Last January I went on a mission to Doñana National Park in Spain with a group of 7 friends. The main aim of the trip was to see the Iberian Lynx, as well as enjoy the wintering birds of the legendary Coto Doñana National Park. This protected area is near the southernmost tip of the whole of Europe, and therefore one of the warmest places on the mainland in winter, so it gets a really good number of birds overwintering, and is also one of the strongholds for the Iberian Lynx. It’s an excellent winter break, especially in the middle of February when the UK winter is really dragging on. I have been doing this trip for many years with groups and friends, so I know some of the best spots to observe wildlife.

Anyway, Coto Doñana can be explored from two sides, one in the Wild West town of El Rocio, the other from Aznalcázar and Villamanrique De La Condesa. I normally break the trip up into two parts by staying at two very different hotels. When on the North / Eastside, I stay at Ardea Purpurea, as this hotel is right in the heart of lynx territory and the surrounding habitat is superb for all kinds of wildlife. During our stay here we didn’t see any lynx, but we had some excellent sightings nonetheless. However, I am going to do a separate article about what we saw on the whole trip, as this article is exclusively about the incredible experience we had with lynx. When exploring the west side of Doñana, I usually stay in El Rocio, which is like no other town I have ever been to in my life. Think cowboys, think spaghetti western movies. Roads are made out of sand, and every bar has somewhere to tie up your horse outside, while you spend the evening drinking with friends. The weather was was sensational and a far cry from the UK. The hottest parts of the day were comparable to our summer, and we were in mid-February.

I wanted to take the group to a very good spot that I know for lynx, one that I've had a sighting at before, and one where a friend had recently seen a lynx. We were based in the centre of El Rocio and decided to walk to the location on foot, which was not too far. Almost immediately after setting off, we refound an Isabelline Shrike that had been overwintering in Doñana, and was a very rare bird for the area, as they are from the far East of Europe and Asia. Anyway, we all got distracted with that, which split the group up somewhat. I knew time was getting on a bit so decided to march on, along with a few others. The walk turned out to be a lot further than I remembered and we were all moving at a different pace. Anyway, I arrived at the entrance to Doñana, and would you believe it, a lynx ran out in front of me. I honestly could not believe what I was seeing. It stopped in front of me and looked directly at me, for what seemed like an age. I was utterly gobsmacked!!!!

I know some people who have spent their lives looking for these animals with no success, and we rock up and have the luckiest encounter ever. Well, it wasn't all luck, as timing, location, and previous knowledge all helped me, but still, luck is always needed when watching wildlife. This is one of the main reasons you should always have your camera settings ready at the start of any walk. I could have easily fluffed my lines here. My first shot was probably my favourite.

Anyway, I was on my own with the cat and needed the rest of the group to see it. My heart was racing as I crazily waved my arms around as I tried to flag to everyone that there was a lynx. Martin, Alexia, and Sean were first to arrive and had excellent views of this special cat. The area was a very wide sandy road with sporadic clumps of trees and scrub dotted around. The lynx aimed for a small patch of trees in the middle of the road. It skulked around for a bit and we knew it was there but couldn't quite see it, then, all of a sudden, it sprung out, using its powerful back legs, and continued its route across the road, leaping into some real dense thickets to completely disappear.

The other members of the group started to arrive, only minutes too late. They were devastated, and we all were devastated for them. We actually felt guilty about what had just happened but also felt that it wasn't over just yet. The lynx was still around. We had a good look into the thickets with no joy, until eventually, we saw movement. Then Martin shouted there are two! He saw two lynx deep in the undergrowth, seemingly playing with each other. Most people got onto the movement in the bushes, but it wasn't conclusive enough of a view to classify it as a proper lynx sighting. We spent a further thirty minutes searching with no luck and decided to walk deeper into the park to look for other wildlife. We soon ran out of light and it was time to go back to the hotel for dinner.

The following morning at first light we decided to go back to the exact same spot to see what we could find. There was a real chill in the air and a low lying fog, giving a real ethereal look to the landscape. It felt like we were going to have a special sighting. Then one of the group called out 'lynx'. We all got onto it, but to our despair, it was just a wild boar. It's fair to say this became the 'string' of the trip and was the source of a lot of jokes. Anyway, with everyone chilled to the bone, we eagerly awaited the heat from the rising sun to thaw us all out.

