10/10/2026
A week in Sashalvasho, just outside Batumi. Our guesthouse had a balcony overlooking the valley, with the Black Sea in the distance. From there, we could watch Pallid Harriers, Honey Buzzards and spotted eagles migrating past without even having to leave the house. Otherwise, we spent our 9 hour days at the observation stations in Shuamta and Sashalvasho, with a few trips along the coast. We were lucky enough to be there for the record-breaking day, when an incredible 245,000 birds of prey passed through in a single day.
Our host family was patient, kind and thoughtful throughout the week. Breakfast was traditional Georgian home cooking, we were given packed lunches to take into the field, and every evening a generous buffet was laid out with soups, fish, meat, vegetables from the garden and w**e from the familyโs own organic vineyard.
We can wholeheartedly recommend this place. Now weโre back at Gรฅseborg, surrounded by the Swedish autumn, but that valley is still very much on our minds.
