Yucatan Vireo and a Yellow-throated Vireo. We also found Tawny-winged Woodcreeper but overall we felt that Wakax Hacienda disappointed on the bird front, especially vs what we knew had been recorded here. Over the course of an afternoon and a morning we recorded just 63 species whereas we had imagined we would get over 100 and lots of our targets. In the event we saw just one new bird for the trip, Neotropic Cormorant.

We returned to the room, packed up the gear, washed off the grime and changed into our last remaining fresh clothes. It was time to go. We headed back to Tulum for another set of tacos, and then pointed the car towards Cancun. We made one final stop at the Yaax Che botanic garden but this served only to add a few mosquito bites and we shouldn't have bothered.

And that was it, well done if you made it this far, I am nothing if not stubborn by following this relentless day by day approach but if I didn't it would be an immense post. The other approach would be to just to show the map with the pins, add the trip list (which follows tomorrow), whack a few photos on and leave it at that. I'd find that somewhat unsatisfying, but it would get it out of the way a lot quicker!

Mexico - Northern Yucatan - October 2024 - Day 5 - Tulum, Muyil and Wakax Hacienda

We ended up staying at the top end of Tulum, and persusing eBird had suggested that a lot of trip ticks might be found at the new Quintana Roo airport. Think of this a modern Mayan site, as just like archaeological ruins it is the access roads through the jungle that are the real draw. And boy is there an access road - it is huge, like a motorway, and goes in for miles. It's a reasonable distance south of Tulum, but once off the main road you head off vaguely north for quite a while, doubling back on the yourself such that when you arrive you are nearly opposite Tulum again. There is a keen eBirder in the area called Daniel, responsible for all of the enticing pins (now seemingly consolidated into one central pin with 199 species since May 2024), and we actually met him not that long after we arrived - he is an airport employee with responsibility for relocating wildlife that strays onto the now built-on areas, so collecting snakes and so on. I imagine he has his work cut out as so much forest has been removed. 

Keel-billed Toucan

We concentrated on the road that runs directly parallel to the airport rather than the entrance road as that was quite busy with traffic. We went nearly all the way to the far end where there is a military case, and then started birding on the far side of the road just far enough away that the soldiers wouldn't be able to see us. This is also the side of the road that borders untouched forest and whilst it is fenced off you can get really good views of the verge and the trees. We also birded the airport side of the road to the east of all of the construction and where there is a footpath/trail set slightly into the trees, and this was rather good too. 

Collared Aracari

Ivory-billed Woodcreeper

We spent about two and a half hours here, starting at 7am, and recorded 30 species. Of note was an Olive-sided Flycatcher which was a new bird for the site, three Keel-billed Toucan, a group of Collared Aracari, a flight of Yellow-lored Amazon, several Lineated Woodpecker, Ivory-billed Woodcreeper, Bright-rumped Attila, Tawny-crowned Greenlet, Lesser Greenlet, and a pair of Scaled Pigeon. The only real issue was how busy the area was, with lots of noisy trucks and buses drowning out the birds, and ultimately this caused us to leave and somewhere else.

Somewhere else was the village opposite the ruins at Muyil. We had birded here before on our last visit and found it extremely productive. Unlike the airport this is lovely and quiet, and we spent an hour and a half walking round the largely zoned yet undeveloped streets. One of these roads ran out and turned into a track which led to a clearing in the forest and a memorable encounter with a Barred Antshrike. We also found two Masked Tityra, three Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Hooded Oriole, Green Jay, a nice group of Yellow-throated Euphonia, a Squirrel Cuckoo, two Black-headed Saltator and two Cinnamon-bellied Saltator, and a smart Prothonotary Warbler. 

Masked Tityra

Barred Antshrike

After exhausting the village we crossed the road to find the ruins closed off and construction work occuring. Thinking we might be able to access the back of the site from the lagoon, and knowing there was a rear entrance there, we started to drive along the rough track to the side of the site. We were immediately chased down by two guys on a moped insistent on collecting a parking fee from us. Fine, but it does rather grate that all people want is money for doing nothing, all the time every time. We were indeed able to sneak in at the back, and walked along the deserted boardwalk that led through the flooded woodland. I am not sure how it has been closed for, but without regular traffic it is falling rather into disrepair. We did not find a great deal it has to be said, but Yellow-billed Cacique, Long-billed Gnatwren and Grey Catbird were new for the trip.

Muyil

By now it was 1pm and we stopped off for lunch at our favourite taco stop north of Tulum to work out what to do. The tacos and pico de gallo were just as great as before. We did not really have much of a plan, but we came up with a good one which was to book a hotel in the jungle which had a good bird list. This cost us a pretty penny compared to the other places we had stayed, but Hacienda Wakax was really nice once we had negotiated the front gate who could not quite believe that two scruffy birders were attempting to stay there.

