Brown Bear, Iberian Wolf and Birds in NorthWestern Spain

Recommended visit to the metropolis of Bilbao and also the city of Getxo, which is close by. We meet with the tour leader at the hotel at 18.00 for a presentation, where we get an up-close look at a typical Bilbao dining evening.

The tour guide will pick you up from your Bilbao hotel and take you to the Biosphere Reserve of Urdaibai, where you may see aquatic and migratory birds. The experience can be enhanced by visiting the well-known town of Gernika, where you can sample the regional specialty, pintxos. Following lunch, we travel to the limestone mountains of the Urkiola Natural Park, where we take in the breathtaking scenery and forest birds like the Crested Tit and Bullfinch. From there, we go to the Salburua wetland in Vitoria, the capital of Alava, where we can see a variety of wetland birds, including the Tufted Duck, Water Rail, and Great Reed Warbler. We will check into the Hotel in Bilbao to have dinner and spend the night in the Bizkaian capital after a fascinating day.

We will leave Bilbao early in the morning and stop on the way to visit the steep coastal cliffs of Llanes in Asturias. While we eat a snack and contemplate, we’ll see how the water creates the dramatic blowholes when the waves smash against the steep shore. We’ll also have more chances to visit some other neighboring viewpoints and search for birds like the Peregrine falcon, Shag, Garden, and Grasshopper warblers. We’ll keep going after lunch until we get to the Natural Park of Somiedo, which is arguably the greatest spot in Spain to see the majestic brown bear. Since the plantigrade is currently searching for wild fruits in the upper regions of the mountains, that first afternoon we will attempt to be the first to wait in line to try to view it. We will spend the night and dinner in a charming little mountain village close to Pola de Somiedo, where we can also get to know its traditional livestock farming environment.

We will try to see bears at dawn and dusk while spending the day at the Somiedo Natural Park. We will take a break at midday and then visit some of the neighboring shepherds’ cottages, which are quite interesting to see and beautifully exhibit the Asturian identity. Fortunately, there is an increasing number of brown bears in the wild, and it is truly satisfying to be able to carefully view these amazing and magnificent creatures. Additionally, there are excellent chances to see chamois, roe deer, and Iberian deer, as well as, with luck, an Iberian wolf. The migration of tiny alpine birds, like the Whinchat in Somiedo, is also best in September.

Early in the morning we will make our last wait for the brown bear in Somiedo. In the afternoon we will cross the mountain and head south towards León, to reach the Hotel in Riaño, where in the afternoon we will make our first attempt to observe the Iberian wolf with the help of a local guide. This subspecies of wolf is endemic to the Iberian Peninsula and is difficult to observe due to its elusive and wary nature, which has allowed it to survive for centuries in the Iberian Peninsula.

We are going to do two wolf watchs: one at dawn and one at dark. We will take advantage of the lunch break to relax a little and search for a rare animal, the wild cat, which is feeding on mole rats in the surrounding area. This is one of the best locations in Europe to see wolves, who are seeing a population boom in contrast to the wildcat, which is sadly experiencing a significant fall in the wild due mostly to habitat degradation and roadkill. With a more Mediterranean vibe, Riaño is home to a thriving Golden Eagle population and offers plenty of opportunity for other visually appealing species like the Black or Iberian woodpeckers.

After lunch, we will head to the mountains where we will stop to look for the Iberian Goat and enjoy the scenery and birds in the San Glorio area. We will make our final watch for the Wolf at dawn, and there may be a chance to see some of the released Bearded Vultures. We will also pay close attention to the Yellowhammer and Citril finches. We will depart from León in the afternoon and travel to the valley of Liébana, in the heart of Cantabria’s Picos de Europa. There, we will explore the old village of Potes and stay at our hotel in Cosgaya. We’ll try different birds along the route, such the Middle-Spotted Woodpecker, and we’ll watch out for foxes and roe deer in the fields beside the road. Additionally, we will discover the significance of the Catholic faith in the Liébana Valley and how it is directly related to the local pomace and wine, which are inextricably linked to the environment.

After an excellent breakfast, we will take the Fuente Dé cable car to enter the thrilling Central Massif of the Picos de Europa. We will walk under the striking limestone mountains of the Urrieles Massif, looking for the elusive alpine bird par excellence, the Wallcreeper. In addition, we will pay attention to other very interesting birds, such as the Alpine Chough, the Snowfinch, or the Alpine Accentor, among others. If we are lucky enough, we may spot a Bearded Vulture or one of the migrating prey birds that still frequent the area, in addition to the Alpine Chamois that can be seen amid the cliffs. After lunch atop the mountain in the afternoon, we will take the cable car to the bottom of the valley so we may take a stroll through the forest. We will make an effort to get back early so we may take advantage of the amazing hotel and its lovely views.

We will be able to take various nature walks in the Liébana Valley’s surroundings in the morning, contingent on the weather. We will return to Castilla y León in the afternoon to see one of its treasures, the Palencia Mountain, which receives less visitors than its surrounding peaks while having a livestock-oriented nature and being most known for its austere and historically significant Romanesque hermitages. Before heading to the hotel in Cervera, we will explore its woodlands in the afternoon, where we will have the chance to search for the recognizable Middle Spotted Woodpecker amidst its massive oak trees.

In addition to having a strong chance of seeing an endemic hare of the Cordillera, the hare of the piornal, among the low undergrowth of its vast slopes, we will wait on the wild slopes before dawn to search for any of the species already described.
We will return to Bilbao after lunch in the historic town of Cervera de Pisuerga, where the tour will conclude at the hotel with a goodbye meal included.
To spend more time getting to know Bilbao, the clients are welcome to extend their stay by one day.