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A 13 Day Bird Watching Tour 

Brief Description:

This all inclusive Bird watching tour around Addis and on the southern route is a 13 day travel package which includes Menagesha Forest , Debre Libanos Monastry, Awash and Bale National Park . The tour also includes a visit to lake Awassa , Lanagano and Africa ’s best spot to see pelicans – the Abijata Shall lake and Wondogenet.

Itinerary

Day 1: Upon arrival in Addis Ababa , Ethiopia , You will be greeted with the traditional Ethiopian hospitality at the airport and transferred to the hotel. (Depending on your arrival time we can arrange afternoon or after hour city tour)

Day 2: Addis Ababa city tour:  Addis offers you a variety of birds; White-backed black tit & Brown tit warbler are expected to be seen at the hotel extensive gardens. After noon, drive to Gefersa wet land or Mt Entoto that overlooks the town will giving the opportunity for diverse bird life. Entoto is especially believed to be home for 200 bird species. Here we expect the Abyssinian wood pecker, Abyssinian catbird, wattled Ibis (endemic), Moorland Francolin, white-collared Pigeon, Black-winged Lovebird, White-cheeked Turaco, mountain Nightjar, banded Barbet, White-winged Cliff Chat, Abyssinian Ground Thrush, Brown parisoma, White-backed Black Tit, Abyssinian Black-headed Oriole and

White-billed Starling. In addition the area gives a view for 5 species of vultures including Lammer gayer as well as various eagles and hawks. Return to your hotel.   

Day 3: Addis -Menagesha forest-Addis : After breakfast we head west on the Ambo Road for Menagesha State Forest , about 50 km from Addis Ababa . The Emperor Zera Yacob (1434-1468), noticing the degradation of the forest around Mount Wechecha , initiated what was perhaps the first reforestation and conservation measure in the region by having Juniper trees planted. We will take a picnic lunch, making our way up through the forest towards the top of Mount Wechecha . We can expect to see the Abyssinian Catbird, Banded Barbet, Golden-backed Woodpecker, Black-headed Forest Oriole, Wattled Ibis, Yellow-fronted Parrot, Black-winged Lovebird, Abyssinian Ground Thrush, Crowned Eagle and Narina's Trogan. Among the wildlife species recorded here are: Menelik's Bushbuck, Leopard, Colobus Monkey, Serval, Grey Duiker, Hyaena, Warthog, Porcupine and Civet Cat. We will return to Addis Ababa by the Jimma Road , to the south of the forest. o/n Ghion Hotel.

Day 4: Addis Ababa-Debrelibanos-Addis: Early start for Debre Libanose monastery, about 110 km north of Addis Ababa via Sululta plain. The Red-rumped Swallow, pectoral-patched cisticola and Black winged Lapwing are some of the birds that we are seeing along the road. Around the Monastery we will see the endemics like the Black-headed forest Oriole, White-billed starling, the Ruppell's chat and White-backed Black Tit. The Lammergier, Verreaux's Eagle, Egyptian and White-backed Vultures, Lanner Falcon, Little Rock Thrush and Plain-backed pipt are seen at the escarpment. Late afternoon drive back to Addis-Ababa. O/n    

Day 5: Addis Ababa-Debrezeit lakes-Awash national park: We head south this morning, making some stops along the way, first at Chelekleka Marsh, on the outskirts of Debre Zeit (46 km from Addis Ababa), where we can expect to see: Ferruginous Duck, Little Grebe, Cattle Egret, Lesser Flamingo, Egyptian Goose, Spur Winged Goose, Red-knobbed Coot, Ruff, Pintail, Garganey, Northern Shoveller, Southern Pochard, Pygmy Goose and White-backed Duck, then at Green Lake (Maccoa Duck, Cape Teal, Red-billed Duck, possibly White-winged Cliff Chat and Red-breasted Wry Neck). We will take lunch at Nazret (110 km from Addis Ababa ). On our way to Awash, we will stop at Beseka Lake (200 km) for Yellow-billed stork, Spoon-billed Stork, cormorants and crocodiles, arriving at Village Ethiopia 's lodge at Bilen late afternoon, in time for some birding in the small indigenous forest nearby. o/n Village Ethiopia , Bilen 

Day 6: Awash:400 species of birds: Full day birding in the Park, The Arabian Bustard, Kori Bustard, White bellied Bustard, Buff crested Bustard, the Rosy-patched Shrike, Swallow tailed Kite, Bristle Crowned Starling, different woodpeckers, Grey-headed and Sulpher breasted Bush Shrike, Gabar Goshawk, Shirk, Crested Francolin, Common Quail, Harlequin Quail, Palm Swift, Orange-bellied Parrot, Martial Eagle, different wood Doves, Yellow billed Hornbill, Crested Lark, Singing Bush Lark, Red wing Bush Lark, Somali Golden-breasted Bunting, Little Rock Thrush, Grey-headed Batis and Spotted Flycatcher are one of the important birds that we are planning to see for today. O/n Awash Kereyou Lodge.           

