Danube Delta - the youngest land in Europe

Danube Delta – the youngest land in Europe - perhaps the least inhabited region of temperate Europe is the second largest (after Volga Delta) and the best preserved delta on the continent. Human meddling has irrevocably changed it, but it still is a very favourable place for the development of highly diverse flora and fauna with numerous rare species: over 300 species of birds as well as 45 freshwater fish species in its numerous lakes and marshes (more than 25 types of natural ecosystems).

If you’re a wildlife enthusiast, or maybe a bird watcher, then that’s the place for you! You can easily spend three or more days exploring Danube Delta’s maze of canals. Willow trees, poplars and oaks entangled in lianas offer the perfect breeding ground for countless species of birds (cormorants, white tailed eagles, swans, wild ducks, bald coots and glossy ibises). Millions of white pelicans arrive here every spring to raise thier young at about the same time when Arctic geese come here to escape the harsh winters of Northern Europe.

The Danube Delta is home to over 60% of the world’s population of pygmy cormorants (phalacrocorax pygmeus), 50% of red-breasted geese (branta ruficollis) and the largest number of white pelicans (pelecanus onocrotalus) and Dalmatian pelicans (pelecanus crispus) in Europe.

Danube Delta is a fascinating holiday destination and if you go you must stop in Periprava, a locality situated on the Romanian bank of the Chilia arm of the Danube, only thirty kilometers from the Black Sea - one of the most isolated spots in the country, which can only be reached by boat. Traveling from Tulcea to Periprava on board a motorboat will take about one hour and a half.

On the Letea ridge, a natural levee deposit you’ll find The last frontier – an eco-lodge built to make the wildlife rich Danube Delta accessible to everyone. Most trees in Letea Reserve are more than 500 years old (oak, black poplar, elm, ash and their tropical friend periploca - a Mediterranean plant with reddish-brown bark and glossy leaves that makes Letea Forest look so tropical. A walk to the surrounding sand dunes may offer you the opportunity to see black-bellied foxes, wild horses, boars, falcons and white-tailed eagles, tortoises and lizards.

The last frontier is housed in the building that used to be the command center of a communist camp. The nature enthusiasts, birdwatchers and fishermen who make it to Periprava can fish, go for a walk or a boat ride, go on organised trips, practice archery or play the game of petanque.

One more thing: while in Delta you shouldn’t miss the wild beaches! Enjoy a stroll along the 25 mile long sandy beach that stretches between Sulina (Romania’s easternmost point) and Sfantu Gheorghe, an ideal place if you are looking for some privacy, as it’s very unlikely you’ll meet anyone, unless you count the pair of wild horses. And my personal recommendation: do go for a late picnic supper, a night walk, then stop for a swim – there’s nothing like a midnight swim under the stars! (…) Finish the bottle, fall asleep on the beach. Do wake up for an early morning skinny dip ;)

For a combination of rustic, wildlife and everything a modern holiday village offers (including various recreation facilities) you have to go to Gura Portitei. We’ll be back with a special article on it soon!

Photo: Cosmin Danila http://www.patrimoniuromanesc.ro/

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Danube Delta