Archives: Festival Events

Difficulty: Easy. This trip is designed to be intentionally inclusive and accessible for beginner and advanced birders who experience accessibility challenges as a result of a disability or other health concern. No bathrooms at the lodge feeders.

Join Kim for a 90 minute “Big Sit” at the Santa Rita Lodge feeders. We will enjoy the variety of birds at the feeder station, where benches are available. Possible birds include Rivoli’s Hummingbird, Acorn Woodpecker, Mexican Jay, and Hepatic Tanager. Drive time to the meeting location from festival venue is about 55 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 8 participants.

Rivoli’s Hummingbird, Fred Mitchell

Difficulty: Easy. Just over a mile walking on excellent surfaces. Bathroom and water on-site.

Join Rich Bailowitz, author of the Field Guide to the Damselflies and Dragonflies of Arizona and Sonora at this artificial wetland perfectly situated for a wide variety of dragonflies and damselflies. We’ll also come across some great birds too! Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 20 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.

Difficulty: Easy. Mostly flat, groomed trails at a large city park. Bathrooms on-site.

This beautiful park in northeast Tucson includes a large lake (with a few smaller ponds), grassy park area with palm trees, and is surrounded by Sonoran desert. This mix of habitats creates opportunities for many birds including Anna’s, Costa’s, and Black-chinned Hummingbirds, Brown-crested Flycatcher, the Hesperia subspecies of Purple Martin, Phainopepla, and Hooded Oriole. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is about 30 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.

Black-chinned Hummingbird, Hemant Kishan

Difficulty: Easy. Flat walking around city park trails for about a mile. Bathrooms on-site.

Less than 15 minutes from the festival venue, this is one of the best spots in Tucson to find Vermilion Flycatchers and the city park habitat (along with pond) offers a good variety of species. We’ll walk the grounds hoping to find Broad-billed Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Cassin’s Kingbird, Lark Sparrows, and Lucy’s Warblers. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 10 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand.  Limited to 10 participants.

Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Shawn Cooper

Difficulty: Easy. Walking on excellent surfaces at a city park. No bathroom on-site.

Join local leader, Marie Davis, for a walk around the beautiful gardens of Desert Meadows Park in Green Valley. Birds to look for include Costa’s Hummingbird, Vermilion Flycatcher, Rufous-winged Sparrow, and Abert’s Towhee. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 35 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Costa’s Hummingbird, Francis Morgan

Difficulty: Moderate. Mostly flat walking for about two miles on some sandy/dirt trails. No bathroom on-site.

We’ll take a leisurely stroll through the riparian forest along the Santa Cruz River following the historic Anza Trail. This is a fantastic location for three types of kingbirds (Cassin’s, Tropical, and noisy Thick-billed) along with a wide variety of other desert riparian species like Inca Dove, Gray Hawk, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Bell’s Vireo, and Blue Grosbeak. Sponsored by Sabrewing Nature Tours. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is about 50 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Thick-billed Kingbird, Martin Molina

Difficulty: Moderate. Will involve some walking on mild slopes with some elevation and possibly on some rocky/uneven surfaces. Bathrooms available. Drive time to first location about 45 minutes.

We’ll start at the Gordon Hirabayashi Campground to search for birds of oak woodland such as Woodhouse’s Scrub Jay, Bushtit, and Scott’s Oriole before heading up to higher elevations and new habitats. A stop in Bear Canyon puts us in a beautiful canyon where we’ll search for Mexican Jay, Plumbeous Vireo, and Grace’s Warbler among others in the sycamores and pines. Depending on timing and activity we may visit other locations as well. Drive time to initial meeting location from festival venue is about 40 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand.  Limited to 8 participants.

Grace’s Warbler, Shawn Cooper

Difficulty: Easy. About one mile walking on easy dirt (and some concrete) walking paths. Bathroom and water on-site.

This artificial wetland is the premier birding hotspot in the Tucson Valley, offering a stunning variety of species that can be found here at any time during the season. Green Heron, Common Gallinule, Tropical Kingbird, Common Yellowthroat, and Abert’s Towhees are some of our prime targets. Join Vernie Aikins of Naturalist Journeys for a fun and diverse bird walk! Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 20 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.

Common Gallinule, Scott Olmstead

Difficulty: Moderate. Walking along gravel/dirt/rocky roads with some incline. About 1-2 miles in total. Bathroom on-site. Bring 2 liters of water.

Peppersauce Canyon, located on the north-side of the Catalina Mountains, is a beautiful oasis mostly shaded by huge sycamores lined with oaks, where Bell’s & Hutton’s vireos, Acorn Woodpeckers, and Western Wood-Pewees are common. We’ll walk up a somewhat rocky road looking for Woodhouse’s Scrub Jay, Rock & Canyon wrens, and Hooded Oriole and then finish up in the shaded campground for Black-chinned Hummingbird, Brown-crested Flycatcher, and more. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is about 80 minutes and it includes driving on gravel road that is passable for all vehicles. Specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Woodhouse’s Scrub Jay, Alan Schmierer