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Algarve birding (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter malc1
- Start date
jforgham
Birding for fun
Hi there,
A good bird guide for the whole of Southern Portugal is Simon Wates. Check out his website www.algarvebirdman.com
Best book is A Birdwatcher's Guide to Portugal, the Azores and Madeira by Colm Moore, Goncalo Elias and Helder Costa. On Amazon.
Cheers,
Jono
A good bird guide for the whole of Southern Portugal is Simon Wates. Check out his website www.algarvebirdman.com
Best book is A Birdwatcher's Guide to Portugal, the Azores and Madeira by Colm Moore, Goncalo Elias and Helder Costa. On Amazon.
Cheers,
Jono
kb57
Well-known member
Personally wouldn't fancy cycling that route, I think at some point you'd need to get onto the N125, which is a fast and quite dangerous road in places.
There's good birding to be had without straying far from Olhao - the Ria Formosa administrative centre has hides overlooking lagoons, its great for waders and also reliable for Iberian magpie.
If you really want to go to Tavira, which is a nice city to visit, then you can catch the train from Olhao. It's a bit of a walk down to the centre / riverside area, and a bit further to the salt pans. Another alternative, also by train, would be to go to Faro and book a boat trip - the station is close to the harbour - although again you can also do this from Olhao.
There's good birding to be had without straying far from Olhao - the Ria Formosa administrative centre has hides overlooking lagoons, its great for waders and also reliable for Iberian magpie.
If you really want to go to Tavira, which is a nice city to visit, then you can catch the train from Olhao. It's a bit of a walk down to the centre / riverside area, and a bit further to the salt pans. Another alternative, also by train, would be to go to Faro and book a boat trip - the station is close to the harbour - although again you can also do this from Olhao.
Simon Wates
Well-known member
Appreciate the plug Jono :t: though I have been slowing down my guiding to a stop recently, sort of a sabbatical
However, Thijs Valkenburg is providing services through our website and he is most of the time based in Olhão, where he is head ornithologist at RIAS, the Algarve´s regional wildlife rescue and rehabilitation centre. He is a super bird guide! https://riaswildliferescuecentre.wordpress.com/Cycling
Also access the salt pans at Santa Luzia ,easy to find the access just east of luzia.
Just returned from that area, there is a great cycle route which is well signposted and runs between the coast and the N125. We only cycled half way from Tavira to Olhao. Should be able to cycle the full distance in 1.5 - 2 hours. Expect to be distracted by the birding on your way.
Also access the salt pans at Santa Luzia ,easy to find the access just east of luzia.
Cycle
While we didn’t do the whole distance I’d be surprised if it pushed you on to the N125. I’m confident we could have got to the Quinta de Marim without encountering the N125. Even where we turned back you could see the track stuck along the coast .It’s part of a much longer ride and our section stuck to lovely non tarmac tracks and quiet minor back roads near the shore line and also tracks across the marsh land. Very enjoyable cycling with no real traffic to worry about. We hired city bikes but something a step up with a bit more shock absorption would be better
kb57
Well-known member
That's interesting to know - there are cycle paths either side of Santa Luzia which follow the road east towards Tavira and west towards Pedras del Rey, but I thought further west you'd have to swing north to get to Olhao - I can see that there are minor roads south of the N125 though.
As has already been mentioned, from a birding perspective between Santa Luzia and Tavira you are better off coming off the road / cyclepath and taking the unsurfaced roads through the saltpans.
RafaelMatias
Unknown member
I think it's actually very likely it's going to be cancelled, I'm very sorry to say. I'd postpone it asap if possible (trying to get a full refund). Today or tomorrow a new measure of 14 days of isolation for all coming from abroad is most likely going to be announced by the Government.
RafaelMatias
Unknown member
It was inevitable, unfortunately. September and especially October can be very good (raptor migration at Sagres, as well as passerines and other goodies, particularly with eastern winds). Perhaps a bit too early to figure out when to rearrange it, but I'd post a RFI in the Portugal-dedicated subforum, it'll be more visible to other.
