13 June - Arrival in Barnaul.
On 06h45 the group arrived at the small airport of Barnaul in Russia from where the tour into the Altai Republic started. The flight from Europe went smoothly with Aeroflot. The drive from the airport to the hotel, located in the forests southwest of Barnaul, took around 30 minutes. During the drive the first Rooks and Hooded Crows were noted. The plan for the first day was not intensive - birding around the hotel and having a rest from the flight. We checked-in to our rooms with toilet and shower facilities and enjoyed our first Russian breakfast, bread with jams and pancakes. Along the day we made several small walks around the premises of the park. Common Siberian woodland species such as Pied Flycatcher, ‘asiatica’ Nuthatch, Fieldfare, Golden Oriole, Common Redstart, Pine Bunting, Yellowhammer and of course the delightful Siberian Rubythroat were all around. The Siberian Rubythroat was singing loudly but did not give superb views, yet! A Hen Harrier was seen hunting in the nearby arable fields. Machiel, our guide, had been birding around the hotel for already a couple of days. He already noted no less than 13 Crested Honey Buzzards coming over the hotel. This was something that appealed to a lot of us. We kept an eye on the sky as well. At the end of the afternoon we laid down near the swimming pool, not in our bathing suits, but with bins and cameras ready. After 45 minutes Madina spotted a bird coming over very high – not the best sighting but it definitely was one. It also remained the only sighting of the few hours we spend leisurely in the sun. The weather was really good and raptors were high, very high. Around 35 birds came over, but they were all Black-eared Kites. The rest of the day we did it easy and mostly kept a rest.
14 June - Firsova area.
The day started at 7am with breakfast which included eggs and more pancakes. At7h30 am we were already in the buss which had to take us to the wet meadows near the village of Firsova. Of course the first Black-eared Kites were seen not long after leaving the city. When crossing the bridge of the mighty Ob River we could see that the water of the river was very high this year. The winter was very harsh bringing more snow than usual. We were told that this happens once every 10 years. We arrived at the village of Firsova and took a road to the west in the direction of the Ob River. This road is 16 km long, but we could only drive another 2 km. The rest of the road was flooded! Of course we decided to start birding here. When stepping out of the bus immediately the first Eastern Nightingale, Blyth’s Reed Warbler and hybrid Pine Bunting x Yellowhammer were seen and heard. In a far distance we spotted several Black Terns flying by. Machiel heard the first Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler and afterwards more were heard by others as well. A small search followed and we found this enigmatic bird lending us great views. We followed the road back on foot until there was no more water near the road; this was the sign to go into the fields! We moved into the wet meadows in search of more great birds. We saw a couple of Siberian Stonechats together with many Sykes’ Wagtails foraging. Three Citrine Wagtails were seen as well giving good views with especially Andras liking them a lot. A Large colony of Sand Martins kept us busy with finding Pale Sand Martins – no luck this time. The colony of more than 500 nests was impressive though.
Several Booted Warblers were around as well and two ‘meena’ Oriental Turtle doves flew by. A Bluethroat with an all blue throat was seen by several – this most likely was a specimen of the ‘volgae’ ?? subspecies. We moved out of the fields after several hours of great fun. Madina and the driver prepared lunch which we enjoyed with great pleasure! During lunch a large flock of White-winged Black Terns flew by, bringing a lot of excitement to the group. We drove back to a place which was located on higher grounds. We walked around finding a Kingfisher and the whole group enjoyed no less than 3 Long-tailed Rosefinches!! After this amazing day we returned back to the hotel, as this almost all Dutch group wished to watch the World Cup Football – Holland played Denmark.
15 June - Transfer to Seminsk.
The longest transport day of the tour was ahead of us, almost 500 km into the Altai Republic. In the city of Bisk we did some shopping. Several of us wished to buy some more insect repellent against ticks as these little buggers can be rather abundant in some places. When walking of a small step Machiel flipped his ankle. This first thing we did was to cool it which happily for all of us did not start to swell – a day of rest should be enough said our physiotherapist! We continued further crossing the border of the famous Altai Republic. In Gorno-Altaisk we had to register ourselves again. Central Asia Birding had sent our visa’s in advance so the registration should go more smoothly. Because we had arrived around lunch time they told us we could come back at 2.30 pm as they were going to have lunch – yep, welcome to Russia! We decided to do the same. Finding a nice cool spot in the shade as temperatures were high today, reaching 30 degrees centigrade. At 15h00 hours we picked up our passports again and moved on to the Seminsk pass stopping a few times for raptors. Most sightings included Steppe Buzzards. At 17h30 we arrived at our hotel located at the Seminsk pass. We had dinner immediately so we could be birding until dark. As Machiel had problems walking he did not join for this evening trip. Machiel explained Mike were to go more or less and after diner the group was brought by bus to the start of a clay path that lead onto a hill. Ural owl could be one of the interesting species that could be sighted. Also Mike had Machiel’s’ IPod with bird sounds. We walked to a big open space and started to play the sound of the owl, but unfortunately there was no response whatsoever. Starting in the sun shine it was very warm, but after sun set it became quite cold and everyone but Harry put on sweaters and coats. Harry never seemed to get cold (or warm). Just before leaving at about 23.00 we heard some strange noises far away. Then someone spotted a bird flying. They were pin-tailed snipes. Probably (and this was later confirmed) we heard the display sounds of these birds. The bus was phoned and the group was picked up by it. Later on almost the whole group did the listing of the day, seated on the stairs in front of the hotel, in the mean time drinking some bear or other drinks.
