Why Road Trip?
I realized I’ve posted a lot of pictures and scenery, but left out an important element… why road trip? For me, several factors weave nicely together to make road trips absolutely fantastic. Before a trip even starts, I enjoy daydreaming about all the possible opportunities ahead. Where should I go? What are my options? What is calling me? What season is a good fit for my different favorites? This is a chunk of the fun for me and it happens over a period of weeks or months before I even leave home. The effort put into the planning always pays off. I continue to be satisfied with the variety of scenery, birds, and number of species on each trip I’ve taken. When on the trip itself, there is immeasurable freedom. I always have a frame for each day with a list of potential birding stops along a route. But within that, I am free to do as I wish and flex things any time I want. Maybe a stop was better than anticipated, or not as good, no problem. I don’t have to negotiate with anyone and am free to adjust as often or as little as makes sense. I can start early if I get up early, or later if I find myself wanting to sleep in. I can eat when I’m hungy, bring and buy food as I wish, and focus on the birding. I usually go hard most of the day, and then spend the late afternoon/eve enjoying my photos, editing soundtracks and adding them to my eBird lists. I also enjoy watching my state or life lists grow each day as well. At the end of the day, I do a quick (usually) review of the plan for the next day, making adjustments based on reviews of the recent lists for my key destinations for the day, and/or how I’m feeling. Then it’s off for another fantastic day of birding with full freedom intact! Next up, that blank spot that is Nevada. Just booked a trip for this winter! Starting to plan already 🙂
10-day Sky Island Tour in SE Arizona – July/August 2026
So I took my first guided birding trip with a good friend for 10 days at the end of July / early August with Field Guides. We had a fantastic experience and I would definitely recommend them. It was hot to be sure, but the birding was absolutely incredible. That part of Arizona is referred to as sky islands because it’s mostly desert, but then there are these separate, fairly high, separate mountainous areas. I saw 185 species, of which 25 were lifers! We started in Tucson, then headed east to the Chiricahua Mountains, then SW to the Huachuca Mountains near Sierra Vista, and finally from Nogales explored areas around Patagonia and Madera Canyon before heading back to Tucson.
Black-tailed Gnatcatcher
Got my first lifer at our first stop the day we arrived in Tucson!
Southwestern Research Station (SWRS), Cave Creek Canyon
We spent the first few nights at the SWRS which is an active research area. No A/C, but the scenery was incredible, as well as the food!
Painted Redstart
We hit Mount Lemmon near Tucson as we headed out of town toward the SWRS. This one flew in so close to use and hung out long enough for some good pics.
Gambel’s Quail
I always love the sounds that Quail make. These are some Gambel’s Quail at some feeders. Sometimes locals have elaborate yards with multiple feeders and water features to attract local birds. We also saw a Western Rattlesnake slithering through.
Lucifer Hummingbird
Arizona has a lot of hummingbirds that are not seen elsewhere. This is one of them. We had the privilege of visiting a very well known birder’s yard. He had about 10 hummingbird feeders, as well as an elaborate set up of other feeder. Another lifer!
Flame-colored Tanager
Rarely seen in the US, this was a real treat. It was in Miller Canyon in the Huachuca’s.
Montezuma Quail – by DP
We managed to see Montezuma Quail also! This is a photo by Donna Pomeroy. She was the only one that managed one. What a special treat! So hard to find, and harder to photograph. Well done, Donna P!
Green Kingfisher
These can be tough to locate, but we found one along the river on Santa Gertrudis Lane. It was our hottest stop of the trip I think – 92 degrees but a heat index of 114. Very humid.
Varied Bunting
Another special find and a lifer. This one was in Montosa Canyon.
Green Valley
North of Nogales.
Las Cienegas National Conservation Area
Grasslands in the Patagonia area NE of Nogales.
Coppery-tailed Trogon
I have a clearer photo of this iconic SE Arizona bird, but you can’t see the scarlet, so I’m sharing this one. We saw this bird in Madera Canyon, and it hung around for about 20 minutes, moving from tree to tree, offering fantastic looks.
Utah and Idaho – June 2026
A good friend grew up in Twin Falls, Idaho and talks fondly of the birding in the area, especially a place called Magic Mountain. The whole South Central Idaho area is actually called Magic Valley. I had never birded in Utah either, and so planned a trip over Juneteenth weekend to head west on I-70, up through the Great Salt Lake area, and then into Idaho. I was a bit ambitous with the route, which ended up being 1800 miles in 5 days, but I had a fabulous time!
