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Sunday 28 June to Monday 6 July 2009
Cost: £2970 plus about £370 for flights Click here for explanation of price breakdown Maximum group size: 7 with 1 leader; 14 with 2 leaders. |
'Another excellent tour with Sunbird. Again we were so well looked after from the moment we left Heathrow.' A. Oliver 2006 |
Lying in the cold, grey waters of the North Atlantic, Iceland is a country that has long fired the imagination of travellers and birdwatchers alike. This is the land of ice and fire and of ancient sagas where the mighty Gyr Falcon drifts over a dramatic volcanic landscape dotted with glaciers, gushing geysers, hot springs and mighty waterfalls. The birdlife is equally dramatic and varied with such special species as Barrow’s Goldeneye and Harlequin Duck and the massed spectacle of thousands of breeding auks and wildfowl and lakes literally covered in Red-necked Phalaropes. In recent years the waters of western Iceland have become famous as a place to see Blue Whales; and although never guaranteed, a boat trip from Ólafsvík or Húsavík offer arguably the best chance of seeing this legendary mammal than anywhere else in the world. Day 1: The tour begins with a flight from London to Keflavik. If time allows there will be some afternoon birding at Sandgerði and Garður where we should see our first Common Eiders and Arctic Terns, the latter may be attracting an Arctic Skua or two, offering unrivalled views as they give chase to the terns, perhaps with the local Redshanks or Oystercatchers tagging along for good measure! In recent years a vagrant Black Duck has taken up residence in this area and if it has been seen recently we will know about it. There will be chance to look for a White-tailed Eagle on the journey, as well as stopping to enjoy our first Black-tailed Godwits of the islandica race, before driving west to Borgarnes for an overnight stay. Day 2: We will begin the day by again searching for that most impressive of raptors, the White-tailed Eagle. Iceland supports a healthy population of this species and careful scanning of rocky islets should prove successful. Nearby we will scan local mudflats for waders, which will undoubtedly include Dunlin, Ringed Plover and Common Redshank all in smart breeding plumage. Later we’ll drive towards the Snæfellsnes peninsula stopping on the way to admire Slavonian Grebes in their breeding finery as well as roadside Red-throated Divers. This area holds particularly high numbers of Divers, and we should see family parties as well as being treated to hearing their strange calls. The shallow pools at Rif attract large numbers of gulls, terns and waders and we will scan through the flocks of Glaucous and Herring Gulls in the hope of finding a more neatly proportioned Iceland Gull, as well as appreciating the variation in some of the local hybrid gulls. The Arctic Terns here are just a small percentage of the nearby breeding colony where over 30,000 pairs occur. For those that wish they provide an amazing photographic opportunity, and even when seemingly no threat to them, they insist on letting you know who is boss! There will also be a chance to look at waders with large numbers of Red-necked Phalaropes gathering at Rif, many of which are so close it is impossible to focus the telescope on them, as they spin around at our feet. Careful scanning through the flocks of Dunlin may produce a Red Knot, or maybe an American vagrant, few of which haven’t occurred in Iceland. Night at Stykkishólmur.
Day 3: We’ll depart from Stykkishólmur after breakfast and take the ferry across Breioafjörour Bay towards Brjánslækur. Half way across we will stop on the small island of Flatey, home to one of Europe’s rarest breeding birds, the Grey Phalarope, at this time of year much more deserving of its alternative name Red Phalarope and a real treat to see. Due to the ferry schedule we will need to stay on the island until the early evening which will give us plenty of time to search for our target and to enjoy the breeding Puffins, Black Guillemots, Red-necked Phalaropes and Snow Buntings in some beautiful surroundings. We will have lunch on the island and in the evening continue our ferry journey to Brjánslækur. Birds will mainly include species we have seen on the island, many of which will be returning from foraging trips at sea and once again the scenery will be amazing. The distant glacier of Snæfellsjokull (the icecap of the 1500 metre high dormant volcano Snæfell) dominating the skyline. Once on the mainland we will transfer to our hotel at Breiðavík where we will spend the night. Day 4: After breakfast we will make a visit to the Látrabjarg bird cliff. This is considered to be one of the world’s largest gatherings of seabirds, where Puffins are close enough to touch and other alcids are common. We will take time to enjoy the subtle differences between both the Common and Brünnich’s Guillemots as well as enjoying the antics of smart looking Razorbills, dapper Black Guillemots and simply watching in awe at the spectacle that is a seabird colony. The whole area is a real attack on the senses, and once over the sight of so many birds, with auks as far as the eye can see, there is the pleasure of hearing and of course smelling the seabirds! This site is another photographers dream (is there anywhere in Iceland that isn’t?), but by lunchtime we will have to drag ourselves away. We will follow the winding highland roads which might produce breeding Purple Sandpipers, Ptarmigan, or, if we are exceptionally lucky, the very rare sight of a Snowy Owl. Night near Blönduós. Day 5: Most of the morning will be spent driving to the famous Lake Mývatn, where we’ll spend the night. Although mainly a travelling day we will look for Iceland Gulls at several locations, as well as Great Northern and Red-throated Divers. The small areas of conifer woodland around here hold breeding Wren, Redwing and Common Redpoll, each belonging to their own Icelandic races, and the latter highly variable. In some years these areas also support breeding Goldcrest, a recent colonist to the country. One of the real specialties of this area is the Pink-footed Geese and we will make a stop close to the road to admire these birds and maybe their attendant youngsters. Arctic Foxes are secretive animals, and are particularly wary of people having been heavily persecuted in the country, but we will keep our eyes open for any that may have been lured in by the lure of the goslings. There will also be chance to make a stop at Goðafoss waterfall, and hopefully have a scan of the wildfowl close to our hotel. Night near Lake Mývatn.