16 June - Transfer further to Aktash.
The day started at 7am with a prearranged excursion in the hills near the guesthouse. Machiel stayed behind to be a little bit more careful with his ankle. He was wearing shoes already and trying to walk which was looking good! The group encountered a superb Ural Owl in great light conditions. The bird was flying around and showing very well, 3 times in a row! Also more Olive-backed Pipits and Siberian Tits were seen. Back at the guesthouse Machiel saw a Pallas’s Rosefinch – a great rarity!!! The bird however could not be relocated, such a pity. After breakfast Machiel joined the group again during the walk. The first Hume’s Leaf Warblers were heard and more Greenish Warblers and Siberian Tits were seen. A fifth calendar year Eastern Imperial Eagle flew over and showed extensive moult in his remiges. Not long after also a second calendar year Black Vulture was seen. After lunch in the guesthouse we started our drive to Aqtash which proved to be more than just a drive. The landscape was amazing and sometimes even stunning. The several stops for landscape pictures are a proof of that. Along the way the raptor watching started. Not very long after our start we saw our first group of 2 Imperial Eagles and 1 Black Vulture. In total we have seen no less than 13 Imperial Eagles this day, most being adult birds. Black-eared Kites are constantly all around. We made a stop for a group of hunting Lesser Kestrels and a couple of Asian Twite’s which sat on the wire in a typical Russian village; wooden houses with the frames painted blue are typical. A large stop was made near a small part of Taiga. When getting out of the bus we heard immediately the call of an Ortolan Bunting. Mike spotted the bird sitting on a rock nearby. Unfortunately it flew away before putting the scope on the bird. We crossed a small river and walked into the taiga. Common species such as Lesser Whitethroat and Chaffinch were noted. A cowboy look-a-like with a Mongolian face gathered his cattle in the forest. Then Ronald, our birthday boy, started calling: Dark-sided Flycatcher, it is flying here! The group came closer and all of us enjoyed this Siberian flycatcher. When walking back a Peregrine Falcon and Sparrowhawk came over. Also we had seen an Isabeline Wheatear chasing away a Souslick, the bird probably had a nest nearby and the Souslick came to close. After this final stop we continued to Aktash where we first did some shopping. Beer was bought to celebrate the birthday of Ronald. The cold beer was really refreshing after such a hot day, 30 degrees was definitely reached again today. The hotel where we sleep is very basic but this doesn’t matter for us, as the food was good, the weather warm, a cold beer in our hands and most of all we had seen 20 new species for the list today including several really good sightings. The evening was long but with a lot of laughs!
