Leaving Pamplona and heading east towards Yesa and later Jaca, the new A-21 motorway soon brings you to the junction for Lumbier, this takes you on to the NA-127, leading to the hillside town and beyond the beautiful Salazar valley, the Pyrenees form the backdrop with their snow caps.
This is the region of Euskal Herria, the name the Basque give to Navarra in Spain.
We have visited Lumbier many a time, a walk through the Foz de Lumbier is so rewarding, entering the Foz through a disused railway tunnel, the old rail line ran down from Irati. Coming out of the dark, both sides are flanked with steep cliffs, the river below is squeezed falling over the fallen rock. Above are the Griffon vultures, that we have come to photograph. They wheeled overhead, landing on high cliff edges, lower Red Billed Choughs cascade into holes and on to ledges. At our level you can see Blue Rock Thrush and in winter, if lucky, Wallcreeper. On one occasion we had the luck to see three Otters below, in the river.
Today though, our visit is to the feeding station at Lumbier. It is situated just of the motorway junction and has a public hide. These feeding stations are now so important, European law has stopped dead animal carcasses remaining out on the land where the Griffons used to find their food.
Two hundred and fifty to three hundred Griffons line the hills, around the feeding station.
All the time there are arrivals and others leave, some walk back to to the hill sides, actually it was more of a run and waddle!
Meet the Griffon Vulture, Gypus fulvus,
Standing on the farm track, they swish past. You can hear the power in the wings.
Red Kites, in search of a fallen morsel, fly above smaller colonies of Griffons, spread out over further hillsides. Looking through the lens, it seems reminiscent of a ancient army, about to do battle.
Gliding and soaring on their huge wing spans, some reaching over eight feet across (265cm).
Even at a distance you can see these guys, are bigger than large eagles.
At times they seemed to eye us, as possible food! whilst gliding past.
Although in decline in Europe, they still number about 20,000 pairs, ninety percent of them are to be found in Spain.
Smile for the camera!
Total concentration, coming in to land, eight foot of wing and standing well over three feet tall,
(WS. 230-265 L. 95-110 cm.)
In what looks like confusion on the ground, Ravens take a chance and the Griffon enters the fray.
With cloud drifting from the Pyrenees, like the Red Kite it is time for us to take our leave.
