2nd April - Rota Vicentina Circuit, Carrapateira Headland, Algarve, Portugal

The morning was quite overcast, and there were signs that there had been some rain overnight.  We had two possible walks we could tackle from our hotel, one was to take an inland route to the north, and then come around to the coast and cross the Bordeira Beach.  Alternatively we could follow a circuit  that takes in the Carrapateira Headland following the Rota Vicentina Circuit.  We decided on the latter as the forecast for the following day was not good and I wanted to be able to appreciate the coastline at its best.

After breakfast we left the hotel following the path we had arrived on yesterday, as we passed the front gates a male Blackcap was singing in the bushes by the side of the river.

Coming around the bend in the track there is a marshy area and as we approached it a juvenile Grey Heron flew up from beneath a Willow tree and headed up into the valley.  A little further on and the male Stonechat demanded yet another photograph, they are very self obsessed birds.

The cattle were in the field as we walked towards the village, their cow bells rattling continuously as they were herded by one man and his two German Shepherds.  Around the cattle was a large flock of Jackdaws, and on the wires above the cattle were lots of birds, and from the calls there were definitely Bee Eaters among them.  The call is very distinctive a sort of melodic liquid trill, that once heard is never forgotten.  I remember the first time I heard it as a small flock flew overhead in fog when I was in the south of Spain.  It has stayed with me.

We watched the birds as we walked and they moved from above the cattle to the wires by the side of the hill where the planned route would take us.  The sky was very white and to get a good shot required experimentation with over exposing.  

Then the flock was the off, all calling as they headed off in their swallow like flight.  They made their way across the field and perched up once again on the wires above the cattle.  Rather than carry on into the village we went after the Bee Eaters.  Thye were now perched on the wires along with Spotless Starlings.  I would try and get as close as I could to them, taking pictures as I eased slowly forward.

The European Bee Eater for me is a lot more colourful than some of the more recent Bee Eaters I have been lucky to see and photograph.  They are very social birds, calling all the time and gathering in numbers.  They will slide up to each other and chatter away, then slowly move away again still chattering.

Interestingly, how is the above  bird perched on the wire?

Easy, two wires!

Perched on the same wires were a small flock of Spotless Starlings.  The adult Spotless Starling is very similar to the common Starling, but marginally larger, and has darker, oily-looking black plumage, slightly purple- or green-glossed in bright light, which is entirely spotless in the spring and summer, and only with very small pale spots, formed by the pale tips of the feathers, in winter plumage,. It also differs in having conspicuously longer throat feathers (twice the length of those on common Starlings), forming a shaggy "beard" which is particularly obvious when the bird is singing. 

We finally left the Bee Eaters and headed along the road, pausing briefly to try and determine if these doves were true Rock Doves or feral pigeons.  There unfortunately is no answer to the question, but they do look quite smart.

We turned off the main road and headed past some old house in the direction of the dunes.  At the end of the road before turning onto the dunes, a Sardinian Warbler rattled at us and for once gave some good views.

It dropped down into the Fig-Hottentot only to appear once again.

We passed a concrete well where a pair of Red-rumped Swallows were circling, and as we watched we noticed that there was a pattern.  The birds would circle and then make an approach to the well, if this was not quite right they would go around again before all was right to be able to drop in, and visit what we assumed was a nest.  Once out they would wait for each other and head off beyond the distant reeds to probably a puddle where they were collecting mud.  

This was the perfect opportunity for photographing them, we could judge where they were going to be, and as seen before they are relatively slower flyers.  However it wasn't that easy, and it took many attempts to get this shot which does support the theory that they were nest building and collecting mud.

When you see a Red-rumped Swallow you realise that it is completely different from the Barn Swallow, not just in colour and the pinkish red rump, but in the overall shape.  For me the tail looks like it has been stuck on separately.

  

The flying technique was fascinating to watch, adjusting the approach and the ability to swoop into the well,and then up and perch on the nest.  They would come out at a much faster speed, and no matter that you knew where they would appear it was impossible to get a better shot than this in the time we had.