17 June - Aqtash mountain pass
Today a full day excursion is planned into the mountain pass east of Aqtash village. This gorgeous place harbours several different types of habitat, coniferous trees, taiga, marshes and several large lakes. We had an early breakfast so we could do some good birding in the cooler morning hours. The day started good with a large flock of hunting Fork-tailed Swifts. The swifts are seen very well against the rocky slopes. We can see there white rump very clear and in some individuals even the scales on the underparts are seen. We make several stops which render an individual sighting of a Black Grouse creeping through the grass. The first lake renders a superb sighting of a male Stejneger’s Scoter! We watch the bird on a distance of 70 metres. The female is probably sitting on eggs nearby. Out of a sudden Sanne starts screaming ‘look, an Otter on the shoreline’!! The Otter disappears again quickly and was only seen briefly by a few of us. Two Ospreys are seen sitting on an electricity pole. Other lakes harbour loads of Ruddy Shelducks; our count reaches to no less than 80 birds. More Stejneger’s Scoter are seen. An Upland Buzzard is seen from a very close distance. The bird is perched on a pole along the road allowing the photographers in the group to take breathtaking pictures. Siberian Chiffchaff, Greenish and Hume’s Leaf Warbler are common throughout the day. We come across several Dusky Warblers as well. We pass the lake and move higher up in altitude. The only Bullfinch and Oriental Cuckoo of the trip are heard. Oriental Cuckoo is best separated from Eurasian Cuckoo by its call which looks more like a Hoopoe. The sighting of the first two Demoiselle Cranes let a wave of excitement go through the group. Later on the day another 37 birds are seen together. We have lunch under a large tree as again the temperature is high. We walk around and do birding in the trees but the bird activity is low due to the heat. From the car Madina spots a nest and after investigation it is that of an Eastern Imperial Eagle. We go sit under a large tree and aim our scopes on the nest. We see There is one chick present and no adults are sitting on the nest. We decide to wait for the parents to come back. Not long after, on several kilometres distance, we see an adult soaring. At first it sits in the top of a tree at the other site of the valley. It then decides to come and have a look resulting in extreme close views of ‘The king of the Altai Republic’. Then: in a group of Rooks and Russian Jackdaws we spot several Daurian Jackdaws!! This gorgeous Siberian corvine is a real treat to the entire group. We head back for Aqtash with one more stop in mind, the Red-flanked Bluetail. We stop at a place with a known breeding population where we start playing the sound of this species. At first no reaction but fortunately for us we hear a bird responding at a rather large distance. We then see a bird flying across the road. It is almost impossible to move into this thick Taiga so we do birding from the road. The group is spread out as more birds are heard. Several of us have great views of a bird sitting in top of pine tree. The rest gathers as well and not long after everyone has seen Red-flanked Bluetail. After this highlight we drive to our guesthouse where we have dinner and do our list.
18 June - Aqtash / Kuray Steppe / Kosh Agash.
Today we drive 240 km in south eastern direction towards the last village before the border crossing to Mongolia; our destination for the day is Kosh Agash. This tiny village has one of the most desirable records of Russia; it has the lowest amount of precipitation of the entire country. We drive out of Aqtash with loads of Isabeline and Pied Wheatears next to the road. A stop for Siberian Brown Shrike renders immediately no less than 4 birds. Ortolan Buntings are abundant, reaching up to 50 birds during the day. Along steep rocky slopes 2 Eurasian Crag Martins are seen among a large group of a minimum of 25 Fork-tailed Swifts. Also here we see a couple of Rufous-tailed Rock Thrushes. We leave the mountainous areas behind us and move little by little into the Kuray and Chuya steppe areas, completely different habitat than we have seen so far during the tour. Naturally bringing a whole set of new species. We start with Red-billed Chough along the road. Steppe Eagle is seen flying on a rather large distance. We make a walk into a peat area where Steppe Merlin was found breeding the year before. We don’t come across this magnificent falcon but we do see our first Tawny Pipit. During the walk back we hear the harsh call of Richard’s Pipit. A small search gives us great view of this large pipit species. During the lunch, as usual under several large trees in the shade, we see several vultures soaring against a mountain ridge. We count 8 Black Vultures and 1 Eurasian Griffon Vulture. The steppe lakes near Kosh Agash are visited and we see several new species such as Great Crested Grebe, Common and Red-crested Pochard, Little Ringed Plover and Whooper Swan. We arrive late afternoon in our hotel which is the only one in this region. When arriving we think that the hotel is being taken apart. There is rubbish all over the place, walls broken down and windows broken. But it is our hotel after all! Inside it looks a little bit better, but the place is a mess. Although we are convinced that the owner has done everything to make it look like a hotel and comfort his guests. Every room has other beds, different wall paintings, different bed linen, different everything. It is actually quite hilarious all together. But first of all: beer and cold drinks in the nearby ‘restaurant’. It is from the same owner and doesn’t look too bad actually. After dinner (not bad either) we make a small excursion to some more lakes. Only 25 Stejneger’s Scoter and a single Smew are worth noting. We get in contact for the first time with the Russian border patrol. As Central Asia Birding had arranged border permits there is no problem. Around Kosh Agash there are several military bases in this political ‘sensitive’ region.
