Day No. 123 - From the mountain to the lake - Laguna de Medina

This morning is also cool and clear. Our camping battery has suffered a little. We unpack the solar bag first. I take a cold outdoor shower, Torgit limits herself to a cat shower after her experience yesterday. Then I have breakfast. - As soon as I get warm again, I plan to go exploring. (Torgit's note: our water is limited, very limited. The number of days we can stand free is determined by the amount of electricity and water available. If we have 10 liters of water per day, I can decide what to do with it: drink, shower or flush)

Yesterday I discovered a bird hide . A simple shelter, but close to the area where we suspect the vultures are roosting. I hope to be able to observe the birds of prey from there with my binoculars without scaring them off. So I set off. After a short walk through the forest, I reach the spot. A rock covered in shit shows me that I'm on the right track. - I take up position in the shelter. From here I have a good view of the area with my binoculars. - It is now clear to me why the vultures feel at home here. I spot the carcasses of some cattle, the bones seem a bit big for pigs. So they are being fed. - But there is no sign of the birds. - Birdwatchers must be patient people. - A quality that I really can't attribute to myself. If only I had taken a book with me. The area where I think the birds are is in the sun. It's cold here under the corrugated iron. 

Only a flock of crows has spread out. Suddenly I hear something heavy land on the corrugated iron of the shelter. I stand rooted to the spot. When I look out of the shelter to the side, I see it - an oversized vulture, or at least its silhouette, which is clearly visible on the rock next to me. The "little one" is literally sitting on my head. I hardly dare to breathe. After a while, the vulture flies up again. Apparently just a listening post?

And then they land, at least some of them. Until now, I still wasn't one hundred percent sure. But these are definitely vultures. They move erratically on the ground, just like you see in the zoo. I have never seen these animals at such close quarters. I find them clumsy on the ground but beautiful in the air. I could sit here for hours and watch the birds. - I didn't know there were such huge birds in these parts. I estimate the specimens to be over 1 meter tall and have a wingspan of well over two meters. - I later read that they were griffon vultures. But first I had to look them up on the internet. The species even has a wingspan of up to 2.70 meters. The animals can weigh up to 11 kilos. That would be an alternative to the Christmas goose. But a scavenger, not so much. 

It's just getting too shady now. So I say goodbye to the birds and sneak off through the pine forest.

Torgit and I decide to change our location again today. First we drive back towards Alcalá de los Gazules. Our satnav takes us on another loop through the town center, up the mountain and back down again. It's going to be crowded at the weekend. The tour through the narrow streets turns into a team challenge. Outside the village, we breathe a sigh of relief. But we want to go a little further. - As we're heading to Jerez de la Frontera tomorrow, we want to cover part of the route today. We want to go to the Laguna de Medina.