We made our way back to the path through the dunes, it was sandy, flanked more Hottentot with both yellow and purple flowers.  On one of the dead trees a Crested Lark was singing.

on reaching a road the path crossed over to a board walk that  stretched down to the river where a large lagoon was created by the blocking of the river by sand dunes closer to the sea.  In the shallow water a group of Lesser Black-backed and Yellow-legged Gulls were roosting and bathing.

On the far bank we found only our second wader of the trip a couple of Kentish Plovers feeding close to the water edge.  This is the female as she came closer to us

We walked around the side of the river and then up the side of the dune which gave us some wonderful views across Borderia Beach.  First the wind swept dunes.

Then from higher up a view further north of the cliffs and surf.

We now reached the road that leads alongside the cliffs, and at various points there were boardwalks that lead to viewpoints over the cliffs.  From here we could see local fishermen perched at various heights on the cliffs, oblivious it would seem to the danger from the height and the waves that would crash into the cliff beneath them.  We were looking for a White Stork's nest that was supposed to be here on one of the offshore islands but we could not find it.  

We missed out one or two of the view points, but on one we did visit we came across the lovely male Black Redstart.

This rocky habitat is more typical for the Black Redstart but they have adapted to use high buildings and ruins as nesting site, arriving in the UK in London after world war two and nesting in old bomb sites.  Sadly they no longer are there, and are usually a winter visitor or passage migrant.

We watched this bird fly of and drop below the cliff only to turn up a little further along.

As we watched the Redstart, Helen also found another lizard, this is the Sand Racer, another common lizard of the dunes and cliffs.

As i watched the sea, Helen was looking in land, and she called me urgently and pointed at a White Stork that had just appeared and was now flying away from us.  Not the best picture but at least a record shot of an unmistakeable bird.

We now had to decide what to do.  The presence of the bird meant that there was probably a nest nearby and that we had missed it.  Did we go back now or head to the restaurant for lunch?  We decided to make our way to the cafe first, thinking at the time it wasn't too far away.

We continued to follow the dirt track, heading off it when cars passed to miss the dust that would kick up.  There was also the chance to get closer to the edge of the cliffs to take in the amazing geology of the cliffs.  The rock was sandstone and this softer rock has been eroded spectacularly in places by the Atlantic Ocean.

The rock here reminded us of the same type of rock in Yellowstone Canyon, a place we had visited last year

Looking back there were island and small stacks created where the sea had exploited the weaker places.

the dominate plant of the cliff tops was Juniper, and these was attracting the butterflies now in the sunshine.  These are two Black-eyed Blues getting it on in the Juniper and sunshine.

Looking down on the islands there were Yellow-legged Gulls and Jackdaws, and if you looked closer the odd Shag lower down close to the sea.

We finally reached the restaurant where we stopped for lunch along with WiFi and the chance to share the wonderful views we had as we ate.  Decision time once again, do we go back now and look for the storks or should we head on.  We wanted to check out a restaurant close to Borderia beach, and hopefully reserve a table for the evening, and this plus the fact that it was a lot longer walk back than we had imagined when we saw the stork decided our action for us.  

So we left the restaurant and took the same route we had taken the day before when we arrived, but this time not walking through the village but around the outside, and then down the main road towards the dunes once again.  It was about 800 metres to the restaurant Sitio do Forno, where we arranged to eat later tonight.  On the way back there were better views of the windmill that is situated on a hill just outside Carrapateira, and dominates the views of the village.

On one side of the road there were houses with small pieces of land that were cultivated and in places ploughed fields.  As we passed one of the houses Helen stopped and just said "there is a Stork in the field".  And sure enough there was.

As we watched it you could sense it was aware of us and very soon it opened its wings and jumped up.

And with great effort the large wings lifted the bird up as it wheeled around to get height/

Eventually finding sufficient lift to gain the necessary height to soar away from us.

So we had seen that the storks were probably about on the cliffs, and now we had just had some excellent views.  It was exactly what I had hoped for.  We made our way back to Casa Farja along the valley track in the sunshine.

It was possible that the White Storks were using the lush valley as a feeding ground, but they were not there now.  

