What a lovely spot we found to overnight at Vrachos Beach. Completely peaceful except for the sound of waves lapping on the beach.
Better still when we woke up normal service had been resumed on the weather front. Clear blue skies and blazing sun. It was enough to tempt even me on a long beach walk.
Once again we have decided that April is a fantastic time to explore Greece and anywhere else in Southern Europe. Everything is still lush and green and the wild flowers are an absolute riot of colours.
I had today pencilled in as a bit of a birding day. Inland from Vrachos Beach is what is known as the Ambracian Gulf. A large body of sea which is almost totally enclosed by land with just a small channel out into the Adriatic. It is one of Greece’s most important wetland habitats and home to the rare Dalmatian Pelican.
First of all we tried to find a wetland centre which the Rough Guide talks about. Unfortunately have wended our way through numerous small villages, where the trees in each garden were laden with either lemons, oranges or sometimes both.
We got a glimpse of the Ambracian Gulf but eventually the road turned into a rough muddy track. With Basil’s troubles not long in the past we yet again decided against taking undue risks and turned back.
Fortunately I knew from one of my databases that there were areas where not only could you get good views of the Gulf but also where we could also spend the night. We found ourselves on a narrow causeway, with water on either side, heading out to the village of Koronisias, which I suspect not long ago was on an isolated island. It was hear, just sitting on the edge of the causeway, that we first saw Dalmatian Pelicans. I have seen Pelicans in zoos before but never in the wild and this is one of the few places where they can been seen in Europe. My Collins Bird Guide says they are “very rare”!
We passed through the village, which, out of season, looked barely alive, and found our beautiful overnight spot (39.011443, 20.925757), with the Ambracian Gulf stretched out in front of us and mountains and small islands in the distance. Basil is actually parked on a causeway so we have a small body of water behind us too.
After lunch we had a walk into the village and on the way we saw some Pygmy Cormorants, of which there are many here, along with numerous other bird species. We had been thinking of eating this evening in a restaurant in the village, but of the two that were open one only served drinks and the other had a resident dog to which, inevitably, Mabel took and instant dislike.
On our return to Basil I fell into conversation with two German students who were spending four weeks, wild camping in a small tent, primarily bird spotting! See I’m not the only one. They were very excited to have seen a Caspian Tern today. I’m afraid that level of expertise is beyond me at the moment, I was just pleased to tell them that I had a good photo of a tern, which they told me was just of the common variety!
As a final note, the Pelicans, of which we have seen more, are a really magnificent bird. They are huge and unmistakable as they fly, just above the water, across the horizon. When they take off or come into land, at a distance they look almost like a small aeroplane!
