The taxi taking us to Luton airport arrived just before midnight. It is now 21.05 in a very nice, small, hotel 30kms north if Varna - and I'm longing to go to bed.
Luton Airport is a mess. They're building a new multi storey carpark and renovating departures. From the car to Departures, was a half a mile walk through a large construction site,
The flight was on time, the seats with extral leg room very capacious - and the in between bit, tedious, very hot and involving a lot of walking, standing and step climbing.
Minko, our smiling guide for the next two weeks, was waiting in Arrivals at Varna, walking us to his Suzuki 4 wheel drive. From the choices offered, we decided to go to the hotel first, drop our bags, have lunch there and go out birding afterwards.
We have a suite of rooms, a large double bedroom each with an even larger sitting room between. We both have balconies overlooking a wooded area with the Black Sea to the left.
We saw virtually no birds en route, Rock Doves, Yellow-legged Gulls and House Sparrows. Best was a Scarce Swallowtail butterfly, which flitted past at a traffic lights.
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| The courtyard |
We saw virtually no birds en route, Rock Doves, Yellow-legged Gulls and House Sparrows. Best was a Scarce Swallowtail butterfly, which flitted past at a traffic lights.
Lunch was Lentil soup, stuffed peppers and tomatoes and peaches from the proud owner's garden.
I shall have to sort out where we went exactly. The first area was dry steppe where we drove along dusty tracks, seeing the first of many Red-backed Shrikes,
Tawny Pipits, European Bee-eaters and a dozen Rollers. Raptors included Kestrel, Marsh Harrier and two Montagu's Harriers.
Tawny Pipits, European Bee-eaters and a dozen Rollers. Raptors included Kestrel, Marsh Harrier and two Montagu's Harriers.
A small rusty-red rocked gorge produced Pied Wheatear, Lesser Whitethroats, Spotted and Red-breasted Flycatchers - and four Hummingbird Hawk-moths busy on some small blue flowers.
We ended the birding day at a very saline lake covered in birds - with not much water. It was great to see both Broad-billed Sandpiper and Temminck's Stint in the same scope view. There were also Stilts, Ruff, Dunlin, Curlew and Wood Sandpiper, Ringed Plover, Common Terns and a myriad Gulls, most of them Yellow-legged.
A proliferation of Wind Turbines have been erected in the area. A small group of dedicated men keep bird-strike watch. Few are killed through conact, many are damaged in some way. Minko seems to know everyone. When a watcher sees, for example, a flock of Pelicans approaching, he phones the authority and they turn the turbines off until given the all clear. How very civilised and impressive - if it happens.
A proliferation of Wind Turbines have been erected in the area. A small group of dedicated men keep bird-strike watch. Few are killed through conact, many are damaged in some way. Minko seems to know everyone. When a watcher sees, for example, a flock of Pelicans approaching, he phones the authority and they turn the turbines off until given the all clear. How very civilised and impressive - if it happens.
An hour before a 7 o'clock dinner to wash, sort the electrics and Wi-Fi and find some belongings !
Minko is an entertaining story-teller, meatballs in a potato and carrot stew followed by grapes from the garden, went by rapidly.I'm too tired to write any detail and to add some photographs to-night. Maybe I'll wake up early. Good-night - 9.30 here, 7.30 at home.
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