El Hondo with a guide, flamingos and white-headed ducks among reeds and reservoirs.

Two irrigation reservoirs, reeds as far as the eye can see and wooden hides beside the water. With a guide who knows where to look.

A wetland made by irrigators

El Hondo is not a natural lagoon. In the 1920s the Compañía de Riegos de Levante built two large reservoirs, Levante, of 450 hectares, and Poniente, of 650, to store the water it pumps from the mouth of the Segura and distribute it among farmers through a central canal. The reeds, pools and saltmarshes that grew around them attracted birds. Today it has been a natural park since 1994, shared between Elche and Crevillent, is on the Ramsar list of wetlands of international importance and is a special protection area for birds.

172 species have been recorded, about fifty of them breeding in the park. The two most sought after are the white-headed duck, a blue-billed duck, and the marbled teal: El Hondo holds important populations of both. Around them you will see herons, flamingos, avocets, waders and, on passage, migratory birds. Eels, mullet, carp and the fartet also live in the water.

The walk with Avanzatour

Avanzatour runs a birdwatching walk through the interior of the park. You meet the guide in the Visitor Centre car park, at Finca El Rincón, and walk about 6 km on flat paths that wind between wetland and saltmarsh. The route passes the hides on the yellow, green and blue itineraries, beside the lagoon, and at each one the guide stops, focuses and explains what each bird does and why it is there. Halfway there is a picnic with local produce and then you return to the centre.

The company publishes a duration of three hours and says the walk can stretch to four. The time is not fixed: it is agreed according to the time of year, because birds are not seen the same at eight in the morning in July as at mid-morning in January.

How much it costs and what it includes

From €78 per person, VAT included, calculated for a group of six. Under-3s do not pay. The price includes the ornithology guide throughout the walk, the picnic and civil liability insurance. It does not include transfer: you need your own car to reach the centre, or ask the company to pick you up, at an extra cost per person. Book by phone or WhatsApp on 622 202 210 or at [email protected].

How to get to Finca El Rincón

The Interpretation Centre is at Finca El Rincón, Azarbe de Afuera s/n, next to San Felipe Neri, in the municipality of Crevillent, southwest of Elche along the roads of the Camp d'Elx. For questions about the park, the centre answers on 966 678 515 and at [email protected]. If you go with the company, confirm the meeting time the day before.

When to go

The company runs it all year and adjusts the time to the season. Spring is the breeding season for a good share of the fifty species that nest here, and on migration passes birds appear on their way. In summer it is hot and there is no shade, so the outing will be early. Afterwards, go back to Elche for lunch: Restaurante Cachito, next to the Puçol Museum, is on the way.