St. Paul and The Pribilof Islands: Birds of The Bering Sea
DATES
1: MAY 23 - 28, 2010
2: JUNE 5 - 8, 2010
1. MAY 22 - 27, 2011
2. JUNE 5 - 8, 2011
COST (PER PERSON) (2009 prices; 2010 prices TBA)
DOUBLE: 2010: Pribilof 1 (5 nights): $3625 double; single $3925.
2010: Pribilofs 2 (3 nights): $2825 double; $3025 single.)
DEPOSIT: $500
INCLUDES
Pribilofs 1: From Anchorage, 5 nights lodging, all meals from 1st night dinner through final day's lunch, transport, guides, taxes, tips.
Pribilofs 2:From Anchorage, 3 nights lodging, all meals from 1st night dinner through final day's lunch, transport, guides, taxes, tips.
Not Included: alcohol, personal calls, laundry, other person expenses
PARTICIPANTS
Limited to 14 participants.
LEADERS
Forrest Davis. 1 leader for seven or less; 2 leaders for 8 or more.
DIFFICULTY LEVEL
Easy with 1 – 2 miles walking per day; most birding by vehicle.
SLIDESHOW
(Run your mouse over any slide to make the caption drop down from the top.)
Check out the report for the first 2010 trip here.
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“Life is good. We had a great time - R is even willing to consider another bird trip! Thanks for all.” ~ KB, New Mexico |
OVERVIEW
The Pribilof Islands lie in the middle of the Bering Sea about 600 miles from landfall. St. Paul Island, where we stay, hosts many of the largest colonies of alcids (auklets & other seabirds) in the world as well as the largest Northern Fur Seal colony in the world. St. Paul is an isolated and charming island with a small Aleut population. Asian vagrants regularly visit St. Paul in late May, and we expect to see a number of them along with the resident species. We spend the first night in Anchorage. The Pribilofs record many Asiatic vagrants and accidentals every year during late May including regular occurrences of Bean Goose, Smew, Tufted Duck, Common Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Common Greenshank, Great Knot, Black-tailed Godwit, Siberian Rubythroat, Eye-browed Thrush, and Brambling. Other rarities, e.g., Chinese Pond-Heron, Little Stint, Far Eastern Curlew, Brown Shrike, McKay's Bunting, Dusky Thrush, Olive-backed Pipit, Hawfinch and many others are recorded less frequently. We will also see large colonies of seabirds, such as the Parakeet, Least and Crested Auklets; Horned and Tufted Puffins; Common and Thick-billed Murres; Red-legged & Black-legged Kittiwakes; Northern Fulmar and many others.
ITINERARY
For five night trip — drop days five & six for Pribilofs 2 and 3
DAY ONE: We’ll meet in Anchorage at the Coast International Hotel at 6:30 PM for dinner downtown at Orso, one of the finest restaurants in Alaska. After dinner, we’ll do a hour or so of birding. We can usually find a pair of nesting Pacific Loons close-by and, if we’re lucky, nesting Northern Goshawk.
DAY TWO: Breakfast at the Coast. Check-out and depart by 8:00 AM. We’ll bird Westchester Lagoon, a good location for Bonaparte’s Gull, Arctic Tern, Red-necked Grebe, and other waterfowl. We’ll check the shoreline of Cook Inlet for shorebirds: Semipalmated Plover, Hudsonian Godwit, Surfbird, Long-billed Dowitcher. Proceed to airport at 10:00 AM for our flight to St. Paul, departing about 11:30 AM. Arrive St. Paul about 3:30 PM. We’ll be staying this year at the airport in newly renovated quarters. We’ll go birding before dinner, probably getting our first good looks at Red-legged Kittiwake. Dinner at the airport restaurant. Birding afterwards.
DAYS THREE - FIVE: Breakfast at 7:00. Birding until lunch at 12:00. Birding from 1:30 until dinner at 5:30. Birding from 7:30 until 10 or later, depending upon what we might find. This will be our schedule for the entire stay on the island. We will spend at least one morning at the sea cliffs observing the vast array of nesting birds: Red-faced and Pelagic Cormorant; Northern Fulmar; Black-legged & Red-legged Kittiwake; Tufted and Horned Puffin; Common and Thick-billed Murre; Crested, Parakeet, & Least Auklet all breed along these cliffs. Close-up photo-ops will abound! We will also make a moderate hike to see if we can find the male McKay’s Bunting that frequents a lava flow on the island. We’ll walk some of the ponds and marshes around the island looking for vagrant shorebirds. The rock quarry is always a good place to walk in search of vagrant passerines. The vast tundra will often yield Snowy and Short-eared Owls. Fortunately, we’ll be traveling in comfortable, heated buses with bathroom. Those who don’t want to walk as much can stay at or on the bus.
