The Atlantic crossing from the Caribbean to Spain on the Saga Caribbean Calypso was hectic and I hadn't had any time to look at options of things to do in La Coruna. Having said that, I knew there wouldn't be any potential Bird Ticks in the area. Charlotte had said that they didn't arrange any Cetacean trips out of La Coruna on her visit in the previous Autumn. Therefore, my time ashore was going to be focusing on a historical or museum visit. The Tower of Hercules and its surrounding park looking an interesting option. By the time I had looked at options after lunch, I was aware that I would be running out of light before I got back to the ship, now that we were back in the Europe mid-winter. I decided to sort some photos out and head out the following morning. The only problem was the forecast was for early morning rain, but clearing by mid-morning. I woke up to find it was dry first thing, but it was raining by the time I had finished breakfast.
The rain restarted as soon as I stepped ashore: It rained for the first two of the three hours I was ashore, before finally starting to clear up
There was an easy path along the waterfront to the Tower of Hercules and its surrounding park. The prospect of a decent six mile round walk after a week on the ship was appealing. The city had put a lot of effort into making this an interesting walk.
The Virgin of Carmel Statue
A closer view of the waterfront buildings
There is an interesting museum inside the Castelo de Santo Anton: That will have to wait for a future visit
Looking back on the Castelo de Santo Anton
The Abente y Lago Hospital: This old military hospital building was renovated and reopened as a cultural centre in 2012
The walk took me past these colourful murals
So much better than the mindless graffiti in many urban areas in the UK
After about an hour of walking I reach the Tower of Hercules. This is the oldest Roman lighthouse that is still in operation.
It was good to see the park around the Tower of Hercules is a protected area for biodiversity
A soggy skulking Sardinian Warbler: This is the nominate melanocephala subspecies which occurs in Southern Europe, the Canary & Mediterranean Islands, West Turkey & North Africa
Stonechat: Male. There were a pair of Stonechats around the Tower of Hercules. This is the hibernans subspecies which occurs in the UK, and along the coasts of West France & the Iberian Peninsula
The Tower of Hercules sits on a small hill to provide additional height as a lighthouse
The Tower of Hercules: I knew it was possible to climb the tower. What I didn't realise I needed to buy a ticket in advance, so I didn't get to go up it
It looks the La Coruna architects fell under the dreary concrete building spell
The next stop was La Coruna's Avebury and Stonehenge monuments.
Menhirs for Peace: Menhirs is Spanish for tall upright megaliths
Menhirs for Peace: These twelve granite stones were installed in 1994
Menhirs for Peace: You are supposed to contemplate their meaning
Menhirs for Peace: My thoughts it's a pity the holes weren't aligned to frame some interesting views of La Coruna when you look through them. This one could have been aligned so you could see the local Stonehenge as your next designation
The Monumento a Los Fusilados: The monument was erected in 1981 to remember all those killed in the Spanish Civil War especially, in the fierce fighting in La Coruna, when Franco's Nationalist forces tried to capture this key Republican stronghold
It was time to turn around and return to the Spirit of Discovery for a late lunch. I managed to see a few Birds on the return route.
Magpie: This is the melanotos subspecies which occurs throughout the Iberian Peninsula
Black Redstart: This is the gibraltariensis subspecies which occurs in the UK, West & central Europe to Crimea & North Africa
Black Redstart: It's always a good day when I see a Black Redstart
Spotless Starling: This monotypic species occurs from the Iberian Peninsula to Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily & North West Africa
Spotless Starling: I had forgotten how good-looking they are
The esplanade had these stylish lamp posts
I looked at this lamp post & saw a Sealife design
Every lamp post had a different Sealife design
Yellow-legged Gull: Adult. A few Yellow-legged Gulls for any Larid fans who read this Blog
Yellow-legged Gull: First Winter. This is the nominate michahellis subspecies that breeds on the Canaries, Madeira, North West Africa & throughout Mediterranean. This is the subspecies that visits the UK and has bred on Brownsea in the past
Yellow-legged Gull: First Winter
Yellow-legged Gull: First Winter
Almost back at the ship: Finally, the weather was starting to improve
We sailed late afternoon, which provided the chance to have another look for the Bryde's Whale. Unfortunately, both the Bryde's Whale and its Dolphin friends failed to put in another appearance.
Jan, Charlotte and I were on deck to survey as we departed: Terry was getting some peace to finalise his slides for his second talk that was scheduled for our last afternoon at sea
The ORCA team with some of our keenest Cetacean watchers: Chris, Jan, Terry, Penny, Charlotte, Sue & Les
Jan, Monica and Charlotte: Monica was another regular visitor to the top deck
We awoke for our final day on deck on the Saga Caribbean Calypso in North Biscay and getting ready to pass around the French Brittany coast. Unlike the Brittany Ferry's Pont-Aven, which passes between the French islands and mainland, we stayed about twenty or thirty miles offshore.
There was some cake on our last morning of surveying
It was a reasonable final day as we past Brittany & started to head up the Channel. The highlights were an extended pod of Risso's Dolphins which typically belted past us in the opposite direction to the one we were travelling. Risso's Dolphins do not seem to like interacting with ships. We also saw seven Short-beaked Common Dolphins. On the Avian front, there was a single Bonxie, an Arctic Skua and two Little Gulls. More surprising was a House Martin that hung around the ship for well over an hour in the late afternoon as we tracked up the Channel. A nice record for 16 Feb.
Short-beaked Common Dolphin
Short-beaked Common Dolphin
In the early afternoon, we all headed down to the lecture theatre for Terry's second and final lecture, which included photos of some of the lovely sightings we had seen during the Caribbean Calypso cruise.
A good message from Terry at the end of his lecture
A TV screen showing our route
My first ORCA Wildlife Guide role on a Saga cruise had been a fantastic trip. The ship's crew had looked after us really well, we had some excellent passenger engagement throughout the trip. We had managed to show the passengers a good selection of Cetaceans, Birds, Flying Fish and for a lucky few, a Sea Turtle or a brief Shark sighting. The weather had generally been OK, albeit some calmer seas would have been more helpful for Cetacean surveys. Terry, with a bit of help from the rest of the team, had provided a daily slide to the ship's IT team to display on the TV screens in the cabins. We had some good passenger feedback from these slides.
The restaurant team who had looked after us really well over the previous month
Finally, it wouldn't have been as much fun if I hadn't had such a lovely team to work with. Thanks Jan, Charlotte & Terry for making it a fantastic trip.
Charlotte, Jan & Terry were excellent company & great mentors as I was about to start my Team Leader training with ORCA: I'm pleased to say that I've now been signed off as an ORCA Team Leader
