With a great chance of cubs
Iberian Lynx Frenzy in Spain
With guideBrutus Östling
Brutus Östling
Trip description
Join Brutus and FocusRAW to La Mancha and Andalusia to photograph the rare Iberian lynx, moreover with great chances of being able to photograph Iberian lynx cubs.
The sun sinks over Andalusia's rolling hills. A golden light still illuminates the barren landscape. In the Spanish dehesa – the sparse woodland where ancient oaks cast long shadows – stillness reigns. The air is saturated with the scent of dry earth, wild thyme and sun-warmed lavender. Everything seems to slumber in the last warmth of evening.
But then the silence is broken. Though it is not a sound, rather a change in the atmosphere. A presence.
Out of the dense thicket emerges the Iberian lynx. Perhaps the world's most threatened feline moves like a shadow across the dry ground. Every step is perfectly calculated, completely silent.
The Iberian lynx's coat is a masterpiece of nature's camouflage: a light sand-coloured base densely dotted with coal-black, distinct spots that blend in with the play of shadows from the oaks. The most striking thing is her face. The characteristic, long black ear tufts cut through the air like two small spears, constantly in motion to catch nature's slightest whisper. Around her cheeks hangs the bushy, characteristic beard that gives her an almost mystical expression.
She pauses on a rock. Her bright and penetrating gaze sweeps across the terrain. When the amber eyes for a brief moment meet our camera openings, time stops. It is a gaze filled with the lynx's power and a deep watchfulness. In that moment it becomes obvious why this animal is the true pride of the Iberian Peninsula.
As quickly as she appeared, she turns around. With a feather-light leap she glides down from the rock and is swallowed up by the darkening thicket.
Our photo tour will spend time in two different areas. Brutus and Agneta have visited both, Brutus a couple of times, and FocusRAW has also had a photographer group along to one of the places; we made an unannounced extension of a vulture frenzy trip.
The images below are Brutus's own images from both areas, but we have also asked to borrow some images of Iberian lynx cubs from the hide owner - a handful of images at the very bottom among the pictures.
We are namely going to do this trip when there is a great chance of seeing cubs in front of the hides. From mid-July the cubs usually come to the waterholes; in recent years it has been possible to photograph them in mid-July and during August and even September-October, though they of course grow larger during the autumn and into winter. One year there were no cubs at one of the places, so there are of course no guarantees. However, the Iberian lynx is just about guaranteed. - Moreover: with two different areas the likelihood increases; in both places cubs can usually appear from the beginning or mid-July.
Brutus has sat in the hides on fourteen different occasions and had the Iberian lynx on nine of the sittings. Agneta a few fewer times but as usual with even greater luck.
We have booked seven plus six hide sittings, that is 13 sittings in total. We believe that is more than anyone else has. That is perhaps also why the price is a thousand kronor higher.
A little over a hundred years ago there were around 100,000 individuals in the region, but during the 1900s the population collapsed dramatically due to hunting, changed agriculture and a shortage of food. Around the turn of the millennium the species was extremely close to extinction with fewer than 100 individuals left in the wild. In 2012 the Iberian lynx was considered the world's most threatened feline species. Thanks to intensive and long-term conservation efforts, the species has managed to make a truly historic recovery. The population has currently passed over 2,000 individuals on the Iberian Peninsula.
The Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) is smaller than our Swedish lynx. It usually weighs between nine and fifteen kilos.
Unlike its larger relatives, the Iberian lynx is an extremely specialised hunter whose survival depends on a single main prey species, wild rabbits, which make up over 80 percent of the Iberian lynx's total food. When diseases such as rabbit plague struck the rabbit populations, it led to an acute starvation catastrophe for the lynx.
The Iberian lynx thrives best in open, dry scrubland and in the typical Mediterranean forests with cork oak. Today the largest populations are found in Andalusia but also in the region of Castile-La Mancha. In the large wetland area of Doñana we also find the Iberian lynx.
The first place is a large estate area in La Mancha, a 2,260-hectare property located very close to the northernmost hills of the Sierra Morena mountain range.
The estate borders the Autovía del Sur (southern motorway) to the west and actually has its own exit to this vast property. The estate has always been a well-known property for its high density of partridges and wild rabbits.
Most hides are dug into the ground, with a waterhole in front of them where the lynx come to drink. The photography distance is 7-8 metres at these places, which makes 300 or 400 mm telephoto lenses suitable.
The second place is in a very reliable Iberian lynx area. And it is not just a place to photograph lynx. It is a private property in Sierra de Andújar managed by the veterinarian Antonio to benefit the species; the place is an authorised active conservation project and an experience created for photographers, naturalists and travellers. It is in fact the only place authorised by regional authorities for this.
Price
Clear pricing. Small groups. Focus on the images.
Early bird price
3,290 EUR
≈ $3,820 USD
per person
Normally 3,490 EUR
Save 200 EUR
Valid until 10 November 2026
Shared double room
Booking & peace of mind
Booking deposit
470 EUR
Travel guarantee included
Small group with personal guidance
Planned for the right light, place and pace
You’ll get confirmation and next steps by email.
Photo gallery
Itinerary
Day 1:
We meet at Madrid airport no later than 12.30. In two rental cars or the FocusRAW VW Caravelle bus we drive to the area in La Mancha where the trip begins. We check in at the hotel around 15.00.
At 17.00 we head to the large private reserve where we will be over the coming days for a first hide sitting.
Day 2 and day 3 and day 4:
We set off from our hotel around 6.00 and bring along a breakfast package to have in the hides. The morning's hide sitting begins just before it gets light and we sit for 3-4 hours.
Lunch near the hotel. Each person pays for this themselves.
