Subject: [Tweeters] North Dakota birding report
Date: Jun 13 14:20:59 2007
From: Jim Danzenbaker - jdanzenbaker at gmail.com


Hi Michael,

I read your Prairies and Potholes trip report with interest since I had
attended that festival two years ago. Great birding and fantastic people
and hospitality. Ann Hofert and company certainly make everyone feel
welcome. I can picture exactly where you had the Sprague's Pipits and
Baird's Sparrows. I do recommend this festival to anyone who wants to
explore an underbirded part of the US with lots of specialties.

Jim Danzenbaker
Battle Ground, Clark County, WA
jdanzenbaker at gmail.com



On 6/13/07, Michael Hobbs <birdmarymoor at verizon.net> wrote:
>
> Tweets - months back, I asked if anyone had been to the Potholes &
> Prairies
> birding festival put on by Birding Drives Dakota. I didn't get any
> recommendations, for or against, but several people expressed interest in
> the idea.
>
> Well, I just got back from the 2007 festival, which was held in
> Carrington,
> ND. They alternate years with Jamestown, some 50 miles south. So what
> can
> I say about the festival? It was great.
>
> I was hoping for 4 life birds, and I got 6:
>
> White-rumped Sandpiper
> Yellow Rail (heard)
> Sprague's Pipit
> Baird's Sparrow
> Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow
> Le Conte's Sparrow
>
> Those last 4 birds are the big targets of the festival, and they've
> succeeded in finding them every year. We got GREAT looks. While each of
> the field trips was nominally to a National Wildlife Refuge, *none* of
> those
> target birds was found on-refuge. They were mostly on School Trust
> Sections
> (like our DNR lands). It's REALLY nice to have locals to guide you to
> those; they're mostly unsigned and you'd have no way to know that you're
> allowed to go through fences and walk across the pastures.
>
> Beyond the lifers, there were some notable birds that were seen multiple
> times, much to my delight:
>
> Ferruginous Hawk
> Sharp-tailed Grouse
> Upland Sandpiper
> Stilt Sandpiper
> Least Flycatcher
> Brown Thrasher
> Lark Bunting
> Swamp Sparrow
> Chestnut-collared Longspur
> Orchard Oriole
>
> And let me just mention some other birds that were so common as to be
> nearly
> "trash":
>
> American White Pelican
> Wilson's Phalarope
> Franklin's Gull
> Black Tern
> Sedge Wren
> Clay-colored Sparrow
> Grasshopper Sparrow
> Bobolink
>
> The festival was well run and was a great bargain. The meals were true
> North Dakota; don't expect drinkable coffee or good vegetables. But the
> festival was only $250, and that included: 4 days of field trips with good
> leaders; 4 modest breakfasts and lunches; two good dinners; a wine tasting
> with lots of hors d'oeuvres; lectures on geology, sparrows, conservation;
> and more. Everyone was especially friendly. Carrington is REALLY happy
> to
> have the festival in-town.
>
> I'd heartily recommend this festival to anyone who wants to see some birds
> you can't see around here. More information is at
> http://www.birdingdrives.com/
>
> == Michael Hobbs
> == Kirkland, WA
> == http://www.marymoor.org/birding.htm
> == birdmarymoor at verizon.net
>
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>



--
Jim Danzenbaker
Battle Ground, WA
360-723-0345
jdanzenbaker at gmail.com