Day 7: Making your base in Langano, visit Abyata, Shala & Zeway for desert birdlife Drive to Langano, before lunch we will have short stops at Koka Dam ( Awash River Bridge ) for more aquatic and woodland birds. Then, we continue to Lake Ziway where we stop for lunch and an afternoon birding. Lake Ziway is one of the important areas of the Ethiopian Lakes . The Black Heron, Lesser Jacana, African Pygmy Goose, Pink backed and White Pelicans, Crowned Crane, Black-headed Gull, Great-black headed Gull, Verreaux's Eagle Owl, Green Shank, Wood Sandpiper, common and African Snipe, Red breasted Wryneck, Masked Weavers, Beautiful Sunbird and some others would be seen. O/n Langano Bekele Molla.            

Day 8: Langano-Awassa: Set off for Lake Awassa . The spotted creeper, African pygmy kingfisher, Bruce's Green pigeon, Viloet-backed Starling, Grey Kestrel, Giant Kingfisher, Klaasa's Cuckoo, Tree pipit, Allen's Gallenue, Lesser Moorhen, Painted Snipe, Lesser Swamp Warbler, Grey kingfisher, Banded snake Eagle, the African and common snipe, purple and Goliath Heron, Greater Honey Guide, Grosbeak weover, Red-breasted Wryneck, African Harrier Hawk and Greater spotted Eagle are one of the birds have been recorded in Awassa. O/n Awassa.   

Day 9: Drive to Wendogenet:  Drive to Wondo Genet (There is naturally heated open air pool) set among forested hills. In the gardens of the hotel and juniper Forests behind the hotel, we will see the silvery-cheeked Hornbill, White -cheeked Turaco, Yellow-fronted Parrot, Black-headed Forest Oriole, golden-backed Woodpecker, Red wing Starling, Grosbeak Weaver, Mountain Wagtail and Black-roughing Swallow. We can also see Columbus monkey ,Anubis baboon and Bushbuck. O/N Wondo Genet Lodge

Day 10: Wendogenet-Bale mountains: After breakfast in the hotel we set off for the Bale Mountains National Park , an area of diverse habitats, rich in endemic birds (6 from Ethiopia , 14 including those shared with Eritrea ), animals, trees and plants. It has the largest extent of Afro-Alpine habitat in Africa , and the all weather road that crosses the Sanetti Plateau is the highest on the continent. We stop at Dinsho, HQ of the park, for picnic lunch and will spend some time exploring the area around the HQ as here is found the main concentration of the endemic Mountain Nyala. We can also see the endemic Menelik's Bushbuck, Grey Duiker and Warthog. Birds we can expect to see here (as elsewhere in the park) include the Spot-breasted Plover, Rouget's Rail, Thick-billed Raven, Blue-winged Goose, Abyssinian Long Claw, White-collared Pigeon and Black-winged Love Bird. Dinsho has no tourist class hotels so unless visitors are prepared to camp or share space at the Park Lodge, we push on to Goba and the Wabe Shabelle Hotel.     

Day 11: Bale national park : Full day with picnic lunch on the 4000 asl Sanetti Plateau, with its striking Afro-Alpine flora, such as the Giant Lobelia and Red Hot Poker. It is the best place in Ethiopia to see the Simien Wolf, the rarest canid in the world, while the huge rodent population, including the endemic Giant Mole Rat, supports a variety of raptors. The rare Wattled Crane is often seen, while there are a good number of the Spot-breasted Plover. Tullu Dimtu at 4377 m is the second highest mountain in Ethiopia and we can drive all the way to the top. o/n Wabe Shabelle Hotel, Goba.           

Day 12: Drive to Addis Ababa through Assela: Drive Goba-Sodore via Assela. O/n Hotel. This drive through the plain land of the country is also a privilege for some bird species      

Day 13: Addis Ababa is located at 2,500 meters above sea level at the footstep of the highest parts of series of Mountain chain. Addis is also the seat of African Union (AU) and many International offices and over 100 Embassies. It enjoys an excellent climate all year round; with an average temperature of 16°C. Addis Ababa is a pleasant city with wide avenues of jacarandas, interesting museums and one of the largest open-air markets in Africa , known as the Merkato. After early breakfast we will visit the National Museum (a multi-collections representing Ethiopia 's past and present image). Among the famous exhibits, the 3.5 million year old skeleton of 'Lucy' is worth visiting. We will also visit the Ethiopian Studies Institute Ethnological museum for it’s extraordinarily collection of the priceless and varied ethnic medley. Then we continue driving up to the mount (over 3000 meters) Entoto, the first seat of Emperor Menelik II before he established Addis Ababa as the capital of Ethiopia in 1886. Visitors will also have the opportunity to visit Trinity Cathedral and Merkato. Along our way we will have the chance to see avenues, squares, obelisks and many places of interests and shopping. Late at night transfer to the Bole International Airport and depart for home.                 

Other activities

Fest Ethiopia Travel & Tour Plc - 2010