19 June - Kosh Agash border region.
We have an interesting day ahead of us as we will explore in the morning the border areas with Mongolia, dry stony desert areas where several good species can be found. After the siesta we will do some more birding near the lakes of Kosh Agash village. The 45 minute drive brings us from an inhabited area to an area without people. The common species are as always Isabelline Wheatear and Asian Skylark. We make a walk and, believe it or not, are harassed by mosquitoes, now we know why there are some many birds around! Shore Larks are see in small numbers and a Fox is seen running away from us. Very surprisingly are two Goosanders which fly by. An Upland Buzzard is seen perched again on a pole. Jan discovers a Steppe Merlin; the bird is wonderful seen until it flies over us and away. Rock Sparrow is abundant near some ruins of an old Soviet Union Kolkhoz. After an hour of driving slowly and birding along the way we reach a small village. We make a walk out of the village giving us more Daurian Jackdaws and Hill Pigeon is new. The typical pattern of the tail gives away the species rather quickly. We decide to go back for lunch in our hotel but naturally birding en-route. We see a Red-tailed Shrike of the ‘karelini’ form. This form is more greyish on head and back. Three Mongolian Gulls and one Long-tailed Rosefinch complete the morning. After lunch follows a siesta until 4 o’clock and more birding is done in the early evening at the lakes. We see more ‘common’ Red-tailed Shrikes and also a Steppe Eagle is seen. An interesting sighting is two Common Cranes foraging easily in the grassy meadows near the lakes. Would they be breeding here? We are in search for Bar-headed Goose but, also here, the water is extremely high.
The water in the nearby rivers is meters higher than usual and thus flooding several kilometres in width more than previous years. It is said that this only happens every ten years, so we experience a rare phenomenon. We do however see a couple of Desert Wheatears which are new for the trip, together with Common Redshank and Slavonian Grebe. We drive back to our hotel as tonight Holland plays Japan for the World Cup. One stop is made just before the hotel as we see a gorgeous ‘calidus’ Peregrine Falcon sitting in perfect light conditions perched on a pole. We have an easy evening as tomorrow we drive back to Seminsk into the Altai Mountains.
20 June - Kosh Agash / Seminsk pass.
We retrace our steps today back to the Seminsk pass. We leave around 8am Kosh Agash and leave the steppe areas of the Altai Republic behind us. The day consists mainly out of driving with sometimes a raptor stop. During this drive we see no less than 21 Eastern Imperial Eagles, around 200 Black-eared Kites, 11 Lesser Kestrels, 8 Black Vultures and two Peregrine Falcons. One young bird perched on top of a mountain provides some discussion. Juvenile ‘calidus’ Peregrines show a head pattern similar to Saker- or Lanner Falcon. Several of us believed it was a Saker. When the bird flew away several pictures were made showing the all light patterned underwing. In Saker the contrast between the dark underwing coverts and light remiges is very clear and distinctive and due to the lack of this the bird was determined as a juvenile ‘calidus’ Peregrine Falcon. An ice-cream stop delivers 7 more Demoiselle Cranes. We arrive early evening at Seminsk where we book into our rooms and have dinner immediately so we can be birding all evening again. The first thing we go for is Ural Owl once more. We walk over the paths, talk a little so the group gets stretched. In front we joke that the ones in the back see the bird on several metres distance. Our jokes became reality when Mike comes and tells us that Jan had seen the bird on several metres distance when flying away. We search and find the bird sitting in the middle of a coniferous tree. What an amazing beautiful owl! Please keep in mind that this is the most aggressive owl of the Palaearctic and that people have been seriously wounded when coming too close to its nest. Machiel and Ronald move forward to make some great pictures of the owl and also Sanne (the only female and also the youngest of the group with age 22) joins them; making not too bad pictures either! You have to start young with this kind of ‘work’! Around the owl tens of Olive-backed Pipits are calling and two Ravens fly away. Two times we can see the owl on not too far a distance and we have beautiful views of the whole bird. With his big greyish plumage it looks like an old man, perched on a branch. We hear the only Brambling of the trip together with 1 Black-throated Accentor. Another Black throated bird is common; Black-throated Thrush is seen on several occasions. We move down towards the fields in search of Pintail Snipes. Suddenly Machiel stops: result two Pallas’s Rosefinches sitting on the ground near a bush. As Karel went for the toilet Machiel starts to run to inform him about this superb sighting! Karel arrived 5 minutes later and luckily he too gets good views of this gorgeous Rosefinch. Common Quail is present as well; we hear its call from the fields, as well as corn crake. We forget a little about the snipes as we go for a Russian Banja (sauna) and beers to celebrate this superb day. When drinking a couple of cold beers we do hear 4 more Pintail Snipes calling from the dark.