Back at Casa Farja we spent a more peaceful afternoon by the pool, and that was not because there was no sound of the Scops Owl.  We made our way to the Sitio do Forno for dinner, and on our way back in the half life we saw and heard a little Owl on the overhead cable poles.

Back at the hotel we settled down for the night, not knowing then that our plans were going to drastically change for the next day.

1st April - Pedralva to Carrapateira, Algarve, Portugal

I awoke this morning to the song of a Corn Bunting, not something that happens in Four Marks, this was then followed by the twittering of Swallows.  Looking out of a misted window due to the cool temperature I could see the sun just rising above the valley, catching a distant house and highlighting the white wash with a golden glow.

As I waited to go down to breakfast I spent some time outside the house watching the swallows once again as they collected mud from the sandy banks at the back of the house.  There were Red-rumped and Barn Swallows busy flying around, and I was able to catch this Swallow complete with mud as it took it to repair or even build new its nest.

As i stood watching the comings and goings of the swallows I could hear the call of a Cuckoo from the valley, my first of the year and appropriate maybe that today was April Fool's Day.

We walked to the restaurant through the small streets of the village, these always look more impressive at either end of the day when the sun is low in the sky.  Here we have the contrast of the restored and the old in a small square complete with red post box

Looking back is our "house the second red door and shutters on the right.

It is the older ruined buildings that catch the eye, the weathered wood and old paint providing a lot of character.

As we walked down the streets the Swallows twittered above us and from the overhead wires.

It was too cold to sit outside so we had breakfast inside, the restaurant area though i am sure would be very inviting in the summer.

Wild flowers seem to grow everywhere here, even on the roofs of the village houses.

After breakfast we wheeled our bags to reception, checked out and then headed back along the main street, across a road and onto Guided Route 11 that took us along the river valley that supplies the village in the direction of Carrapateira.

being in the river valley afforded some shelter from the cool fresh breeze, and where the sun got through there were some nice warm spots that attracted butterflies.  The first to be seen was of course the Speckled Wood but a little further on we were treated to some lovely close views of a Spanish Festoon.

From the condition of the butterfly and the fact that it was so approachable it could be that this was a freshly emerged individual.  Some wonderful markings and colour.

Everywhere was so lush and green and there were plenty of trees that had taken advantage of the availability of water.  Mainly Cork Oaks, there twisted and gnarled barks provide a wonderful frame for the green grass and wild flowers, while the canopy provides shadows in areas to contrast with the green 

We continued along the track which was quite easy going.  Once again either side of us we would hear the rattle of a Sardinian Warbler, and then that annoying flight call from the Zitting Cisticola.

After about two kilometres we turned off the main track and started to head uphill, the path closing in with Cistus and the shrubby herbs of Rosemary and Lavender.  For the first time on this trip we saw a small party of walkers ahead of us, but soon they turned off the path in a different direction to that we would take.  

As the path wound around the rim of a valley a large hawk suddenly appeared above us, and then was gone.  It was of the accipter species, and quite large and if I was pushed I would have said it was a Goshawk, but I couldn't get any real identification features on it.

The Lavender was attracting many bees and as we stopped for a drink I watched this bee going from the flower heads of the Lavender.

As the path split the area became more open, and on the path were several striking yellow flowers, these are Rock Roses, or to give it's actual name, the Basil-leaved Rock Rose.  It is a member of the Cistus family, and typically thrives on sandy soil in full sun.

We were now heading down the side of another valley through low pine trees.  From the trees there were calls that sounded like Blue Tits, but turned out to be something a lot more interesting.  Moving through the pine tree one appeared at the top of the tree.

The Crested Tit, a bird only found in the highlands of Scotland, and one that eluded me when we were last in the Cairngorms a few years ago.  But here one was giving some lovely views, the crest giving a sort of attitude.

A little further down the side of the valley a familiar song heralded the appearance of the fourth lark species of the trip, a Woodlark.  It was singing from the overhead power lines.

The path then came upon a road, which we crossed and continued up another dirt track, passing several old ruined buildings, one with a small bread oven along side it.  

