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| Please note that this page is currently under construction. |
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| Picos de Europa, Northern Spain 30th May to 13th June 2009 |
Its taking a while, but we are getting there. Our final trip report will hopefully be available soon once we have finished cataloguing over 5,000 photographs and picking the best images for our report. The report will be available to download as a Adobe Acrobat .pdf file from this page so make sure you check back soon.
In the meantime, just as a taster of what's to come, here's some of the highlights of our first few days in the Picos de Europa. You can also see some of the many photographs of butterflies, orchids and animals we saw.
Day 2 - Traditional Wildflower Meadows nr. Tudes
Our first walk around some of the stunning wildflower meadows and lanes around the village of Tudes which was to be the base for our two weeks provided our first real glimpse of the what the Picos has to offer anyone interested in wildlife. The meadows were alive with butterflies and insects and full of wildflowers. Highlights included Pink Butterfly Orchid (see photo below right), Lizard Orchid, Scarce Swallowtail, Meadow Fritillary (see photo below), Long-tailed Blue, Sooty Copper, Wood White, Black-veined White, Cleopatra and Broad-bordered Bee Hawk-moth.
Day 3 - Collada de Porcieda, nr. Tudes
Another scorching hot day and a walk from Tudes through the deserted village of Porcieda and its wildflower meadows to the Collada de Porcieda provided another wildlife spectacular and stunning views from the summit (see photo below).
At the summit of Collada de Porcieda is a bench, a welcome sight after the humid climb. Here while eating our picnic, we were treated to at least 10 Griffon Vultures (see photo below right) circling above us on the thermals, while all around, butterflies were in 'hill-topping' mode. Swallowtail and Scare Swallowtail were joined by Large Wall, Black-eyed Blue, Queen of Spain Fritillary, Green Hairstreak and Red-underside Skippers, Wood White, Duke of Burgundy, Berger's Clouded Yellow, Lulworth Skipper, and loads of Painted Lady butterflies plus other more common species which are familiar in the UK plus Hummingbird Hawk Moth and a Forester moth species. Flowers included Fragrant Orchid, White Rockrose and Nottingham Catchfly. It was 9pm when we arrived back at Tudes, just as the sun finally set behind the mountains.
Above: The view from the picnic bench at the summit of the Collada de Porcieda.
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Day 4 - Sierra de Beges
We ventured further on day 4 to the village of Beges (Bejes). Having parked our hire car in the village, we started the long walk up to the ridge above and to the west of the village where Fly Orchid, Man Orchid, Fragrant Orchid and Broomrape. At the top of the track, the view opened up into green lush pastures full of orchids including Tongue Orchid and Burnt-tip Orchid. Some areas had exposed limestone paving which contained many species of orchid. Above us, 20 or more Griffon Vultures circled. We continued along the ridge through woodland into more open clearings containing Globe Flower. Further along the ridge, more open areas held Swallowtail (see photo right), Scarce Swallowtail and in a more sheltered area next to a small disused building, pristine Marsh Fritillary made an appearance along with Sooty Copper and Mazarine Blue. |
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| Above: View down to Beges in the foreground and Quintana. Sierra de Beges on the left. |
Day 5 - Fuenta De and Puerto de Aliva
Taking the cable-car to the summit of Fuenta De, we had clear views of the valley below and mountains beyond. Our walk took us through the snow into alpine meadows towards the refugio. Various butterflies were including Clouded Yellow and Small Tortoiseshell, while birds seen included Alpine Accentor, Alpine Chough and Wallcreeper. The meadows were full of alpine flowers including a variety of orchids and the distinctive blue Trumpet Gentian (see photo below). |
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| Above: Trumpet Gentians, Fuenta de. |
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A little corner of paradise!
A superb place to stay, ideal for walking in the Picos de Europa and Liebana Valley, and not far from the beaches on the Northern Coast. La Casa de las Chimeneas has a wonderful atmosphere set in the small village of Tudes high in the hills with breathtaking views all round. Tony & Lucia and their family have lovingly created beautiful apartments with nothing spared when it comes to attention to detail, cleanliness and helpfulness. We wanted for nothing during our two week stay other than not to leave at the end of it! The welcome from the residents of Tudes and their lovely animals in their traditional peaceful setting makes this a wonderful, relaxing place to stay and enables you to experience "real", green, Spain. A gem of a place, we still miss waking up to the clouds and snow over the mountains, the hum of the bees, the swallows chattering and the cow bells, absolute heaven! We would definitely recommend it to anyone.
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| Above: Pink Butterfly Orchid. |
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| Above: A Griffon Vulture circles high above the Collada de Porcieda. |
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| Above: Man Orchid, Sierra de Beges. |
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