CHINA

Beijing, Beidaihe and Happy Island

8–23 May 2013

Day 1 Overnight flight from London to Beijing.

Day 2 Arrive in Beijing and transfer to our hotel to freshen up. In the afternoon, we will visit Yuanyantan Park to look for resident birds and migrants including Grey-capped, Grey-headed and Rufous-bellied Woodpeckers, White-cheeked Starling and Black-faced, Tristram's and Yellow-throated Buntings. In the late afternoon/early evening, we will visit to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City with their resident Azure-winged Magpies. Two nights in Beijing.

Day 3 This morning we will head north from Beijing for about two hours to an excellent site in the mountains. Here we have a good chance of finding the sought-after Ibisbill as well as a range of other highly desired species including Long-billed Plover and Crested Kingfisher. In the afternoon, we will return to Beijing to bird in the grounds of the Summer Palace, specifically Kunming Lake and the temple gardens, looking for migrants such as Olive-backed Pipit, Yellow-browed, Pallas's and Radde's Warblers, Yellow-rumped and Mugimaki Flycatchers and Yellow-breasted and Little Buntings.

Day 4 We will leave early for the four-hour transfer to Beidaihe by coach. Beidaihe is a seaside resort 175 miles east of Beijing, on the Gulf of Bohai at the northern end of the Yellow Sea. Over 400 species have been recorded in the varied habitats of the Beidaihe area. After lunch we will make our way up to the Lotus Hills, a site we will visit several times during our stay. Depending on fall conditions, we may find stunning Siberian Blue Robins amongst Bluethroat, Red-flanked Bluetail, White-throated Needletails streaking overhead, Ashy Minivet, Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush, Asian Brown, Green-backed, Mugimaki, Taiga and Yellow-rumped Flycatchers, Eastern Crowned and Pale-legged Leaf-warblers and Chestnut and Yellow-breasted Buntings. Four nights in Beidaihe.

Days 5–7 Over the course of these three days we will visit a number of sites around Beidaihe, some on several occasions, plus other sites further afield:

Lighthouse Point This is a good early morning site where the tall tree cover stands out as a welcoming beacon to tired, hungry migrants coming in off the sea as well as a 'seawatching point' where migrating ducks, waders, gulls and terns may be seen. Migrant land birds still arriving in daylight are sometimes forced down into the sea and picked from the surface by marauding Eurasian Hobbies or Amur Falcons. Other species we may find here include Japanese Quail, Siberian Rubythroat, Dusky, Grey-backed and Chinese Song Thrushes, Chestnut-flanked and Japanese White-eyes, Yellow-bellied Tit, Grey-crowned Warbler and Chinese Grosbeak.

Sandflats Situated east of Beidaihe, this can be a good area for herons, egrets, waders and terns, and we might find Chinese Egret, Lesser Sandplover, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Red-necked Stint and Saunders's Gull.

Reservoir Close to the sandflats this area, with its adjacent pools and marshy areas, provides cover and feeding for tired migrants. Schrenk's and Yellow Bitterns, Mandarin Duck, Eastern Marsh-harrier, Pied Harrier, Baillon's Crake, Watercock, Pintail Snipe, Whiskered Tern, Oriental Cuckoo, Oriental Reed-warbler, Lanceolated Warbler and Pallas's Reed Bunting are just some of the birds that may be seen here.

Yang He Estuary A few miles south of the Lotus Hills, this area of pools and woods this is another good spot for migrants. Birds we may see include Grey-headed Lapwing.

Great Wall at Jiaoshan Mountain About an hour east of Beidaihe, north of Quinhuangdao, the famous Great Wall of China comes down from the mountains. A chair lift will take us to the top and, if conditions are right, we may see some visible migration. Also, we shall look for some mountain species here that we may not see elsewhere including Pere David's Laughingthrush, Chinese Hill Warbler, Yellow-streaked Warbler and Vinous-throated Parrotbill. If time allows it may be possible to visit the Great Wall at Shanghaiguan where the wall meets the sea – known as the 'Lion's Head'. Other possible species include Chinese Goshawk, Large Hawk-cuckoo, Godlewski's and Siberian Meadow Buntings.

Day 8 Today we will make a two-hour drive to the north to visit Old Peak, a mountain forest reserve rising to over 4000 ft where we stay overnight. Here we will look for some of China's more elusive breading species such as Koklass Pheasant, Large Hawk-cuckoo, Indian and Oriental Cuckoos, Blue-and-white Flycatcher, White-bellied Redstart, Blyth's (soon to be split into Claudia's) and Chinese Leaf-warblers, Asian Stubtail, Manchurian Bush-warbler, Chinese Nuthatch and Bull-headed Shrike. Here, too, we will have distant views of the Great Wall as it snakes its way across the hills – a classic photo opportunity.

Day 9 We will spend most of the day at Old Peak, leaving in the late afternoon to return to Beidaihe for a further two nights.

Day 10 We will recheck many of the previously visited sites to see what has 'dropped in' since we left.

Day 11 Today we head south to Jin Tang for a three-night stay, stopping at various sites en route. Da Pu He, south of Beidaihe, is an area of mature trees, open grassland and marshy pools that can attract a good variety of birds. Chi Li Hi is a large tidal lagoon that can give good views of waders, including Long-toed Stint and Terek Sandpiper, and gulls if the tide is right.

Days 12–13 On both days we make the short 30-minute boat trip across the shallow estuary to the famous Happy Island. This is another oasis of cover attracting tired migrants that have just crossed the Gulf of Bohai. If conditions are right for a fall the number of downed migrants can be truly spectacular. We shall also search the surrounding mudflats for Relict and Saunders's Gulls and we may find some superb waders, possibly including Great Knot, Grey-tailed Tattler and Asian Dowitcher. Additionally, back on the mainland, we will visit both 'Magic' and 'Big' woods, an oasis of trees and bushes in a flat, featureless expanse of fishponds, paddies and salt fields and, as such, a magnet for tired migrants seeking food and shelter before continuing their northward journey. Anything can turn up here with Forest Wagtail, Japanese and Rufous-tailed Robins, Eye-browed and Siberian Thrushes, White-throated Rock-thrush, Daurian Starling, Brown Shrike, Gray's and Pallas's Grasshopper Warblers, Lanceolated and Thick-billed Warblers, Black-browed Reed-warbler and Japanese Grosbeak all possible.

Day 14 After checking 'Magic Wood' again, we will head back to Beidaihe, birding en route. The day will be entirely flexible depending on migration conditions and birds present and we may arrive back in Beidaihe in time to revisit some of our favourite sites. Two nights in Beidaihe.

Day 15 We will have all day to revisit many of the local sites.

Day 16 Early in in the morning we will return to Beijing to catch our flight home arriving in London same day.

General Information The weather in China can be quite variable at this time of year with some rain likely. The pace of the tour is easy but some long days will be spent in the field. There are a number of health requirements and you must consult your GP in this respect. Visas are required. Accommodation is in medium-standard hotels, all with private facilities. A mixture of Western and Chinese food will be available.

Group size Minimum number for tour to go ahead: 8; maximum group size: 16 with 2 leaders.