An interesting feature of the surrounding valley sides was the patterns created by the pine trees.  They grow low, but ball out creating this strange scene.

Movement by the side of the road made me stop and wait, then slowly a medium sized lizard appeared.  You could see the orange red throat, and just behind the shoulders of the front legs a couple of blue spots.  This is the Algerian Sand Lizard, a common lizard of the area, and this one is a male in breeding colours

Purple thistle like flowers were attracting small insects.  They are a Scottish Thistle, and are characterised by the down pointing bracts under the flower head.  Here is a one with a larger insect on it, a Painted Lady.

As we reached the brow of the hill we could now see the sea, and a little further on we could see our final destination settled behind the sand dunes.

As we walked down the path the yellow flowers either side of the sloped were gorse.  These are a low lying form, and were covered in the yellow flowers shining brightly in the sunshine.

 Finally the track wound it way down to a junction, turning right would have taken us to Carrapateira, but our route took us into the dunes and the spectacular Amado Beach.  As we reached the dunes the ground was covered with succulent leaves and bright yellow flowers.

This is Fig-hottentot, an alien species, originally from southern Africa, and is naturalised in many parts of Europe and the Mediterranean. It is a succulent plant and so well adapted to the hot and dry conditions found in the Mediterranean region, where it forms dense and showy mats of leaves and flowers.  A mauve or pink-flowered form of the plant is often interspersed with the yellow ones.

The beach was wonderful, open and empty, but with some people in the sea surfing.  To the north reddish sandstone cliffs

While to the south, the cliffs were a lot darker.

After lunch on the beach we headed back to the road that runs along the cliff tops.  From a higher position you get a sense of the size of the beach.

In the dunes,and on the bracken were Linnets and lots of Goldfinches that posed very nicely close to the road.

The road gained height giving some lovely views of the crashing waves and cliffs away to the south west, spectacular scenery.

Looking down to the sea below us Helen pointed out a Sandwich Tern fishing in the shallower surf.

We stopped once again to take in the wonderful views of the beach we were walking away from.

We stopped at a lovely cliff top restaurant, the Sitio do Forno, here we had a drink as we watched the ocean that stretched all the way west, next stop the New Jersey Shore.  After the break we were off again, walking inland from the restaurant through an area of Agave plants.  These are Agave Americana which was brought by the Spanish and Portuguese from Central America.  The plant was mainly used to make rope from the fibres, but in Mexico it is one of the plants that tequila is made from.

More thistles, and more insects, this time a Six-spot Burnet Moth.

Our path took us past some more small holdings, and Serins were singing everywhere, this one showing well for once on the flower body of the Agave.

The path then went past a sewerage farm, and a reed bed where even more Cisticolas manged to annoy me.  We then came to the main road, and a small square of the village.  From here we were then taken on a route through Carrapateira passing some ruins once again with plants growing on the roof.

As we came out of the village we made our way down from the village, amd out omto a dirt track.  Our destination was the hotel and resort Casa Fajara.  This is another property that has been renovated and refurbished with a considerable amount of detail.  There were tennis courts and a good sized swimming pool. 

After checking we took the time to relax in the sunshine by the pool.  As we lay there there a very repetitive call coming from the nearby woods.  I can only describe the call as a monotonous repeated beep, and something that could be considered to be mechanical or human made.  When I checked though later there was no doubt that this was the call of a Scops Owl.

Our calm did not last too long as we were joined by other guests, but once they had returned to the hotel the calm returned, and with it the calls of Bee Eaters from the ridge at the back of the hotel.  Several flew over, and I rushed to get the camera and was able to get at least a record shot as one flew over.  Hopefully there would be more over the next few days we are here

While waiting for the Bee Eaters to maybe return I heard the familiar calls of Raven away over the valley and picked up one as it flew across to be joined by its partner on the top of the hill behind the Casa Fajara.

That evening we had dinner in the hotel, which was not exactly what we expected, and then back to the room, tomorrow we had to decide which of the walks we took that had been recommended.  We were here in the Casa Fajara for three nights and this would now be our base to explore the area around this wonderful coast