Wakax Hacienda

Once checked in to our frankly amazing room we set about exploring the massive property. It is an old ranch. Well, not that old, quite recent in fact but made to look as if it were colonial. It used to be a private estate but was turned into a hotel a few years ago. In addition to several cenotes there is a large amount of forest with good paths through it, lots of open areas, a few swimming pools, and thoughtful placement of cool water and coffee throughout. And when we felt like a break we were able to stop off at the bar and observe the laguna from the deck with a cool drink in hand, or go for a swim. And seemingly we were the only guests. In short it was ideal. We spent the rest of the day here, walking nearly four miles without leaving the property, but it was actually pretty hard work. Perhaps it was the time of day? The only new bird for the trip was Neotropic Cormorant, #200. In addition we saw Olive-throated Parakeet, Collared Forest-Falcon (as we were having a swim), Collared Aracari, Turquoise-browed Motmot, lots of Yellow-throated Euphonia, Yucatan Jays, Carolina Wren and lots more besides.

Neotropic Cormorant 

After a nice meal in the restaurant later that evening we went for a nighttime walk in the forest looking for Owls but failed completely. We also managed to somehow leave the circular route I thought we were on and head out towards the Mayan Train line before I realised our error and we found our way back to civilisation. Final day tomorrow!

Mexico - Northern Yucatan - October 2024 - Day 4 - Rio Lagartos and Xocen

We had another attempt at night birds early in the morning, driving the Camino San Felipe in the hope that there would be birds lingering on the warm tarmac. This was pretty successful except that everything we found that we could get a scope on was a Common Pauraque. A number of birds flew up and over into the vegetation and I can only hope they were also Common Pauraques!

As the sun rose we were back at the Ejido San Salvador. Largely we found the same birds as before, but of note were Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, Mangrove Cuckoo and a Turquoise-browed Motmot which we saw well enough to be able to distinguish it from the very similar Lesson's Motmot - the tail streamers have a much longer bare section (see photo). All of these birds were in or around the obvious clearing that forms a "triangle" with the main road. Also here were a small flock of jumping Blue-black Grassquit, and a female Painted Bunting and Indigo Bunting, and close to the bridge on the main road up to Los Coloradas a Wood Stork flew over.

Turquoise-browed Motmot

Tropical Mockingbird

Ferruginous Pygmy Owl

We returned to the hotel for breakfast and to plan the rest of the day. The first thing we needed to do was get down to the main east-west road below the coast at Valladolid. From there our options opened up, and there seemed to be some good birding near Xocen so that became the plan. With the early afternoon sorted we got on with another excellent breakfast and birded on the terrace again. Birds were much as the previous day, but two Terns on the breakwater stood out as different and I hurried to get the scope. Gull-billed Tern! 

Gull-billed Tern

San Felipe

We bade the owner farewell and headed out. San Felipe and Rio Lagartos had been excellent and the hotel a really good find. Long may it stay open! A quick stop at the dump on the way to the main road netted another Mexican Sheartail and another Cinnamon Hummingbird, and further towards Tizimin at a wetland area we made another quick stop. We had stopped here on the way up and had been having doubts about whether we had seen American Moorhen or Purple Gallinule. This sounds daft and probably was but actually both were present so we had both been correct! There were also a pair of Fulvous Whistling-Duck along with the more commonly encountered Black-bellied Whistling Duck.

The church at Temozon

In the town of Xocen we found a Bat Falcon perched on top of a transmitter mast, and once in the forest beyond headed for the Xocen Birding Trail, and eBird hotspot on the east side of town. This was closed! Instead we took the rough track that ran alongside it and this was a more than worthy substitute. Woodpeckers had been largely absent from our list up until this point and in short order we found Golden-fronted Woodpecker and Golden-olive Woodpecker as well as Yucatan Woodpecker. We just hadn't really spend enough time in the right habitat and so we added quite a lot more besides. Green Jay, Groove-billed Ani, Olivaceous and Ivory-billed Woodcreepers, Spot-breasted Wren, Green-breasted Mango, Buff-bellied Hummingbird, White-bellied Emerald, Rufous-browed Peppershrike and Red-throated Ant-Tanager. An adult male Hooded Warbler was a huge bonus. We spent two hours on this track before retracing our steps to the car and relocating a short distance to a very similar track on the north side. Here we found a pair of enormous Lineated Woodpecker, Northern Tropical Pewee, Yucatan Flycatcher and finally a Canivet's Emerald, a Hummingbird that we had thought would be common but that we had not been able to find anywhere.

Bat Falcon

After an hour or so on this track it began to rain, a weather phenomenon we hadn't really encountered on this trip before. We made it back to the car before it got really bad and considered our options. It turned out there were not a great many places to stay around Xocen, and rather than head back to Valladolid we opted to head to the coast at Tulum where we knew there were lots of places to stay as well as lots of places to go birding. This took about an hour and a half and we arrived in time for dinner, over which we hatched plans for the following day.