Day 6: Mývatn, or Lake of Midges, is one of the world’s great birding spots. This shallow lake teems with invertebrate life, which in turn attracts thousands of duck. Red-breasted Merganser, Eurasian Wigeon, Gadwall, Tufted Duck, are all common here. Greater Scaup are also common and provide a great opportunity to examine the differences between them and their Tufted cousins while every now and then our attention will be drawn to a Long-tailed Duck with full tail on display or a flock of Common Scoter, hiding among the hundreds of diving ducks. Careful scanning may produce a semi-resident American Wigeon, Ring-necked Duck or a fly past by the Icelandic race of Merlin. However the real stars here are the striking Barrow’s Goldeneye and the mythical Gyr Falcon, and time spent watching flocks of the former at one of their only Western Palearctic breeding sites may well lead to an encounter with a Gyr. Few things are as exciting in birding as seeing one of these powerful falcons instill panic in the myriads of ducks and waders. The river here is another great area for Harlequin Ducks, although many of the males will be on the coasts, we can watch the females negotiating the areas of white water as if it were easy! This region is also surrounded by stunning scenery and the bubbling mud and sulphur pools, lava fields and an explosion crater are all an indication of the islands volcanic past. Night near Lake Mývatn. Day 7: After breakfast we will drive north towards the Dettifoss waterfall, the most powerful and one of the most impressive in Europe, before we continue to the northern coast. In the last few years a female Steller’s Eider has taken up residence here and if present we will spend time scanning through the flocks of Common Eider. This is an exciting area, within five kilometres of the Arctic Circle, and real tundra vegetation, home to flocks of Purple Sandpipers and offering yet another chance of a Gyr Falcon. After lunch we will head south to the town of Húsavík, where we will undertake an evening whale-watching trip. We could encounter similar species to our earlier trip but the northern waters here seem even more to the liking of both Minke Whale and White-beaked Dolphins. The scenery around the bay is stunning, and there can be few better settings to enjoy an encounter with a whale, with dramatic snow covered mountains rising steeply from the dark waters of the North Atlantic. On last years trip this was also the site of our encounters with Humpback and Blue Whales. Night at Húsavík. Day 8: Today will be spent driving back south to Reykjavík. Depending on the road situation; in some years bad weather can make the interior roads very difficult to use, we will hopefully drive through the highlands of Iceland. Our dramatic journey, on bumpy roads, cuts between the two huge glaciers of Langjokull and Hofsjokull before passing the sulphur pools at Hveravellir, Gullfoss waterfall, the boiling waters of Geysir and Þingvellir. The latter is the site of the historical parliament, chosen for its location, acoustics and topography it is also one of the best places to witness the cracks and fissures caused by the tectonic plates of America and Europe pulling away from each other. Birds may not be plentiful, although we could bump into a Ptarmigan or Merlin, but the scenery breathtaking. In the evening there will be chance for a walk into the capital for our last night meal. Night in Reykjavík. Day 9: We’ll spend our last morning on the Reykjanes peninsula searching for any birds that may have eluded us and keeping an eye open for vagrants before we transfer to Keflavík airport for the return flight back to London where the tour concludes.
E-mail or phone +44 (0)1767 262522 for availability. Last updated June 2008. |
Photos by James Lidster and Yann Kolbeinsson |
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