Pinyon Jay
Ran into a flock of Pinyon Jays in Eagle, CO while taking a break from the driving.
Diamond Fork Canyon, UT
An absolutely stunning canyon with several distinct habitats within it.
Peregrine Falcon
I had stopped in Diamond Fork Canyon in a burn area along a creek to look for Lewis’ Woodpeckers, but suddenly all the swallows lifted up and the Peregrine blazed through and picked on off, landing in a nearby tree to eat it.
Yellow Fork Canyon, UT
Yellow Fork Canyon is SW of the Great Sal Lake and surprisingly reminded me of the hills in the East Bay of the San Francisco Area.
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Caught up with this adorable Blue-gray Gnatcatcher in Yellow Fork Canyon
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, UT
This is a fantastic auto tour loop to see migrating birds near the NE area of the Great Salt Lake
Twin Falls, ID
It’s hard to capture the scenery of the greater Twin Falls area in a photo. I’ll say there are tons of springs and waterfalls, and also very interesting geologic features from the Snake River to evidence of lava flows.
Magic Mountain
Magic Mountain is a mountain with quite diverse habitat south of Twin Falls. I went very early and heard a Ruffed Grouse, and also recorded and saw some Cassia Crossbill. Historically it’s been the only place these Crossbill nested although they have expanded their range a bit recently.
Harrington Fork Picnic Area
This is a look at the a different section of Magic Mountain I stopped at on my way out. Was happy to find a Lewis’ Woodpecker, Eastern and Western Kingbirds, Lazuli Bunting, Fox Sparrow and more!
Ute Mountain Birding Festival in Cortez, CO – May 2026
Really enjoyed the opportunity to bird with some local experts in an area of Colorado (SW corner) with very different habitat. Would recommend it if you have a chance to go! https://utemountainmesaverdebirdingfestival.com/
Sketchy drive there…
There ended up being some heavy snow forecast for much of my drive and some of the passes I had to get over on my way to Cortez. This is going down the back (western) side of Wolf Creek Pass.
Pastorius Reservoir
I had gotten up very early to get over Wolf Creek before it got slick and too much snow accumulated, adn the reward was this incredible view at Pastorius in Durango!
Yellow Warbler, Pastorius
Golden Eagle
Bradfield Bridge area
Cortez Area Scenery
Evening Grosbeak
Make a quick stop coming down Wolf Creek Pass on the way home and stumbled across some Evening Grosbeaks!
Salt Plains, OK by way of Kansas – April 2026
A couple people had told me how much they enjoyed the Salt Plains in northern Oklahoma, so when I was looking for someplace to go over Easter weekend with an extra day off, I decided to head on over. It’s not too far south of Quivera and Cheyenne Bottoms in Kansas, so of course I swung by those two fantastic sites on the way there and back. Here are a few pics!
Salt Plains, OK
Salt Plains, OK
American Avocet at Sunrise
At the Salt Plains
Quivera, Kansas
The ducks didn’t seem to mind the deer at all – never seen anything like this before. Sunrise.
Merlin
Took some side roads on the east side of Quivera and saw this Merlin, Bobwhite, and more.
Long-billed Curlew
At Cheyenne Bottoms – there were so many!
Rosy-Finches – January 2026
Rosy-Finches are such a special bird in Colorado. In fact, the Brown-capped Rosy-Finch is found almost exclusively in Colorado. There are 3 species, and they generally remain at high altitude in areas difficult to access. In the winter, when the weather is particularly difficult, they come down a bit and can be found eating at mountain feeders. I ventured out on a very cold, windy day a couple weeks ago and sure enough, we found some! Usually, the worse the weather, the more likely they will be at the mountain feeders. This day, it was 7 degrees with wind gusting from 10-30 mph.
