Archives: Festival Events

Difficulty: Moderate. Some steeper slopes and possibly some rocky/rooted trails in Madera or muddy/sandy trails along the river. Drive time to final location approximately 55 minutes to first location.)

This tour combines the best of the riparian habitat and cottonwoods along the Santa Cruz River and the madrean-oak habitat of Madera Canyons and its beautiful sycamores. We’ll start early in the morning by birding the De Anza trail along the Santa Cruz River looking for Lucy’s Warblers, Yellow-billed Cuckoos, and Tropical Kingbirds. We’ll cross our fingers for rarities like Green Kingfisher! From here we’ll head to higher elevation and Madera Canyon where we’ll look for species such as Arizona Woodpecker, Wild Turkey, Mexican Jay, and Painted Redstart. We’ll have lunch under the shade of the sycamores. Lunch included. Limited to 8 participants.

Painted Redstart by Matthew Studebaker

Difficulty: Moderate (Some walking on mild slopes, and possibly rocky/uneven surfaces. Drive time to location approximately one hour on mostly paved roads)

The Patagonia Mountains support an extensive oak-juniper biome along with many canyons and drainages lined with sycamores and other riparian vegetation creating the perfect habitat for Mexican Jays, Dusky-capped Flycatcher, Eastern “Azure” Bluebirds, and more. Explore this designated Important Bird Area with Tucson Bird Alliance Conservation Biologist, Jennie MacFarland. After experiencing the mountains we’ll drop down into the Sonoita Creek drainage for opportunities with Violet-crowned Hummingbird, Gray Hawks, and Northern Beardless Tyrannulet. Lunch will be provided courtesy of local favorite, Gathering Grounds. Limited to 8 participants.

Mexican Jay by John Hoffman

Difficulty: Moderate (Steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails. Multiple stops throughout field trip in various habitats. Drive time to final location approximately 75 minutes on paved mountain roads. Bathroom stops throughout.)

Rising over 6,000 feet above Tucson, Mount Lemmon is the highest peak in the Santa Catalina Mountains at 9,157 feet, and a popular escape from urban life and the Arizona’s dry early-summer heat (before the relief of the cooling monsoon rains). It is also an incredible birding experience and biology lesson. Traversing six life zones, from the Sonoran Desert at the base to mixed conifer forests at the highest elevations, the 25-mile drive up the wide, paved, two-lane Catalina Highway is equivalent biologically to traveling from Mexico to Canada. Our efforts will be concentrated on the higher elevations far above the desert below. We’ll look for typical mountain species like Steller’s Jay, Acorn Woodpecker, Spotted Towhee, and Plumbeous Vireo. We’ll make a special effort to track down a variety of warblers; Painted Redstart and Olive, Red-faced, and Grace’s Warblers all breed in these mountains and by August they are beginning to form mixed-species foraging flocks. A few hummingbird feeders are scattered about our route as well. Combine the birds with temperatures nearly 30 degrees cooler at the top and unparalleled scenery, it is hard to beat the Catalinas in August! Lunch included. Limited to 8 participants.

Yellow-eyed Junco

Difficulty: Moderate. Some steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails, but mostly walking on gravel road with little incline for about 1.5 miles round-trip. Bathroom near trailhead. Drive time to location approximately 90 minutes, including some gravel road.

Walking the old road up Peña Blanca Canyon is a good location for Dusky-capped Flycatcher, Hutton’s Vireo and Hepatic Tanager, with Coppery-tailed Trogon as a remote possibility. Montezuma Quail favor the hillsides surrounding the lake, but are notoriously hard to see or hear, but we’ll be on the lookout. Other interesting species could include Gray Hawk, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, and Varied Bunting to name a few. After walking the road we’ll check out Peña Blanca Lake which makes a great water source and stopover for migrants and nesting birds. Expect to walk on groomed trails around the lake and a gravel/loose rock forest service road through the canyon. We’ll have lunch at the lake which is provided. Limited to 9 participants.

Gray Hawk by bryanjsmith

Difficulty: Moderate. Steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails at Ramsey Canyon, for about one mile total. Drive time to locations approximately 2 hours on mostly paved road. Bathroom on-site at Ramsey.

We’ll get an early start from Tucson to explore the east flank of the Huachuca Mountains. We’ll start by visiting the Nature Conservancy’s beautiful Ramsey Canyon and walk underneath the towering sycamores which offers a wide variety of Arizona specialty birds such as Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher and Hepatic Tanager, along with many hummingbirds. After our picnic lunch we’ll head over to nearby Ash Canyon, where a bank of hummingbird feeders at the Ash Canyon Bird Sanctuary should be buzzing with activity, including perhaps the range-restricted and very attractive Lucifer Hummingbird. Fees for the Nature Preserve and Ash Canyon Bird Sanctuary included as well as lunch. Limited to 15 participants.

Lucifer Hummingbird by Peter Hawrylyshyn

Difficulty: Moderate. Some walking on mild slopes, and possibly rocky/uneven surfaces at the ranch, but no more than one mile at a stretch. Bathrooms available. Drive time to locations approximately an hour.

We’ll combine birding, wine, and good food during this tour of the grasslands south of Sonoita at the Appleton-Whittell Research Ranch. We’ll look for grassland breeders such as Cassin’s, Botteri’s, and Grasshopper Sparrows, Chihuahuan Meadowlark, and Loggerhead Shrike, as well as riparian-associated species including Gray and Zone-tailed Hawks, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Blue Grosbeak, Yellow Warbler, and Summer Tanager. We’ll have a lunch at Pronghorn Pizza (a favorite of the locals!) and then we’ll visit Charron Vineyards, a long-time festival partner, for a wine tasting. Time-permitting we’ll make a stop in Las Cienegas for some more birding. Limited to 8 participants.

Loggerhead Shrike by Mick Thompson

Difficulty: Hard. Round-trip hiking distance of about 2.5 hot miles, over very uneven tread and multiple, wet stream crossings. About two hour drive on some rough road. No bathroom on-site, prepare for backcountry experience; restroom stop before and after about 25 minutes from location. Plan to carry at least 2 liters of water. We will be away from the vehicle for at least 4 hours.

Rugged, remote Sycamore Canyon is legendary among birders for the rarities it has harbored over the years, as well as for its scenic terrain.  This steep-sided canyon is in the Pajarito Wilderness Area of Coronado National Forest.  It drains southward into Mexico, crossing the international border 5.6 miles from the trailhead off Ruby Road, west of Nogales.  Along the way we’ll encounter species typical of Oak-Juniper and Riparian habitats such as Dusky-capped Flycatcher, Mexican Jay, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, and Hepatic, Western, and Summer Tanagers. We also have the potential to see rarities like Coppery-tailed Trogon, Rufous-capped Warbler, and Montezuma Quail. Lunch included. Limited to 8 participants.

Coppery-tailed Trogon by Shawn Cooper