GRAND NORTH DAKOTA
July 6 - 14, 2011
Photos by Linda Mack
Note: This tour is full.
GENERAL INFORMATION:
Endless skies, vast expanses of sweeping prairie grasslands, and abundant birdlife (especially in the prairie pothole region) characterize a summer birding trip to this "sleeper" destination. North Dakota has more National Wildlife Refuges (NWR) than any other state in the nation, and is home to the unique geology and rugged landscape that is the badlands. Combined with its overall rural landscape, the birding possibilities are limitless. Specialty birds we'll seek on the trip include Ferruginous Hawk, Sprague's Pipit, Baird's Sparrow, and Chestnut-collared Longspur. We'll also see a variety of waterfowl, raptors, shorebirds, and many species whose breeding range is centered on the prairie pothole region including Sharp-tailed Grouse, American White Pelican, Marbled Godwit, Wilson's Phalarope, Swainson's Hawk, and Dickcissel. Remnant patches of native prairie have an amazing array of wildflowers and there are interesting butterflies and mammals to see as well. Places we may visit include J. Clark Salyer NWR, Long Lake NWR, Lostwood NWR, and the Theodore Roosevelt National Park in the Dakota badlands. Tour begins and ends in Bismarck.
ACTIVITY LEVEL:
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PACE, WEATHER, AND TRAVEL CONDITIONS:
Our days in the field will usually begin about 7:00 a.m. and will end about 6:00 p.m. On most days lunches will be in the field (we provide coolers for cold food and drinks), and we will allow ample opportunity to get them before the day begins. Optional evening excursions to look for crepuscular species will be offered on one or two nights. The trip involves easy-to-moderate walking. Terrain is flat and hilly; most walks are not strenuous.
Temperatures will be warm to hot (and dry), though early morning and evening may be cool. Expect a temperature range from approximately 50-90F degrees. Rain or thunderstorms are a possibility, so raingear is advised. The sun is very strong, especially at this season, so sunscreen and a brimmed hat are recommended. Biting insects such as mosquitoes may be present at several locations.
TOUR SIZE: Travel during this tour will be in vans, with no more than 7 participants plus a leader in one "12 person" van. Tour size is limited to 14 participants.
Additional information about the tour, with specific meeting times, a list of participants, addresses of motels, lists of things to bring, a reading list, a list of probable/possible birds, further information about weather, dress, etc., will be mailed to all participants well in advance of the tour.
DATES: Wednesday July 6, 2011 (meet at our hotel in Bismarck at 7:30 pm) to Thursday July 14, 2011 (flights home anytime)
PRICE: Cost for this tour is about $2000.00 per person, based on double occupancy; single supplement $350.00. A deposit of $500.00 will hold your place until May 1, 2011 when full payment becomes due.
PRICE INCLUDES:
Motel accommodations for 8 nights, tour leadership, ground transportation while in North Dakota, and entrance fees to all areas on the itinerary.
PRICE DOES NOT INCLUDE: It does not include meals or airfare to/from Bismarck, or items of a personal nature.
SEND DEPOSITS & OTHER PAYMENTS TO:
NJ Audubon Eco-Travel
9 Hardscrabble Rd
tel. 908-204-8998
Or, by e-mail to travel@njaudubon.org
Please make checks payable to the New Jersey Audubon Society.
TOUR LEADERS:
Scott Barnes began birding at the age of twelve and has been an avid naturalist ever since. Encouragement and learning came from his parents and many birders, including members of the Urner Ornithological Club and staff of New Jersey Audubon Society. An interest in travel and natural history has led him from northwestern Alaska to the desert southwest to Trinidad and Tobago in search of plants and animals. He began birding at Sandy Hook, where he is the Senior Naturalist for the Sandy Hook Bird Observatory. Scott is the Region 3 Editor for Records of New Jersey Birds, compiles the Sandy Hook Christmas Bird Count, six-year member of the New Jersey Bird Records Committee, leader on See Life Paulagics boat trips, and a tour leader for the NJ Audubon Travel Program. Scott has led NJAS tours to Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Florida, Utah, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Linda Mack's interest in birding began twenty years ago on a Cape May Weekend and she has been hooked ever since. She is a member of the New Jersey Audubon Society's Board of Directors, an Associate Naturalist, and bookstore co-manager at Sandy Hook Bird Observatory. She is a past President, Program Chair, and Conservation Chair for Monmouth County Audubon Society. Linda has a special interest in seabirds and other coastal species; she co-leads pelagic birding trips off New Jersey with See Life Paulagics. Linda has traveled extensively throughout North America studying birds and natural history, with multiple trips to Washington, California, Montana, Arizona, Texas, North Carolina, and Florida. Her infectious enthusiasm and willingness to share knowledge is well known. She has co-led tours to New Mexico, Nebraska's Platte River, the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, Big Bend and the Davis Mountains, Southeast Arizona, and is a regular leader on SHBO's long weekend trips to coastal Massachusetts, the Adirondack Mountains, and Bombay Hook, as well as the Cape May Spring and Fall Weekends. Linda co-led the Minnesota/North Dakota tour in 2007.
For tour itineraries, to register, or for more information contact:
NJ Audubon Eco-Travel at: (908)-204-8998
9 Hardscrabble Road
Bernardsville, NJ 07924
or email travel@njaudubon.org.
If you are not a member and would like to become one, consider Joining New Jersey Audubon Society.