Brown-capped Rosy-Finch
Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch
This is the Hepburn’s form with a larger gray “hood”
Colorado Outdoor Article
Colorado Parks and Wildlife published an article on 12/1/25 in their Colorado Outdoors magazine with some additional information if you’re interested: Winter Wanderers: Understanding the Seasonal Movements of Brown-capped Rosy-Finches
Birding near Santa Cruz and Monterey – September 2025
While I grew up in northern California, and lived there for about 10 years as an adult, I wasn’t birding while I was living there. It turns out, Santa Cruz County is the most biodiverse county in the state. Not a huge surprise after you stop and think about it, but I didn’t realize that before I headed there for the trip. Ended up seeing 121 species, 16 lifers, and some incredible scenery. I started in the greater Santa Cruz area for 4 days, and then headed to the Asilomar area for another 3 days. I’ll definitely need to head back. It’s hard to pick just a few places to highlight, but here goes:
California Quail
Of the species seen primarily/only in CA, I found the CA Quail really pulled me in. They have that cute sound, and that topknot is just spectacular.
Song Sparrow
Not an unusual species, but probably the best picture I’ve ever taken of a Song Sparrow. This one was at New Brighton State Beach.
Pescadero Marsh
What an incredible habitat. I got there early, just after sunrise, to find a Barn Owl hunting near the water ahead toward the right. As I wandered down the trail, I came across a Green Heron just stepping out of the reeds. Had the whole place to myself.
Seals in Elkhorn Slough
Henry Cowell Redwood SP was packed on this weekend day, so I bailed and headed toward Asilomar early. I stopped at Elkhorn Slough at just the right tide – there were seals swimming around with all the large shorebirds! So many Marbled Godwits, Long-billed Curlew, Black-necked Stilt and Willets!
Pinnacles National Park
Worth the drive if you’re in the area. And you can see Yellow-billed Magpie too, as well as California Thraashers and other species. Ironically, I didn’t see any Condor at Pinnacles, but did see one near Big Sur. Turns out they just roost at Pinnacles but disperse far and wide to hunt during the day.
I never get tired of the central California coast… this picture was taken near Pt. Pinos
The Nebraska Sandhills – June 2025
Headed to the Nebraska Sandhills to check out the scenery and the birding. The highlight had to have been the 22 Upland Sandpipers! Hard to find in Colorado, but all over the Sandhills. It was quite hot that weekend, pushing 100 degrees, but we found some relief. We headed north to Lacreek NWR in southern South Dakota, finding 43 species despite the heat, including swans, Swamp Sparrow, Marbled Godwit, and more. We only saw one other person the whole day, and since it was farther north, it was a little cooler. The other major destination was Crescent Lake NWR, where we made several stops as we drove through the large area it covers. All in all, we ended up with 114 species over a long weekend!
Orchard Oriole
Upland Sandpiper
If you look carefully on the fence posts… there’s an Upland Sandpiper!
Wichita Mountain, Oklahoma – April 2025
Who would imaging how variable the terrain was at Wichita Mountain! It was stunning and varied throughout. I headed there for the Black-capped Vireo, and was so pleasantly surprised by all there was to see and explore. I’d highly recommend it.
Black-capped Vireo
Worth the trip. What an amazing species! I didn’t want to disturb them, so didn’t stick around to get a clearer photo.
Black-crested Titmouse
Absolutely adorable!
The Surprising Scenery
Who knew there was this very hilly and rocky area in Oklahoma? Stunning.
To the Rio Grande Valley in January 2025
I have been working on getting established in my new career, and after accomplishing that, decided to take a week and go birding! Here are a few highlights of the trip:
The Big Picture
I enjoyed my trip to Corpus Christi very much last year, so decided to return this winter. I decided to drive so I could see and learn about different habitats and different areas in Texas. It turned out to be the best birding trip I’ve taken yet! So many birds, so many new habitats.
Rose-throated Becard
The biggest rarity of the trip, we (I decided to get a guide for a couple mornings) found this guy in Salineno, along with all 3 Kingfishers, a Morelet’s Seedeater, and others!
Choke Canyon State Park
Choke Canyon State Park had some feeders behind a blind, as well as several good habitats throughout the park. This Great Kiskadee is getting some water with a couple Cardinals at the feeder area.
An Immature Cooper’s Hawk Checking Out the Feeders
Posted 9/22/2024
I caught a nice side view of this young Cooper’s Hawk in our yard this afternoon! And I’m hoping this new arrival is a more effective hunter than the one that was here this spring. We had a young Cooper’s here in the spring that would land on the cage surrounding the feeder and then kill and eat House Finches while they were still in the cage. Ugh. Made for some gruesome and messy clean-ups. I didn’t see it catch anything today, but I am sure it’ll be back. Hopefully it can catch its prey while they are approaching or leaving the feeder!
