Hungary in Summer

This summer tour to Hungary concentrates on three of the country’s very best national parks, the Kiskunság, the Bükk and the Hortobágy. The latter will already be familiar to many Naturetrek travellers as one of Europe’s finest bird areas and the centre-piece of our spring and autumn tours. For this holiday, however, we visit in August, when warm weather is the norm, when many butterflies and dragonflies are on the wing, and when Hungary’s breeding birds are supplemented by return passage birds from northern Europe.

Our holiday begins with a flight to the Hungarian capital of Budapest. From here we drive for just over an hour to the Kiskunság National Park, one of the strongholds for the magnificent Great Bustard. Our two nights here will allow us to explore the reserve’s steppe, sandy dunes, small woodlots and reed-fringed ponds in search of the aforementioned bustards, plus a variety of other birds including Saker Falcon, Red-footed Falcon, Bee-eater and Lesser Grey Shrike, butterflies such as Sooty Copper and dragonflies including Scarlet Darter and White-tailed Skimmer.

Moving on, we spend two nights in the Hortobágy National Park, one of Europe's foremost wildlife havens. This flat region lies at the north of the Great Hungarian Plain and is typified by grazed steppe grasslands (the so-called puszta), fishpond   systems, Robinia copses and farmland. August is one of the best months to visit, for at this season the already exciting birdlife is joined by migrants from   the north and east crossing and loitering in   the area as they move southwards.   Wetlands hold Pygmy Cormorant, Glossy   Ibis, numerous herons, crakes and grebes, Spoonbill, Black Stork, White-tailed Eagle, all three ‘marsh terns’, Penduline Tit and many others. Drained fish-ponds attract flocks of migrating waders. Dragonflies such as Southern Emerald, Small Emerald and Blue-tailed Damselflies and Ruddy, Vagrant and Southern Darters will be on the wing.

The puszta is home to parties of Great Bustard, Stone Curlew, Common Crane and hunting raptors such as Long-legged Buzzard, whilst roadside wires provide perches for colourful Rollers and Bee-eaters. Endearing colonies of European Souslik (a small ground squirrel) are also common here and are a favoured prey of the larger species of raptor. During our stay we will be based near Lake Tisza. Here, bird passage will be in full swing, dragonflies will be hawking over the lilypads and butterflies feeding on the grassy banks. There is much to see, and we are sure to encounter some of the region’s traditional livestock — Mangalica Pigs, Racka Sheep and Hungarian Grey Cattle, often tended by shepherds with ‘puli’ dogs.

We end our tour in the forested hills of the Bükk National Park where we stay for three nights on the edge of a small, quiet village surrounded by flower-filled orchards and vineyards. Our hotel has its own grounds, complete with woodpeckers and Hawfinches, and an adjacent lane lined with fruit trees that attracts both birds and butterflies. The Bükk is an upland area, comprised mainly of forested hills which, in effect, are the foothills of the Carpathians. The region was given national park status in 1976 in order to protect its geological (including many cave systems), archaeological, historical (several castle ruins), floral and faunal treasures. The hills rise gently from some 300 metres above sea level to a maximum height of 960 metres, so no strenuous walks will be necessary to fully appreciate this rich area.

Most of our time here will be spent in the southern Bükk, where we will explore the mixed hornbeam-oak forests, fine old Beech woods, oak-dotted pastures and hand-managed vineyards that all create such a diverse patchwork of habitats. This is one of Hungary’s most famed wine producing areas — the red, fruity Bull’s Blood being one of its more famous exports. The flower-laden southern slopes of the Bükk are also blessed with a good range of butterflies. Various whites, blues, coppers, skippers, graylings and fritillaries are to be found here, including clouds of Silver-washed Fritillaries. Raptors such as Eastern Imperial Eagle, Lesser Spotted Eagle, Short-toed Eagle and Honey Buzzard soar on rising thermals and in August are often seen in the company of their newly fledged young. The forests are also excellent for woodpeckers, indeed up to nine species may be seen on this tour including Black, Grey-headed, White-backed and Syrian Woodpeckers.

This itinerary has been specifically designed to take in the very best of Hungary’s hill and plain landscapes and habitats, folklore, cuisine and wildlife and is sure to remain in the memory a long while after we return to Budapest to catch our flight home.