DAY SIX: Bags can be packed in the morning, and we will spend the rest of the day birding until about 2:00 PM when we prepare to depart the island. The plane typically leaves between 3 and 4, and we get back to Anchorage by about 6:30 or so. Trip ends upon return to Anchorage.
CLOTHING & EQUIPMENT
Temperatures and, more important, wind chill factors vary widely and can get down in the low teens or less. So, bring warm clothes that will allow you to layer. We will send a more extensive list prior to departures.
- Layered Clothing
- Full suit (jacket and pants) of waterproof rain/wind gear. (Note: Ponchos and rain chaps are inadequate.) Rain jacket makes good outer layer - hooded is preferable.
- Synchilla Fleece or Wool garments (Keep you warm and retains insulating quality when wet)
- Wool, capilene or polypropylene long underwear, tops & bottoms.(light-weight)
- Medium-weight, wool socks (Bring extras) (Gore-tex liners provide good protection & warmth)
- Warm hat and gloves
- Sturdy and Waterproof Over-the-Ankle Hiking Boots (we suggest NEOS or Wellies)
- Rain Hat (if parka not hooded)
- Hat with visor for sun
- Extra pair of prescription glasses, contact lenses, sunglasses
- Tennis, running or sturdy comfortable walking shoes
- Insect repellent (DEET 20% or more/ Itch Relief Cream) Note: Citronella is ineffec-tive
- Sunscreen (sun is very bright when snowy and can produce significant sunburn)
- Jeans, Khakis for general wear
- Binoculars (Scope if you prefer to use your own)
- Day Pack/Fanny Pack
- Water Bottles
SOME RECOMMENDED FIELD GUIDES AND BOOKS
North American Field Guides & Bird Finding Guides:
- Field Guide to the Birds of North America, Fifth Edition. 2006, Jon Dunn, et al., National Geographic Society
- Shorebirds of the North America, Europe, and Asia, 1993,
- Shorebirds of North America: The Photographic Guide. Dennis Paulson, 2005.
- The Sibley Guide to Birds, David A. Sibley; Alfred A. Knopf, 2000.
- Seabirds of the World, Peter Harrison, 1997. (available soon again from ABA Sales)
Asian Field Guides:
- A Field Guide to the Birds of Japan, Wild Bird Society of Japan, 1982, Wild Bird Society of Japan
- A Field Guide to the Waterbirds of Asia, Bharat Bhushan, et al., 1993, Wild Bird Society of Japan
- Birds of Russia and Adjacent Territories, V. E. Flint, et al., 1984, Princeton University Press
- A Field Guide to the Birds of China, John MacKinnon & Karen Phillipps, 2000, Oxford University Press
European Field Guides:
- Birds of Europe, Killian Mullarney, et al., 1999, Princeton University Press
- Birds of Europe with North Africa and the Middle East, Lars Jonsson, 1992, Princeton University Press
- The Handbook of Bird Identification for Europe and the Western Palearctic, Princeton University Press, 1998, Mark Beaman and Steve Madge
- A Field Guide to the Rare Birds of Britain and Europe, Ian Lewington, et al., 1991, Domino Books, Ltd.
- New Generation Guide Birds of Britain and Europe, Christopher Perrins, 1987, University of Texas Press
The Alaska Experience:
- Living on the Edge, Spike Walker. Wonderfully descriptive book about Dutch Harbor and crabbing in the Bering Sea.
- Arctic Dreams, Barry Lopez. Pulitzer Prize-winning non-fiction about the High Arctic. Beautifully written!
- Any book by Dana Stabenow, an Alaska mystery writer whose books are enjoyable a very informative about Alaska native life.
During your free time in Anchorage, don’t miss going to Wave Bookstores on Northern Lights or downtown on 5th Avenue. They have a great selection of Alaska fiction and non-fiction! In addition, there are some excellent restaurants downtown, including Orso, Glacier Brew House, Simon & Seafort’s, and Marx Brothers.
Above birding books can be obtained from Madison Audubon Shoppe, (888) 505-9056, with a 10% discount by mentioning High Lonesome BirdTours. ABA Sales and the various web book dealers are also sources.
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