21 June - Seminsk pass / Barnaul.
Before breakfast some birding is done around the hotel where another Blakiston’s Pipit is seen together with a Meadow Pipit! Pallas’s Grasshopper Warblers are singing, we observe 4 different individuals. Sanne is up very early to make successful pictures of wheatears and buntings. The last bird seen before the rain starts is Spotted Nutcracker. We have breakfast when it is raining cats and dogs outside. We pack the buss and start our drive to Barnaul – the weather gods picked a good moment to let it rain. The longest drive out of the itinerary and rain outside makes for several of us good sleeping weather. Steppe Buzzards are seen perched in the top of trees. We arrive around 6 pm in our hotel in Barnaul where the Siberian woodland species are waiting again for us. A couple of Siberian Rubythroat’s are singing and Greater Spotted Woodpeckers are feeding there young. We enjoy our dinner and go out for an owl excursion. No interesting birds are seen or heard; only a drunken Russian woman brings some hilarity to us. We go to bed as tomorrow we return to Firsova.
22 June - Barnaul / Firsova / Barnaul.
Before breakfast some of us did some birding. Machiel had sighting of a Crested Honey Buzzard from his balcony. End of 2010 in Dutch Birding an article will be published by Wouter Faveyts and Machiel about the possible occurrence of this long-distance migrant to European bottlenecks and the birds with hybrid features of Pernis apivorus and P. orientalis. Machiel our tour leader demands this morning an early start to benefit from the cooler weather. As said and done we were on our way early, by buss, to Firsova. To our surprise the water was even higher than the first time we visited this area. When we go out of the buss we were overwhelmed with sounds. Loads of Blyth’s Reed Warblers, Common Rosefinches and Pallas’s Grasshopper Warblers were calling all around us. Common Rosefinch was by the way seen on every single day during this great tour. A small party of White-winged Black Terns passed by. Sykes’s Wagtail were common as were hybrids of Pine Bunting and Yellowhammer. Sometimes we thought that we had seen a pure Pine Bunting, but after looking a little better we discovered yellowish hint to the tertials or primaries. Madina had seen a single Northern Lapwing. Two Pintail Snipes were displaying in the air. We could see very clearly the ‘pins’ on the tail of this enigmatic snipe. A Goosander flying over completed the sightings of this part of Firsova. We decide to start to drive in search of other kinds of habitat. Eastern Grasshopper Warblers are heard producing there insect like call. Common swifts of the ‘pekinensis’ subspecies are seen from the bus. This subspecies is more brownish than the ones seen in Europe. Oriental Turtle Doves and Siberian Stonechats are seen on several occasions. The Siberian Stonechats are rather similar to the European counterpart but differ on the white belly and all black underwing coverts whereas they are grey in European birds. When driving through the Siberian agricultural lands we discover an owl sitting on a small ridge of clay. When it starts flying it becomes clear that it is a juvenile Short-eared Owl. The bird plunges into a wheat field. We move closer on foot in order to have another look at the bird, until we come across several younger flightless birds that are hidden in the high grass; we almost stepped on it! They are some gorgeous animals, looking at us with their great eyes!! More Hen Harriers complete the birding day. We move back to Barnaul where we dress up to go for our final dinner in the city of Barnaul. We enjoy the typical Russian steaks on barbeque supplemented with salads and fries. Several speeches and thank you words are spoken. Unfortunately another great tour of Central Asia Birding comes to an end! Personally I enjoyed the sightings of Pallas’s Rosefinch and great numbers of raptors with especially superb viewings of Eastern Imperial Eagles the most. I also like to thank all participants for there pleasant company throughout the tour.
23 June - Barnaul / Moscow / Europe.
At 4 am we gather in the lobby of the hotel, load the buss and were on our way to the airport for the domestic flight which would bring us to Moscow. On the airport of Barnaul we said goodbye to Machiel and Madina which would transfer back to Almaty with a 36 hour train ride. In Moscow the group had to wait all day long for there connecting international flights to several destinations in Europe. Therefore Central Asia Birding had arranged a Moscow city tour visiting monuments such as the Kremlin and the Red Square. The tour was excellently guided by Anna, our Moscow tour leader for this occasion. After the tour she put us of nearby a commercial centre in the heart of Moscow, and from there we had our own little tourist tour. Because of the overwhelming heat in Moscow (some 35 degrees centigrade in the shade), it ended mostly in beer drinking and ice cream eating in the shade. At 4 pm the driver of the bus was waiting for us and then it took almost 2.5 hours to drive through the heavy traffic of Moscow to the airport. Then the waiting started, the ‘Gulag’ let us go and we arrived save and sound in Amsterdam and Brussels.
Personal comment Mike Hirschler
Thank you Machiel and Madina to have guided such an excellent tour! Everything was well organized and prepared (for instance registration papers and such), our lunches were abundant and the sightings of birds and landscapes were breathtaking! And moreover: the group was well put together and we had lots of fun! Thanks again. Good luck!