Alfred M. Bailey Nesting Area
Posted 9/2/2024
This area has been on my list for awhile, and is a great place to go in late July and early August. It’s a stunning mix of aspens and evergreens and not too dense since it burned a few years ago. This leaves the trail more open feeling, with a variety of trees and bushes that seem to attract the variety of birds seen. There can be Cassia Crossbill here, but they are still few and far between, and they look identical to Red Crossbill, so you have to examine the recordings very carefully. Enjoyed seeing these Red-naped Sapsuckers. The lower one was an immature, and the adult seemed to be showing it how to feed and not wanting to help. The road up there was rugged – I wouldn’t recommend it without some clearance and 4WD/AWD. The second time it’d rained a few days before and there were much larger ruts than the first time I went.
Snowy Range Scenic Byway
Posted 7/7/2024
I would highly recommend this drive on WY Highway 130 between Laramie and Sarasota. The views were stunning, and the changing habitat and elevation provided for a variety of birding opportunities. Be sure to check the open status on the Forest Service page for Brush Creek before heading out!
Northern Waterthrush high
in a tree!
Posted 7/7/2024
On the way out of Walden, we stopped at an area with access to Michigan Creek and saw several species that are often hard to get eyes on. There were multiples of each, and we got good looks and audio of each: Fox Sparrow, Veery, and Northern Waterthrush. What an unexpected treat. Sometimes you just have to stop and look!
A hovering Forster’s Tern
Posted 6/28/2024
I didn’t realize that Forster’s Terns sometimes hover over the water in search of food. Today I saw one repeatedly hover for several seconds, then rapidly dive straight down into the water. A couple times it got something, but it was too far away to see exactly what it caught. I also learned today that their tails are forked, which is shown well in the photo. What a treat. Didn’t expect to see one in the southern area of Walden Reservoir.
Pelican chicks!
Posted 6/28/2024
We also had no idea that American White Pelicans breed at Walden Reservoir. We saw chicks in a wide range of ages from quite small, to the same size as the adults. It was so interesting to see the chicks with small, gray bills, like the one in the center of the photo. You can also see the breeding California Gulls in the background, with many young as well.
Jackson County scenery
Posted 6/28/2024
The scenery in Jackson County, CO is hard to beat. This is a photo taken along County Road 24 west of Coalmont on the way to Hidden Lakes Campground.
Remote Forest Service Roads
Posted 6/22/2024
The forecast was for heat along the Front Range, and I needed birds in Grand County, so started poking around. I noticed a Forest Service road in some National Forest Land north of Silverthorne. Here’s a pic of the road after it climbs a bit and emerges from the forest. I used CO TREX (see the Online Resources section) to see that it was an OHV (off-highway vehicle) area. I looked it up and found that the roads had just opened the prior weekend for the season. I emailed the Forest Service, and she said she didn’t expect a lot of traffic on a Wednesday and thought I’d be okay. I saw just 2 cars over a 4 hour, 20-mile stretch, and heard so many birds, and saw quite a few of them. The weather was dreamy in the low 60’s, with most of the wind blocked by the steep canyon I was in. The day was more refueling than I could have hoped for, so I’ll definitely be doing more of this!
Surprising morning at RMNP
Posted 6/15/2024
A friend and I were trying to escape the heat last weekend so thought we’d head to the mountains. While I anticipated a few good species, we ended up seeing 37 over almost three hours on short hike of just over a mile. We wandered around the Upper Beaver Meadows area of Rocky Mountain National Park. We heard so many Olive-sided Flycatchers, and got to see a few singing as well. And this Vesper Sparrow was singing from a tree, which I hadn’t seen before. We were happy to see less burn area than we expected, and that mix of recent burn and live trees is surely was what attracted the American Three-toed Woodpecker to the area. With the higher elevation, nesting happens a bit later than on the plains, and birds were seen carrying nesting material. The mountains are a great place to bird when it’s just too hot down here!
My first visit to Nebraska!
