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The Ebro River Delta is home to Parque Natural del Delta del Ebro, which includes around 20,000 acres (30 square miles) of protected wetlands, beaches, marshes, salt pans and estuaries that are a winter stopping point for over 300 different species of migratory animals (particularly birds).  The Ebro itself is the longest river entirely in Spain flowing through at least 20 different cities.  In fact, it is the third largest river to drain into the Mediterranean after the Rhône and the Nile.  We have crossed the Ebro river a few times during our previously road trips (Logroño).  However, this was our first time visiting the famous Delta region in Tarragona, one of the largest Mediterranean wetlands, and what Allita refers to as the “Delta Biome” (Minecraft reference).  

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We explored the Delta on a rainy, overcast Friday, which was also quite chilly, so spending the day mostly in the car was not a great difficulty.  We saw Greater Flamingos, Mallards, Heron, various Tern, some coot (mostly the avian variety but we did see a few, older, homo sapiens as well), Gulls, and a plethora of other fauna all living among the rice fields, reedy marshes, lagoons, and cat-tailed wetlands spread all over the Ebro River Delta region.  We darefully drove our little rental vehicle from the campgrounds along roads that don’t exist on any map we owned and were just vague grey lines even at max zoom on Google’s version.  I’m quite surprised at how much detail that app. has for where we were, considering that on multiple occasions we were literally driving ON THE BEACH and within a few meters of the actual surf.  While, other times, it felt like we were probably rolling casually down someone’s driveway at best or a well-traveled animal corridor at worst.  This was the type of adventuring I have not experienced since our road trip through Utah in 2016.  Another nostalgic feature of this journey was the sand dunes all along the beach area.  I have not seen such a quality dune system at the beach since I was a child exploring the coastal Carolinas.  

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We wandered these “roads” for many hours and rarely encountered other travelers, even locals.  We passed through Deltebre, Sant Jaume d’Enveja, and finally ended up in Eucaliptus.  In fact, we picked up the very best of the marshland and bird-watching at la Tancada on our way to Poble Nou del Delta. 

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We ended our day excursion passing l’encanylssada lagoon with it’s lovely homes, Sant Carles de la Capita and stopping in Amposta to explore the Lidl and stretch our legs.  We got a glimpse of L’Aldea and Camarles on our way back to L’Ampolla to the campground but since we were traveling the N-340 at the time, it wasn’t much more than a quick look.   All-in-all, we were extraordinarily lucky that we arrived only a week before all these tiny paths wandering through the region would be closed off for 6 months as part of ecological preservation and rice cultivating activities that happen in this area every year.  Otherwise, our entire visit would have been nothing much more than a quick glimpse from the distant highway.

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I don’t have the vocabulary in my repertoire to do justice to the beauty of all we witnessed on the Delta and sadly, my photography skills are even more lacking.  To say that it is absolutely a place worth visiting is a massive understatement, but you would get no argument from the multitude of fowl that flock to this area every year.  Parque Natural del Delta del Ebro is a hidden marvel of wonders – a biological gem – a place where man and nature live and labor in harmony and balance, season after season.   It is easy to understand why the Spanish strive so hard to preserve this lovely area.