Birding and Natural History Exploration in Northern Greece ~ Macedonia and Thrace With Mass Audubon Naturalist Elissa Landre April 19 – 30, 2010 Travel with the Massachusetts Audubon Society 208 South Great Road, Lincoln, MA 01773 800-289-9504 Greece ~ April 2010 Tour Terms and Conditions PRICE: $3600 per person, double occupancy, Single Supplement: $400 Singles are limited. Price Includes: All meals and accommodations as shown in the itinerary Services of Mass Audubon naturalist Local guide and naturalist All Gratuities All excursions, entrance fees Extensive trip preparation notes Medical Evacuation coverage Price Excludes: International airfare Passport and visa fees; Trip cancellation insurance; Airport taxes; excess baggage charges; Items of a personal nature, including alcoholic beverages, laundry and telephone calls; other items not specifically mentioned as included. TRAVEL DOCUMENTS: A U.S. Passport valid for at least six months beyond the trip’s departure date is required. MASS AUDUBON NATURALIST LEADER: Elissa Landre is the Director of Mass Audubon’s Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary. She has led tours in Northern Greece, as well as Belize, Hawaii, Trinidad, Tobago, Costa Rica, Hawaii, Ecuador, and Mexico. She has consulted on interpretation, guide training, and marketing for ecotourism at national parks in Bolivia and Poland, holds a master’s degree in biology, runs a bird-banding station at Broadmoor, and is a past president of the Association of Field Ornithologists. On tours she likes to explore how protected conservation land is managed for birds and native plants. Introduction: Northern Greece – Macedonia and Thrace, home to Alexander the Great and a surprisingly wonderful variety of Birdlife! As we drive through lovely and lesser known towns, we will visit birdin hotspots including Evros Delta, Dadia Forest Reserve, Lake Kerkini, Nestos River and Straits, Thracian Lagoons, Iasmos Gorge, Kavala, Strimonas River Delta and Koroneia Lakes. Many of these sites are designated Important Bird Areas for Greece as part of an international program to identify sites critical for birds. We will explore the best birding sites in Northern Greece, while enjoying the warmth and hospitality that is uniquely Greek. Picnic lunches, relaxed dinners in local tavernas, and visits to local markets will all be part of this special trip. Joining us en route will be local ornithologists and conservationists who will share their knowledge about these special places. Travel with the Massachusetts Audubon Society 2 208 South Great Road, Lincoln, MA 01773 800-289-9504 Greece ~ April 2010 Daily Itinerary ~ Northern Greece – Macedonia and Thrace, Day 1: April 19 - depart U.S. travel overnight Day 2: April 20 - Arrive Thessaloniki, Greece We will arrive in Thessaloniki, be met by our local guide, Alexander Contos, and transfer to Kerkini village. Lake Kerkini is home to hundreds of herons, egrets, and other waterbirds, as well as a stopover point for Great White and Dalmatian Pelicans. We will take time to get settled into our hotel. Our local guide will give us an overview about the aquatic sanctuary of the lake; then we shall enjoy our welcome dinner. (D) Overnight at the Erodios Hotel for 2 nights. Day 3: April 21 - Kerkini This morning we will take a slow walk around the lake. In addition to the White and Dalmatian Pelicans, we also hope to find Squacco Herons, Glossy Ibises, and Purple Herons. On the banks of Strimonas River, we may find water buffaloes (Asia is not far), as well as Black and White Storks, Spoonbills, and Egrets feeding. There have been 269 species recorded for the lake, the birding should be excellent. At noontime, we will share our picnic lunch with a local biologist and learn more about lake conservation. In the afternoon, we will continue to explore the sanctuary looking for Whiskered and Black Terns, which breed among the water lilies. (B,L,D) Overnight at the Erodios Hotel. Day 4: April 22 – Fraktos to Porto Lagos After breakfast, we will depart eastwards driving along off-the-beaten path, but easy, mountain roads (we may catch a glimpse of the Rock Thrush along the way). We will stop en route to stretch our legs and hike in the virgin forest of Fraktos which extends to the Bulgarian border. Under foot are carpets of tiny spring meadow wildflowers - crocuses, grape hyacinths and primrose. Here we hope to find the Somber Tit, and perhaps the White-backed or the Grey-headed Woodpecker. We continue through the plateau made more desolate as dusk approaches, but, instead of the end of the world, we arrive between the very alive, cultural Xanthi and the very birdy Vistonis Lake/Porto Lagos area (B,L,D) Overnight in Petrinos Lofos Hotel for 3 nights Day 5: April 23 - Western Nestos Delta & Gorge, overnight