June 2, 2024
I have been wanting to explore new areas for birding beyond Colorado lately, so ventured out to Oliver Reservoir. Oliver Reservoir is just less than an hour east of Cheyenne, and covered in great habitat. It was stunning. There is a lot of varied habitat, and so much area to explore. I think next time I’ll go a week or two earlier to try to be there during migration. I was able to get some good looks at Orchard Orioles and ended up with 31 species. Not bad for a new place and no info on where to bird.
Slow morning? Give it time.
May 5, 2024
I was out birding CU-East yesterday morning. Usually it’s hopping with tons of birds, and often has good migrants. Sunrise was at 6:00, but overnight lows were in the upper 30’s, so we started just before 7:00. It was overcast and quite chilly. Almost no birds were seen for the first 45-60 minutes. We were starting to think about going somewhere else, when suddenly, we heard a strange call. Merlin said Rose-breasted Grosbeak, which seemed unusual to me, but he said he’s seen them there a few times before. Sure enough, it flew off and we got a good view of the color patterning in flight. Wow! It still hadn’t warmed up, but then, he suddenly said, “Hey, I’ve got something here.” It was deep in a thick tree, but then we got better looks – a Summer Tanager! Quite unusual. We patiently waited to get photos for documentation and better looks, the coloring was a bit unusual. The reminder for me in this was – don’t give up on an area too quickly. Be patient, stand in one spot for awhile, and you just may get a surprise, or at least are likely to see more activity.
A Brambling in Loveland!
May 3, 2024
I couldn’t believe it when my friend sent me a couple photos and asked me what I thought this bird was in her yard. She’d already gone through several field guides and was pretty sure by the time I got there. It was a Brambling! I ran up to see it, and after a few minutes, there it was. As luck would have it, that was the last day she saw it. They usually live in Asia and Europe, but have just recently started breeding in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. Somehow, this bird ended up in her yard! There have been less than a handful of prior sightings in Colorado, so she was hesitant to post it online. I can’t blame her, people have gotten crazy and literally mobbed peoples’ yards with total disregard. So we waited a week to be sure it was gone, and then posted the list. The link is below. It was hard to get decent photos – it moved around quickly, and the fence and bushes made it tricky, but we got a few. Laura got better photos on the prior day – see the checklist below.
Glossy Ibis
Posted 4/22/2024
This has to have been one of the easiest lifers ever. I’m not a chaser, but this bird was less than 20 minutes away, so figured even if it wasn’t there, the White-faced Ibis would be a good Boulder County bird. I pulled up, and there it was feeding with some White-faced Ibis in a retention pond just a few dozen feet from the parking lot at Seagate. I have looked for them before within flocks of White-faced Ibis, but was never really sure. Ted Floyd’s clear description of how to distinguish these two birds in his checklist was very helpful. If you look closely at the bird on the right where the bill meets the head, all the coloring is very different – the eyes, the thin blue lines from the bill to above and below the eye, the skin where the bill meets the face, all of it. Also, the bill is slightly browner, and its legs are slightly darker.
Whooping Cranes
3/25/24 – My trip to Corpus Christi started with a boat tour of the bays just south of Aransas NWR. We ended up seeing so many great birds, but the Whooping Cranes were particularly special. They were nearly extinct in the 1940’s and through conservation efforts now number around 450. One other bird I was excited to see on that trip was the Seaside Sparrow.
Crested Caracara
3/26/24 – I know the Crested Caracara is common in this area, but it’s so different from any falcons we have in Colorado. The beak is just so big, and it’s so colorful. This one was seen in Aransas NWR. The most notable part of that day was the 6′ alligator that ran up to the edge of the trail I was on and stared at me. The trail was only about 6′ wide with water on both sides, it was early so no one was around, and I was on my way back to the car. I understand now they don’t often attack people, and I did the right thing by giving it as much room as I could and running past it as fast as I could. Whew.
Aplomado Falcon
3/27/24 – The Aplomado Falcon used to be common on grassland in the US, but disappeared after the 1930’s for unknown reasons. They have been reintroduced in South Texas and are steadily increasing. This one was seen on Mustang Island which is just south of Corpus Christi bordering the Gulf Coast.
Sandwich Terns
3/28/24 – It turns out that the Terns love the Port Aransas Jetty area. I was able to identify 6 Terns while I was there, including these Sandwich Terns. They are the same size as Forster’s Terns, although their bill is very different. Notice the long thin bill with the pale yellow tip. Also seen were Royal Terns, Caspian Terns, Forster’s Terns, one Common Tern, and Gull-billed Terns.
