Oliva Rama Holidays
Eastern Poland
with possible day in Belarus
May 1st - 10th ₤990 (inc flights)
Leader : Ken Shaw + local guide
Eastern Poland boasts some of the most unspoilt habitats in Europe, with a landscape of old-world agriculture, where working horses still pull ploughs, where livestock still run amongst the farm buildings, where you still find ponds and uncultivated ground are still scattered about the flower-rich countryside. These old-fashioned methods of agriculture are responsible for the abundance of Corncrakes, Roller and other rare European species. It has many large natural habitats with ancient forests, river valleys, lakes and mountains, with it's most famous forest being Bialowieza, one part being the last deciduous woodland in Europe to have never been managed by human hands. Here there are raptors, hazelhen, owls, woodpeckers, passerines in abundance, as well as large mammals such as the incredibly rare European Bison. Our holiday will also take us to the vast Biebrza Marshes, looking for more rare European breeding species like Greater Spotted Eagle, Great Snipe and Aquatic Warbler. Eastern Poland has consistantly proved to be a very popular destination for birdwatchers and this trip will be no exception.
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Day 1 :- After we have all gathered at our London Airport we will fly into the country's capital Warsaw where on meeting our local guide we shall make ou way inland to our first hotel destination in Ublik. Hopefully time will permit us to make a late afternoon visit to the nearby Nietlice Marshes where we shall be searching for Great Bittern, Common Crane, White-tailed Eagle, Spotted, Little & Corncrakes, Black Grouse, Black & White winged Black Terns. 2 Nights in Ublik Hotel Day 2 :- Early this morning we will have an optional pre-breakfast visit to a nearby Black Grouse lek where we will watch these magnificent game birds 'strut their stuff' in an awesome display of feathers. After breakfast we then visit the excellent Orzysz Military Area, and with the assistance from a very knowledgable local forestry worker we shall drive the undisturbed tracks and take a good walk with the hope of finding - more Black Grouse, Great Bittern, Black Stork, Common Crane, White tailed & Lesser Spotted Eagles, Honey & Common Buzzard, Montagu's Harriers, Black & Red Kites. Days 3 & 4 :- After breakfast we shall pack up the vehicle and continue east to the famous Biebrza Marshes where we shall spend two days exploring these fantastic wetlands. Much of the time will be spent around the Middle Basin where there are many boardwalks and viewing platforms from which to see the innumerable wildfowl, waders, terns & gulls. Hundreds of White-winged Black Terns breed here in good years and Ruff can sometimes be seen lekking, however one of the main targets is Greater Spotted Eagle, (about nine pairs breed) but they are far from easy as their commoner (and very similar) cousin the Lesser Spotted Eagle also breed in good numbers. One of the highlights of the holiday will be our evening visit to the Great Snipe lek near Barwik, an incredible chance to witness one of Europe's most rare & elusive waders in full display, plus roding Woodcock & Common Snipe. The number of species seen n this portion of the tour alone will be exceptional with other highlights being all three marsh terns, Great White Egrets, Black tailed Godwits, Curlew & Wood Sandpipers, Dunlin, White tailed Eagles, Marsh & Montagu's Harriers, and another one of Europe's rarest breeders - Aquatic Warbler. Elk can sometimes be seen from the tower hides and we may also find Thrush Nightingales, Spotted Nutcrackers, Crested Tits and Common Rosefinches in the area. 3 Nights in Bartlowzna Hotel Day 5 :- Sadly this morning we leave the hotel after breakfast and head for the town of Bialystok stopping enroute at Tykocin to view it's Bee-eater colony. On the outskirts of Bialystok we shall visit the Dojlidy fish ponds where we hope to find Red-necked & Black necked Grebes (in Summer plumage), Whooper Swans, Great & Little Bittern, Garganey, Common Pochard, Gadwall, Tufted Duck, Goosander, Osprey, Common Terns, Great Reed & Savis Warblers, and Penduline Tit. We will then continue on towards the ancient forest of Bialowieza again stopping en-route at Nowosady for Roller that will hopefully be back on their breeding grounds. Once we have arrived at Bialowieza Village we shall check into our accommodation and if time allows we will make a foray into this vast woodand around the nearby “Wysokie Bagno” reserve. 5 nights at Bialowieza Village Days 6 - 9 :- Over the next four days we will visit many areas around the Bialowieza Forest including a morning walk around the strictly controlled nature reserve of the Bialowieza National Park a truly wonderful experience. This massive woodland is the largest remaining piece of European forest covering an area of 500+ Km2 in Poland alone and it also continues over the border into Belarus, which we hope to visit. Woodpeckers will feature heavily during our time here and we could possibly find an incredible ten species including Three toed, White backed, Grey headed, Black, Middle & Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers and an outside chance of Syrian Woodpecker - what a haul!. By the first week of May many of the summer migrants will be on territory including Collared & Red-breasted Flycatchers, Barred, Icterine & Wood Warblers, Hawfinch, Common Redstart, Nutcracker and Crested Tits. We shall make an evening visit looking for European Nightjar, Tengmalm's & Pygmy Owl and raptors include Honey & Common Buzzards, Lesser Spotted, Booted & Short-toed Eagles, Goshawk and Hobby. White Storks will be abundant around the towns and villages and with luck we will find it's rarer cousin, the Black Stork circling over the forest clearings. One day we will head for Siemianwka Lake where our target species is the gorgeous Citrine Wagtail with some 30 breeding pairs in this area. Also around the lake we should find White-winged Black, Black & Whiskered Terns, Common Cranes, Great White Egret, White-tailed & Lesser Spotted Eagles, Osprey, and Red Kite. The forest and rivers also bring an opportunity to encounter one of Europe's rarest mammals the European Bison, plus specialities like Wild Boar, Elk, Red & Roe Deer, Red Squirrel, and Pine Marten. * As part of our four day tour of this magnificent area we are going to endeavour to obtain visas into Belarussia, and this can possibly be done while we are birdwatching at the Dojlidy fish ponds, but it is not at all guaranteed. A full day in the Belarus portion of the Bialowieza Forest and the Dikoe Marshes would greatly enhance our chances of seeing the extremely rare European Bison along with Greater Spotted Eagle and Great Snipe. However it is the chance of a recently discovered rare breeding species that could make the effort very worthwhile and would certainly be one of the highlights of the trip. Day 10 :- Sadly we have to leave this wonderful area and make the journey back to Warsaw for our flight back to the UK, if time allows we will stop en-route for some extra birding. |
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