Porto Lagos Today is Nestos day, morning the Western delta, afternoon the gorge. We start by driving through riparian softwoods to the river delta looking for Great Reed Warbler, Masked Shrike, Olivaceous Warbler, and many others. Bee orchids and anemones are among the wildflowers we may see. Here too, we will look for the rare Spur-winged Plover, one of 300 species that can be found in this area. Later we will set off for the Nestos Gorge, and will walk, under the warm sunshine colors of late afternoon, along the old cobblestone path deep within the gorge, looking for Rock Buntings, Golden Orioles, Syrian and Middle Spotted Woodpeckers, Red-rumped Swallows, Short-toed and Bonelli’s Eagles, Levant Sparrowhawks, and Collared Flycatchers, while wild iris cling to the gorge walls. After dinner, your evening will be free to enjoy some of this city’s nightlife for those who wish to go into town. (B,L,D) Overnight in the Hotel Petrinos Lofos. Day 6: April 24 – Xanthi market, Nestos Gorge, Eastern Nestos Delta, overnight Porto Lagos Early this morning, we will visit Xanthi’s Old City and, since it is a Saturday, we will explore the very colorful weekly market. Then we will head for nearby Nestos gorge, follow a steep uphill road, passing some Booted and Lesser Spotted Eagles. We will be rewarded with a superb view of the gorge from above, as well as the whole delta. Along the side of the road, we may find six lovely varieties of orchids. Back at sea level, we will explore the eastern part of the huge Nestos delta and its numerous lagoons. This is a famous birdwatching spot. Black-headed Bunting, Collared Travel with the Massachusetts Audubon Society 3 208 South Great Road, Lincoln, MA 01773 800-289-9504 Greece ~ April 2010 Pratincole, Greater Flamingo, Black-necked Grebes, Little Tern, Roller, and various gulls are all abundant. (B,L,D) Overnight in the Hotel Petrinos Lofos Day 7: April 25 – Porto Lagos, Mitrikou Lake, transfer, overnight Dadia This morning we will continue to head eastwards for neighboring Porto Lagos, followed by Mitrikou Lake and the famous Thracian lagoons. There is good hiking here and we will watch for the Black and Whiskered Terns, Lesser Grey Shrike, Short-toed Lark, Ferruginous Ducks, and the whole series of herons. We will end the day with a Lesser Kestrel colony in a picturesque village. Late afternoon we continue towards Dadia Forest Reserve and settle into a very peaceful guesthouse. (B,L,D) Overnight in the Dadia Guesthouse for 3 nights Day 8: April 26 – Dadia, overnight Dadia In the magic post-dawn light, we will hike through a rocky, thick Mediterranean pine forest up to the observatory to look for Griffon, Egyptian, or Black Vultures, and Imperial, Golden, or Lesser Spotted Eagles. At noon we hide from the sun, have lunch, and visit the Information Center to watch a documentary film. There will be option in the afternoon to head to nearby Soufli, an architecturally interesting town on the border of Turkey, known as a center for the production of silk since ancient times. Some may choose to go instead to the peak Kapsalo, to enjoy a panoramic view of the region and see more raptors. (B,L,D) Overnight in the Dadia Guesthouse. Day 9: April 27 – Evros delta and inland, overnight Dadia We will spend the whole day visiting the Evros delta as well as the surrounding inland, hilly areas. This is a fine birdwatching place at the very limit of Greece. Here we will look for Curlew Sandpiper, Little Stint, Black-winged Stilt, Somber Tit, Masked Shrike, Avocet, Short-toed and Calandra Larks, Isabelline Wheatear, Crag Martin, White- tailed Eagle... and the last chance to see the Spur-winged Plover. If time allows we will have optional visits to Traianoupoli therapeutic spring, and Feres, the 12th century Virgin Savior of the World church (also called the Parthenon of Thrace and a miniature of Aghia Sofia in Constantinople). (B,L,D) Overnight in the Dadia Guesthouse. Day 10: April 28 – Avas Gorge, Iasmos Gorge, Kavala, transfer Our trip now begins to head westwards as we leave Dadia. We may stop in Alexandroupolis to enter Avas Valley, with its Bonelli's Warblers, Sombre Tits, Rock Nuthatches, as well as Lesser Kestrels, Peregrines, Black Kites, and Honey Buzzards. We continue in the same direction, looking for the less-known Iasmos gorge and its series of birds of prey, Blue Rock Thrush, Rock Nuthatch, Ortolan Bunting, and possibly the Eagle Owl. We will then drive on what used to be the ancient Via Egnatia, linking the Western Roman Empire with its Eastern part, soon to become Byzantium. There is a hidden spot where you still can see parts of the ancient road. We will stop on the way by the acqueduct in central Kavala to watch the Common and Pallid Swifts. Then a last look at hundreds of Shearwaters on the sea.