King Ranch – Green Jays
3/28/24 – I am so grateful a birding friend immediately suggested a guided tour of King Ranch when I mentioned I was going to Corpus Christi. It’s the largest and one of the oldest ranches in TX, has a rich history, and is well maintained. Fortunately, they also offering birding tours.
King Ranch – Olive Sparrow
I got a guide, and had an amazing morning with 72 species, including
7 lifers (even after 3 days in Texas)!
The Golden-fronted Woodpecker was new for me, and I learned that both the Audubon’s Oriole and Olive Sparrow we saw only occur in the southern tip of Texas in the US. Check out more pics in the Trip Report linked above.
Yard list questions: How many of CO’s 520 species have been seen (or heard) from a yard?
Posted 3/14/24; Title from Thomas Heinrich’s 3/11/24
CObirds Post
Sometimes when I need a new idea about where to go next, the Google Group Colorado Birds, or CObirds, can be a good resource. It is an open chat group to discuss Colorado Birds. Often unusual birds are posted here, but also profoundly insightful conversations and information are shared here. Some of the state’s experts in a variety of aspects of birding regularly post here, and the archives are always available. For example, for in-depth discussions about insects, search for Dave Leatherman. For fascinating tales of exploring everything nature-related, search for Ted Floyd – Editor of ABA’s Birding magazine for many years, and author of several bird books. The responses to Thomas’s post on 3/11/24 are fascinating and inspiring.
Sandhill Cranes
in Fort Collins
Posted 3/3/2024
I was not too surprised to see the eBird alert that Sandhill Cranes (a species I need in Larimer County) were being seen around Fort Collins. After wintering in Texas and northern Mexico, they are heading north to breed in central and western Canada. I was surprised to see that 200 had been seen on the shore of a reservoir north of town. Today I was scouting for a DFO trip I’m leading next weekend with Laura Steadman, and we had to check it out. The photo isn’t as clear as I’d like, but it’s through my scope, across the reservoir. Sometimes that’s the best access we get.
I’m Always County Birding
Posted 1/26/204
I find county birding to be a fun way to stay interested in and motivated to see new places, or revisit familiar places at new times of year, or in different years with different precipitation and/or weather.
In order to get a lot of birds in any one county, you have to visit the county at different times of year. And you have to seek out a variety of habitats.
Even though I’ve got 190 birds in Larimer County, when I head out there tomorrow, I’m going to have in mind the birds I still need while I’m checking out some new locations and revisiting others in a different season.
How do I know what I still need? Check out the tips called Your Target Birds.
Photos from our Boulder County Raptor Tour just went viral
Posted 1/25/2024
A friend of mine, Pete Ruprecht, and I have been leading a couple Boulder County Raptor Tour trips for Denver Field Ornithologists every January/February for the past few years. We aften see a raptor perched on this post along the route, but last weekend we watched a coyote approach the post while the Golden Eagle was already perched. The coyote kept looking up at the eagle, and at one point even stood on its hind legs with its front paws on the post. The eagle bent forward looking confident, as if to say, “Hey buddy, not sure what you think is going to happen here.” The coyote stood down and walked away. I didn’t bring my camer on this trip, but fortunately one of the participants, Michelle Trotter did and posted it on the DFO Facebook page. After 3 days, it appears to have gone viral with over 10k likes! We also saw a pair of Golden Eagles in addition to this single one which hadn’t seen in this area before. What a day!
Rosy Central in Estes Park
12/26/2023
It was a chilly day, and a few of us were eager to see some Rosy Finches. Life birds for some, county birds for others, and we were hoping to see all 3 varieties. A couple of us had run into Scott Rashid a few weeks earlier at Fossil Creek in Fort Collins, and he encouraged us to stop by his house in Estes on a cold day because he gets hundreds, sometimes thousands of them. But if it’s not cold enough, they stay at higher elevations. Sure enough, we were able to see all the Rosies, and get this photo of 2 Brown-capped Rosy Finches. I don’t often seek a specific species when heading out, I do often choose places were I will see something new, at least for that county. Visiting a familiar area like Estes Park in a different season changes and . deepens my understanding of the area and birds. So would I go again? For sure, and it’s always fun to be with others the first time they ever see a bird!
