• TBA.

  Contact: Bill Proebsting, proebstw@gmail.com , 541-752-0108

• BANDON and the South Coast - March 23-25. This is warm-up trip specializing in coastal birds - loons, grebes, cormorants, etc. It is too early for puffins, but there some very special birds available: Red-shouldered Hawk, Black Phoebe, and Allen’s Hummingbird head the list. We hope to repeat last year’s gull bonanza. A single flock of about 60 gulls sat obligingly close enough to study differences between the eight (!) species present. And there are some surprises … Elephant Seals are often seen basking at Simpson’s Reef. Maximum tour size: 16 person.
• KLAMATH BASIN - April 20-22. This trip hits the tail end of the massive migration of ducks, geese, and shorebirds which pause in the Klamath Basin wildlife refuges before continuing north to breeding grounds. Four refuges offer a variety of habitats. The south end of Upper Klamath Lake nets 8 species of grebe with some doing their unique dance across the surface. And a Sunday morning walk through Moore Park picks up the earliest songbird arrivals. Maximum tour size: 24 person.
• ROGUE VALLEY - May 11-13. Here we hit the songbird migration in full swing. A hike to the top of Upper Table Rock presents a magnificent wildflower display as the trail winds through Oregon’s little piece of California chaparral. Here we find the chaparral specialties Oak Titmouse, California Towhee, and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. We sample some of Ashland’s famous restaurants and then attend a performance at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The precise date of this trip is still uncertain and awaits the publication of OSF’s 2011 schedule. Maximum tour size: 16 person.
• MALHEUR National Wildlife Refuge - May 31 - June 3 (four days). Our signature trip, and the 40th year led by Fred. The refuge is Oregon’s most famous birding area, but this tour also hits many great spots going over the Cascades, following the Crooked River, and coming back through the High Desert. We usually see over 100 species each of the four days and around 175 species overall. Maximum tour size: 32 person.
• SUMMER LAKE and a return to KLAMATH - June 22-24. Our 2010 tour scored a rare Oregon Swift Trifecta: Black (Salt Creek Falls), White-throated (Fort Rock), and Vaux’s. Add Snowy Plover, Common Poorwill, American Bittern, and Yellow Rail and you understand that this is a special conclusion to the spring offerings. Maximum tour size: 21 person.
• WALLOWAS - July 12-15. This is a return to a tour seldom offered. We will visit Wallowa Lake, go up the Brown Mountain gondola to the high mountains, and explore The Nature Conservancy’s Zumwalt Prairie Natural Area, Oregon’s hot spot for raptors. We have two nights in Enterprise, and the final night in LaGrande, with access to Ladd Marsh Wildlife Management Area (Bobolink colony) and Spring Creek (Flammulated and Great Gray owls possible). Maximum tour size: 24 persons.
• STEENS MOUNTAIN - August 16-19. Using Malheur Field Station as our base, we spend a day birding the high country of Steens Moutain, where we search for Greg-crowned and Black Rosy-Finches. Wildflowers are abundant, and there are always surprise birds. We return (road conditions being favorable) through Hart Mountain and the Warner Valley. Maximum tour size: 24 persons.
• BANDON RETURN - September 7-9. The aim here is to hit Bandon Marsh National Wildlife Refuge and other south coast hot spots near the peak of the shorebird migration. Maximum tour size: 16 persons.

There are two ways to sign up for trips. There are signup sheets at the Field Trips table at ASC general meetings. Alternatively, you can email your name, email address, and phone number to Fred Ramsey at flramsey@comcast.net. Each trip requires a $50 deposit to confirm reservation, and these are due by January 31, 2012.

Come join us!

Signup sheets for these trips are available on the Field Trip table at all of the general meetings. Also, you may sign up by sending an email to Fred at flramsey5@comcast.net. But here is a new twist: confirming a reservation on any one of these trips requires a $50 deposit by February 28. The deposits will be refundable only if a replacement exists on the waiting list.

Bicycle Birding