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Hungary
Spring in the steppes and forests

Saturday 24 – Saturday 31 May 2008 (8 days)

The sweeping landscapes of the steppe country extend across a huge swathe of temperate Eurasia, eastwards to Mongolia and beyond. In only one place does a part of this vast steppe wilderness extend a finger into Europe - the plains of Eastern Hungary. This is the Hortobágy, an ancient flood-plain of steppe grasslands - green and lush in May -and ancient meadows interspersed with marshes and pools. Apart from the odd scattered woodland, nothing breaks the skyline of this immense open landscape reminiscent of the South American pampas, which contains not only steppe grasslands, but also a chain of wetlands of international importance. The famous Hortobágy Puszta was once a wild place of fishermen, shepherds and horsemen. This ancient landscape is still grazed by herds of the huge, long-horned Hungarian Grey Cattle, descendants of the hardy cattle driven here by the original Hungarian horsemen more than a thousand years ago. Shepherd dogs, some looking like small bears, run circles around the herds of the strange Racka Sheep, also of ancient lineage, while herds of pigs, including the ancient ‘woolly pig’ also roam free. One of Europe's largest national parks, the Hortobágy offers some of Europe's most exciting birdwatching.

During our visit we shall also go up into the forests of the Zemplen Hills, for a range of raptors and other forest specialities. These green, rolling, forest-swathed hills, with the famous Tokaj vineyards clothing their southern slopes, are home to a superb range of central European forest specialities, including Eastern Imperial Eagle, Ural Owl, and an astonishing nine species of woodpecker - and we could see them all on the same day!

Price: £ 1,345
Single supp.: £ 135
Deposit: £ 300 per person

The price per person includes return flights from London – Budapest*, airport taxes, 7 nights' accommodation, all meals, incidental tips, coach transport and the services of the leaders.

The price excludes holiday insurance, optional tips for the driver and local guide, drinks, and other personal expenses.

*For an ex-flight cost of the tour (Budapest/Budapest) please deduct £ 95 per person from the tour cost.

Leaders: John Muddeman and local guide

Itinerary
Day 1
We take a morning scheduled flight London - Budapest, where we meet our local guide and drive to the pretty wine-growing town of Tokaj, close to the Slovakian border, where we stay for three nights.
Overnight Tokaj

Day 2
Today we drive up into the Zemplen Hills, which rise to almost 1,000m and are swathed in oak, hornbeam and beech woodland. Here smart male Collared Flycatchers sing from the trees, while the skies can hold soaring Black Stork, and both Eastern Imperial and Lesser Spotted Eagles, with an outside chance of Golden Eagle which we saw here on our last trip. We’ll visit a special area of the forest to seek out the difficult woodpecker species, including the rare White-backed and spectacular Black Woodpeckers, and with a chance of seeing the mighty Ural Owl in its forest domain. In the late afternoon we walk to a damp meadow along the River Bodrog, where Corncrake still call, along with singing River and Marsh Warblers, and Syrian Woodpecker.
Overnight Tokaj

Day 3
In the more open country around the Tokaj vineyards, Red-backed Shrike and Barred Warbler breed alongside each other, while Wryneck and Grey-headed Woodpeckers call from the scattered oaks. Local quarries offer a vantage point for raptor-watching, with Short-toed Eagle, Honey Buzzard and Goshawk among the possibilities, while we keep an eye out for Bee-eaters too. In the evening we hope to visit a disused quarry, looking for the orange eyes of Eagle Owl staring back at us.
Overnight Tokaj

Day 4
Leaving the Tokaj-Zemplen Hills we drive towards the Great Hungarian Plains. On the way we visit Debrecen Woods, some of the oldest oak woodland in the area, a remnant of the steppe woodland that dominated this part of the country in former times. This productive area holds a good selection of eastern woodland species, including Middle Spotted Woodpecker and Hawfinch.

Freshwater marshes near Debrecen can be superb at this time, and we’ll get our first taste of Hortobágy birds. Here in the shallows, Avocets and Spoonbills ‘sweep’ for food, while Black-winged Stilts call noisily. Black and Whiskered Terns flutter over the centre of the marsh, where Bitterns boom, and occasionally fly across. Depending on the water levels we may have a chance of seeing a good variety of passage waders, some in their superb breeding plumage.
Overnight Hortobágy

Day 5
We head for the Hortobágy fishponds today. These are large man-made lakes surrounded by reeds, which make a superb rich breeding ground for birds. These include Red-necked Grebe, Pygmy Cormorant, Glossy Ibis, Ferruginous Duck and Garganey, eight heron species including Purple and Squacco Herons, impressive colonies of Great White Egret and Spoonbill, and a superb variety of warblers and other songbirds. Stunning White-spotted Bluethroats sing from the reed-tops, along with Savi’s and Marsh Warblers.
Overnight Hortobágy

Day 6
We head south for the steppe country. This arid area of salty soil and short grass is unique in Europe, and surprisingly full of life. Here Stone Curlew nest together with Montagu's Harrier, and in some wetter areas, we look for the endangered Aquatic Warbler in one of its few remaining European breeding sites. On nearby grasslands, we'll also be looking for another, perhaps more spectacular bird: Great Bustard. There is still a good population of these immensely impressive birds in the Hortobágy, making it one of the most important sites in Europe for them. Finally, further west we'll explore the steppe woodland looking for Roller, Hoopoe, Tawny Pipit and Lesser Grey Shrike.
Overnight Hortobágy

Day 7
We visit the steppe woodland of North Hortobágy today. The small isolated woods that dominate this region offer good nesting sites for raptors, including the superb, colonial Red-footed Falcon, one of the most attractive of its family, as well as Hobby. Later we head for the grassy steppe which forms the domain of the Suslik. This delightful gopher-like rodent is an important prey species for an assemblage of raptors unique in Europe, including Saker Falcon. We continue to the Tisza River floodplain, where some salty lakes can be attractive to a variety of passage waders including Temminck's Stint.
Overnight Hortobágy

Day 8
We drive back to Budapest before catching our return flight to London.

Please note that we can arrange optional extensions to the trip in Budapest, for a chance to spend a bit of time in this delightful city. Please let us know at time of booking.

Accommodation: Good hotels with all rooms en suite.

Numbers: Max. 14 clients