Sabino Canyon Evening Hike with Jim Rorabaugh

Difficulty: Moderate. Will include walking in the dark, including some uphill on dirt trails and some paved road. Total distance about 2 miles. Bring 2 liters of water.

Sabino Canyon night hikes during monsoon season are a local favorite past-time. Bring your flashlight as we walk up in the light and walk down in the dark in search of birds, toads, snakes, bugs, and more! Good possibilities for Lesser Nighthawk and Common Poorwill at sunset and we’ll hope for monsoon rains so we can see and hear Spadefoots and giant Sonoran Desert Toads. Lizards, scorpions, and tarantulas are crowd favorites and maybe we’ll run into a Gila Monster. We will go at a slow pace and be sure to bring a water bottle and be prepared for hot weather. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is approximately 25 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 15 participants.

Tarantula, Anne Webster Leight

Box and Florida Canyons with Ethan Kistler

Difficulty: Moderate. May involve walking a narrow rocky trail in Florida Canyon with uneven surfaces and some increase in grade. Drive time to location about one hour on paved and gravel roads. No bathroom on-site.

These two canyons are just north of the more famous Madera Canyon and offer fabulous birding in riparian areas flanked by upland desert and grassland. We’ll bird mostly from the road in Box Canyon looking for the rare Five-striped Sparrow, nesting Gray Hawks and Thick-billed Kingbirds, singing Rock and Canyon Wrens, and Bullock’s, Hooded, and Scott’s Orioles. Perhaps we’ll catch a glimpse of the soaring resident Golden Eagles. From the Florida Canyon parking lot we’ll keep our eyes open and ears alert for Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet, Black-chinned and Rufous-crowned Sparrows, along with Varied Bunting. Depending on water levels and bird activity we could work our way up higher along the creek as well. Limited to 9 participants.

Scott’s Oriole by Matthew Studebaker

El Rio Preserve with Gerry Hodge and Janine Spencer

Moderate. Mostly easy with paved trail and overlook, but some steep grade when walking down to sandy trails. Bathroom on-site.

Explore this nature preserve area just northwest of Tucson in Marana along the Santa Cruz River which is also part of the historic Juan Bautista de Anza Trail. You’ll enjoy the view from the overlook where you’ll be able to scan for a variety of birds including waterfowl, shorebirds, and flycatchers. A walk around the lake trail should turn up a good variety of species including Lazuli Bunting, Hooded Oriole, Green Heron, and Cinnamon Teal. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is about 30 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Lazuli Bunting, Mick Thompson

River to Mountains with Adam Dudley and Sneed Collard

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

Sabino Canyon with Max Roberts

Difficulty: Moderate. Mostly well groomed walking trails but may have some incline and may be on some uneven and rocky terrain for about 2 miles roundtrip. Bathrooms on-site. Bring 2 liters of water.

We’ll bird Sabino Canyon Recreation Area walking a loop that includes both Sonoran desert upland and Sabino Creek riparian area. Gila Woodpeckers, Purple Martins, and Cactus Wrens should be readily seen with other desert and riparian birds. Meet at the ramada by the Visitor’s Center at 5700 N Sabino Canyon Road. $8 parking fee. Return to car by 9am. Sunhat, water and walking shoes always recommended. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 25 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Cactus Wren, Mick Thompson

Sunset Birding at Sweetwater Wetlands with Kathe Anderson and Killian Sullivan

Difficulty: Easy. Just over a mile walking on groomed or concrete pathway. Bathroom 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. This outing will be contingent on monsoon rains. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 20 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.

Common Yellowthroat, Mike Henry

IBA Focus: Patagonia Mountains and Sonoita Creek with Jennie MacFarland

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

Mt. Lemmon: Sonoran Desert to Mixed Conifer Forest with Jake Mohlmann

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

Peña Blanca Lake and Canyon with Jeremy Dominguez

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

Ramsey & Ash Canyons with Kristy Gallo, David Simpson, & Andrew Lydeard

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