No lynx, but a large flock of Iberian Magpies kept us entertained. We walked to the location where we had seen the two lynx the night before to investigate and see what could be seen. Andy found an obliging Lesser Spotted Woodpecker in the exact spot the lynx was. I had a little wander around and found some lynx scat. Blatantly lynx due to the shape, and the rabbit hair content. The two significant things about it were the fact that there was one extremely fresh one (from within the hour of us being there), laid near an older one, making this a regular spot. All around it were lynx prints going in multiple directions. There was also a river supplying freshwater, and it was also the park boundary. So this spot became extremely significant and promoted a lot of debate between the group.

I remember someone asking me at the time, 'what would you do' (in order to see lynx again). I said I would come to this exact spot and at the exact same time as last night (5 pm), and sit it out patiently and discreetly. After a chat, we all agreed on that, then went back to the hotel and stayed local for the heat of the day, birding and eating.

It was soon 5 pm and we got in position, spread out to maximise our spotting ability. I think it was roughly 45 minutes before Simon, who was positioned furthest away from the spot, had something in his sights. He called 'lynx' and the adrenaline started flowing, everyone scanning intently. These cats are like ghosts and can effortlessly appear and disappear at will. Even though 8 of us were looking for it, it was gone. Then the two at the back of the group, Martin and Alexia, suddenly alarmed us as it popped out through the fence onto the road behind us. It had somehow managed to sneak past all of us and magically appear behind us. It was a very shy lynx and bolted over a bridge and across the road into an adjacent field. It was gone and never to be seen again, a fleeting moment.

To my relief, the whole group got to see it this time and we were all elated, excitedly discussing the sighting in detail. As a team, we had successfully pieced together this cat's movements and predicted what it was likely to do, with absolute precision. An amazing feat for such a notoriously difficult and rare cat. Then, to our absolute astonishment, as we were chatting, another one appeared from the same place the last one came from.

This one was a lot more bold. He seemed to be frantically searching for the other lynx, with little regard for us. He brazenly walked towards us, and towards the river, which he seemed to want to get across. He was so close that I had to back off, as my camera wouldn't focus on him. He reached the water’s edge, and in true feline style, refused to get his feet wet, turned around, and rethought his plan to get across. He spent the next 5 minutes walking around, sniffing, wondering, and wandering. He was certainly up to something, and intent on getting to the other lynx. It was such an amazing opportunity to get photos as he kept moving around the area in different directions. My only complaint is that he was too close, the best complaint ever!

He disappeared. But I knew he wanted to get across that river. I saw Dennis neatly tucked up against the rocks, so I suggested we all got close together and hide amongst some rocks, hidden next to the bridge, providing him with space and opportunity to get across if he wanted to. Low and behold he reemerged out of the undergrowth, and played straight into our hands, aiming straight towards us.

He proceeded across the bridge and right past us, focusing on our every move. As he got to his closest, he decided to cross the road right in front of us and began to follow a river bed away and out of sight. He was gone, and that was that. Here is some video footage that I have stitched together from peoples phones.

You could not get closer to a lynx if you were in a zoo. It was mind-blowing, and ranks as one of the best wildlife moments of my life. We were all trembling with excitement, anxiety, astonishment, happiness, and every other emotion possible. It’s fair to say the drinks were flowing that night!

I have since tried to piece together what was happening. Why were two lynxes together in a non-aggressive way? Were they breeding? Were they related? After careful analysis of the photos, they were both male. So that begs the question of why they weren't fighting? After all, it was February, and the very end of the Lynx breeding season, so dominant males would not stand for other males in their territory. My only conclusion is that they were siblings and fending for themselves, potentially for the first time. Because if they were, their mother would have thrown them out in order to breed again between December and January. This could also explain why they were hanging around the very edge of the national park, as after this boundary, the habitat runs out and turns into the town of El Rocio. They were possibly pushed to the edge of the park. But who knows, this is only a theory and could be completely wrong. Either way, it will live long in the memory and we all managed to get some of our best ever photos.