I Was Curious About Southeastern Wyoming
12/21/2023
Now that I live north of Denver, it turns out Wyoming isn’t that far. Once I realized this, I started looking around, and found a place called Springer/Bump Sullivan – Wildlife Habitat Management Area just south of Torrington, WY that looked like it could be good. I have just started birding WY, and with the warm fall I figured I better run up soon to see if I couldn’t find some waterfowl and other birds while the weather was still nice.
I knew there were some hunting seasons going on in WY when I was planning my trip, but they are differently than CO and organized differently as well, so decided to just call the Ranger District that serves this WHMA. They explained the hunting there, and then connected me with the Torrington Game Warden. He was glad I called, because there was active hunting in some areas of the WHMA, but he said other areas would be good for birding. He told me where to park and bird, and asked me what vehicle I was driving because locals would be calling him to report someone was probably hunting where they shouldn’t be, and sent me on my way. The lakes were open and I ended up finding some good waterfowl and land birds! I also checked out nearby Hawk Springs State Park while I was there and found decent birding for December and a place to go back to.
Birding SWAs During Hunting Season
11/22/2023
Do I bird at SWAs during hunting season? Yep, but be smart, wear a hunting orange vest and hat, do your homework, leave if it’s active, and stay alert so you can keep yourself safe. Please also view the tip, “Hunting Season Variability and Hunters at SWAs” about finding important information aabout SWAs during hunting season.
Here’s what I’ve figured out so far. It’s important to know if “wildlife viewing” is permitted (that’s the category birding falls into) and which hunting seasons are open at the SWAs you are visiting. To find out, be sure to consult the current CPW annual Colorado State Recreation Lands Brochure (link below). When I have gone to more rural SWAs farther from Denver, there is often no one at the SWAs. To stay safe in case someone shows up to hunt, I always wear an orange hunting vest and hat. Also, I always keep my ears open for gunfire and respond accordingly – sometimes it’s really far off and I feel okay with all my orange on, but if it’s closer or getting closer, I head out.
Also, sometimes even just checking out the parking lot area can be productive. This Red-bellied Woodpecker was seen at the Pony Express SWA (it’s small, so no website) near Julesburg in NE CO with clear signage that only hunters were permitted and no wildlife viewing. So we just wandered around the parking lot, scoped the SWA as best we could from the lot, and found a few interesting birds. Why did we even stop? Well, when hunting season is over, now we have an idea what the habitat and landscape looks like, and can decide if we want to return.
Lapland Longspur
11/14/2023
It’s been a warm fall, I was feeling the need to get out, and I was curious to see if there was still any water in the playas out east. Sure enough, many of them did still have some water. I was hoping to see and/or hear a few Lapland Longspur while I was out, but never imagined I would stumble across a flock of about 200 in a small playa on the border between Yuma and Phillips Counties. I find that I learn so much about different parts of CO when I travel in the shoulder seasons or off-seasons, and I often stumble across an unexpected species or two, which makes it even more fun. The plains vary quite a bit, and then also year to year, so there’s always more to go back for and learn.
Pomarine Jaeger
10/27/2023
I happened to take the day off for some mental health, and was poking around the birding sites to see if there was anything interesting. Turns out, there was a Pomarine Jaeger not too far away at Windsor Lake the day before, through the late afternoon. These are quite uncommon since they are ocean birds, and don’t often stick around long. I had never seen one, and while I rarely “chase” birds, this one was too close to pass up a chance at seeing. I got up early, hoping it stayed the night, arriving just before sunrise. It was 21 degrees with a decent wind. Very cold. I saw it on the lake, but the lighting was poor, there was low fog on the lake, and so I waiting, driving between both sides of the lake as it arrived and disappeared. Finally, just after 9am, I got a low flyover – they like to chase gulls and take their food! More photos of the chase in the checklist linked below.
Heading to SW CO During Fall Break
October 12-15, 2023
We had a couple days off adjacent to a weekend, so I looked over my county lists, and saw that my SW CO counties could use some attention. It turned out to be the solar eclipse weekend, so I ended up staying in Pagosa and Mancos and then birding around there, as well as Cortez, Telluride, and then back around through Norwood on hwy 141. I love that part of the state. The scenery was some of the best I’ve seen in my life, so I ended up taking more photos of that than the birds this time, starting with the Collegiate Peaks early on 10/12 (left). It was the perfect weekend to see all the leaves changing colors over large areas of the landscape. In the end, I ended up doing a lot of birding without my camera, using binoculars, and listening to and recording bird sounds. I had been to this part of CO a couple years ago and found it to be much less crowded and varied than I ever expected. Great scenery, great birding, fewer people, who could ask for more!