Afternoon/evening sitting in the hide from around 17.30 until it gets dark, 3-3.5 hours. We bring something to eat or eat on return.
In the area there are more than ten hides and almost all have toilets.
Day 5:
We have the only free morning of the trip and eat breakfast at leisure at the hotel before we pack up our things and head to the second area, about two hours south in Andalusia.
At around 13.00 we check in at the new accommodation and have a simple lunch, 13.30.
Here we will stay very centrally, inside the hide area itself, at the "lodge" that is barely 100 metres from the hides.
At 18.00 we walk the short distance to the hides. We have booked the main hide, but we will be able to switch to one of the side hides during some sessions, if we wish. However: the main hide is most centrally located. There is a real toilet in the hide building. And we choose ourselves how long we want to sit. You can leave the hide whenever you want and go up to the "lodge". On the two different occasions Brutus visited this place - one time with a group - he sat until around 22.00-24.00. There is lighting at night. (Some hides have been rebuilt since April when we were last there with a group; two hides are now dug into the ground so you can photograph from ground level.)
Day 6 and day 7:
Breakfast at 6.00. At 6.30 we go down to the hides and sit for as long as we ourselves feel like.
Lunch at 13.30.
At 18.00 we go down to the hides again and sit for as long as we feel like and have the energy for. With us we bring a package of evening food and drinks.
Day 8:
Breakfast at 6.00
Hide sitting at 6.30
We leave the hides no later than 11.00, pack up our things and drive towards the airport in Madrid, about 3-3.5 hours.
The trip ends at the airport. There are usually late flights to Copenhagen or other flights to Stockholm/Oslo. No flights earlier than 18.30.
Subject to minor changes.
Practical information
Dates
17 - 24 August 2027
**Regular price: ** 36,900 SEK / 3490 €
**Early-bird price until 16 July: ** 33,900 SEK / 3290 €
Booking deposit
5,000 SEK, 470 €, see below.
Photographic leader
Brutus Östling
Number of participants
Min 6 / Max 6
Included in the price
Accommodation, share in a double room, essentially all meals with a few exceptions, see the daily programme.
Transport from the airport, to various hides and return to Barcelona airport
Eight hide days and guiding by our photographic leader. Seven nights.
Accommodation
The accommodation at the first place is incredibly charming and pleasant with a receptionist who makes you just love him for his helpfulness. The accommodation has a rating of 9.3 out of ten possible. Very personally but tastefully furnished. Despite its size it has a lift. Wifi at the hotel, worked well even in the rooms when we stayed there. Hospitable staff with a café on the ground floor but only open for us.
At the second place we stay at the lodge; there is a pool but it is probably just us and maybe someone else staying there. The meals are arranged by Shary, really pleasant, she is also one of the guides to the hides. With the ability to improvise, for example vegetarian food, as long as she is told a little in advance.
Almost all except one or two meals are included in the price - according to the daily programme.
Not included in the price
Round-trip flights to Madrid, any tips, insurance and other things of a personal nature. Cancellation protection.
Single supplement applies
4,500 SEK / 430 €
Start and end of the trip
The trip begins and ends at Madrid airport, exact time announced later.
Camera equipment
Focal lengths and lenses, and I am now assuming full frame: everything from 24 mm for landscapes to longer. But 95% of the time you use from 100 to 400 mm. Teleconverter for close-ups. Tripod and tripod head must be brought.
Clothing
A warm jacket may be needed early in the morning and evening, though sometimes it can get really hot
Hide clothing
In the hides we should wear black or dark sweaters, if possible with long sleeves. Thin dark fingerless gloves are great, the light fingers are easily seen through the hide glass but it is not something entirely necessary.
Availability
The accommodation and the hides have some limitations regarding accessibility if you have functional mobility impairments, particularly at place number 2. The areas we move around in for photography may involve reduced accessibility for those with reduced mobility. Feel free to call us and ask.
Visa/Passport
Swedish citizens do not need a visa but must have a passport. A passport is required at check-in for flights.
*Payment terms
The payment terms deviate from our general travel terms. The booking deposit is paid via invoice in connection with registration.
The booking deposit is 5,000 SEK / . This is not refunded upon cancellation.
No later than 17 February 2027 a further 5,000 SEK is paid, and the remainder is paid 30 days before the trip begins. The booking deposit is never refunded upon cancellation. In the event of cancellation later than 17 February 2027, FocusRAW retains both the booking deposit and the 5,000 paid no later than 17 February. If the payment is late but cancellation occurs after 17 February 2027, FocusRAW is entitled to demand the delayed payment on the then-due amount.
In the event of cancellation later than 30 days before the workshop, the full price is charged even if everything has not been paid on time.
Our price is calculated based on a euro exchange rate of 10.75 SEK (21 April 2026).
Extra travel terms for this trip:
Our price is calculated based on at least 6 participants and a euro exchange rate of 10.75 SEK (21 April 2026). The price is based on 2026 prices, no price increase has been announced, but if the hotel or the hide operator raises the price, FocusRAW may charge a minor increase corresponding to this price increase, though at most 2,000 SEK. In the event of a higher increase, the traveller is entitled to cancel free of charge.
We want to avoid having to cancel a trip. In order to be able to carry out a trip with too few participants, we have a price supplement for few participants. Then we can still carry it out.
With fewer than 6 photographers, FocusRAW is entitled to charge 2,000 extra per participant. With fewer than 5 participants, FocusRAW is entitled to charge each participant 3,000 SEK extra.
Subject to obvious or minor errors.
Good to know
Limited seats on upcoming departures
Interest is strong and seats are filling quickly. Early booking gives the best options.
See current availability and prices in the booking form above