Estaca de Bares is the ultimate seawatching location in the Western Palearctic, offering dozens of shearwaters, skuas and jaegers, two fulmars, a Wilson’s storm petrel and a cracking brown booby.

A pelagic outing reaches Illes Columbretes, a Mediterranean archipelago inhabited by the Eleonora’s falcon. Dozens of shearwaters and gulls, storm-petrels, parasitic jaegers and sunfish add to the show.

I visited São Miguel Island during the aftermath of COVID-19 lockdown. Besides incredible landscapes and a welcoming atmosphere, I looked for endemic plants and birds and went on a pelagic outing.