East Side of Wolf Creek Pass
10/12 – heading toward Big Meadows Reservoir on my way up Wolf Creek Pass. If you’re in the area, Big Meadows Reservoir has a great trail that goes all the way around and has varied habitat. There are more people in the summer near the boat launch area, but as you get to the back of the reservoir there are very few people and many more birds.
West Side of Wolf Creek Pass
10/12 – the view heading down the pass.
Base of Wolf Creek Pass
10/12 – near West Fork Campground. Sometime, like this time, I find it helpful to just find a public road that looks interesting and drive around slowly, get out and wander a bit, and see what I find.
North of Pagosa Springs
10/12 – heading toward Williams Creek Reservoir.
Near Upper Piedra Campground
10/12 – continuing north from the photo on the left, there is a place where CR-631 makes a 90 degree turn, just south of Upper Piedra Campground (37.4174, -107.1947). There is a little pulloff on the left, and then a trail to the edge of the overlook.
Cortez to Telluride
10/14 – The landscape changes so much and is stunning all along highway 145 from Cortez to Telluride.
Near Slick Rock
10/14 – This is after Telluride as I headed west through Norwood, birded Miramonte Reservoir, and then found myself in this vastly different landscape near Slick Rock (38.034, -108.886). As the habitats change, so do the birds, making for a very productive loop that started early that day near Cortez.
Sand Canyon Trail
10/15 – This trail is west of Cortez and part of the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. Here’s a link to a BLM brochure with more info.
Navajo State Park
10/15 – This state park is located on the Southern Ute Reservation and continues into New Mexico. Great fall colors along the Piedra River in the northern portion of the park.
Day Tripping Las Animas County
8/19/2023
So I needed some more Las Animas County birds, and with the moist summer I figured why not run down for a day. It turned out to be one of the most beautiful places I’ve seen in Colorado. I headed south to Walsenberg, then west to Hwy 12 and down and around to Trinidad. The highway goes between the Spanish Peaks and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Absolutely stunning! There were many places to pull off, as well as Purgatoire Campground which had some trails heading out of it. Along the way I stopped in to Bear Lake Campground and found these two Dusky Grouse just hanging out on a picnic table.
Poking Around North of Greeley
8/5/2023
I kept seeing a variety of birds as well as interesting birds on some eBird lists north of Greeley, so went to check them out. I was very surprised to find 5 Great Egret and 17 Snowy Egret at a place called Woods Lake. It’s private, so you have to squeeze into a narrow area on the side of a busy road and stand behind your car, but it was well worth it. In this photo you can see the significant size difference of the Great Egret and the two Snowies near it.
Sequim, WA
Railroad Bridge Park
7/20/2023
I enjoyed a trip to Sequim, WA (west of Seattle) with a good friend. I was able to enjoy some new birds, the Lavender Festival, and a lot of new places. This is a Chestnut-backed Chickadee (lifer) found at Railroad Bridge Park near Sequim. What a great park – they have feeders and a variety of habitat so we saw a lot of different birds.
Port Williams, WA
Marlyn Nelson County Park
7/20/2023
Since I was traveling with a non-birder, I took one full day to dedicate to birding and hired a guide. It was worth it to efficiently hit some top birding spots and focus on water birds. Here’s a Pigeon Gillemot (lifer) close to shore at Marlyn Nelson County Park at Port Williams. I miss the coast after growing up near San Francisco. It was great to spend most of the day near the water. This trip reminded me how much I love the coast, and motivated me to make more trips to the ocean in the near future.
Port Angeles, WA
On the Ferry to Victoria
7/22/2023
We took a ferry to Victoria for the day, and although it was foggy, it slowly cleared a bit and I was able to snap this pic of a Rhinoceros Auklet (lifer) on the US side. We didn’t see a lot of variety of sea birds since we were still somewhat inland, but enough to make the ferry ride even more fun than they usually are! I love being out on the water and enjoyed the ferry and Butchart Gardens very much.
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