The Ludo hiking Trail . Ria Formosa NP Faro Portugal

The Ludo hiking trail is located in Ria Formosa National park in the Algarve region of Portugal next to Faro airport. Ria Formosa is special due to its Wetlands, sandbanks and islands, great beaches, Golf coarse ponds, ruins and Pine Forests but most of all because of its birdlife.

If your a keen bird enthusiast then this place is a must to visit and have expectations in any season.

7-10 km guaranteeing over 50 species if bird in 4 hours if  you where to stop and watch. 

My wife and I started our walk from our guest house  at 9am , at the north entrance to the Ludo, through the Pine forest road , past the Stork and Heronry that offside of a marsh. circle the Ludo salt ponds for Flamingo, Avocet and Stilt, down the scrub side of the Golf coarse where we got Iberian Yellow Wagtail and onto to the Bird hide ( another blog post ) and  along the wetland hiking trail back along the boardwalk to the beach at Priaha de Faro at 4pm for food and beers

The Ludo from the Plane

Black winged Stilt are very common around the salt pools

 Early morning Singing songs of Thekla Larks Corn Buntings, Cettis Warblers and Sardinian Warblers
 Two birds of choice finding was that of an Iberian Yellow Wagtail on the Golf coarse flipping bugs from under the leaf litter caught the eye and an elusive Woodchat Shrike was  in the scrub land around the bird hide looking for Chameleon and Lizards in the dry arid zone. 

A target bird finally in the bag was this Purple Heron that floated in just to watch the planes arrive overhead.
A Curlew Sandpiper was with Dunlin and Sanderling in a shallow mud pool.
 Whimbrel, Turnstone, Grey Plover, Common Sandpiper 2 Avocets and Yellow legged Gulls were on the flood marsh
A few Little Terns were coming across the  south trail to the ponds but the Caspian Terns were passing along the waterways at distance.