CALIFORNIA SPECIALTIES
Custom Trip, June 2010
This itinerary was developed for a group of birders from the east coast who wanted to see as many of the California specialties as possible. After contacting a couple of the major birding tour companies and receiving proposals that omitted sites for some target species and surpassed their budget, they contacted Cheepers. We were able to plan an itinerary that provided opportunities to see all of the group's target birds at a price approximately 25% lower than the big tour companies had quoted. You can read some comments from the group on our testimonial page.
To see more photos from the trip, click HERE.
ITINERARY
Day 1: Arrive in San Francisco today; transfer to the Holiday Inn Express San Francisco Airport North.
Overnight: Holiday Inn Express, SFO North
Day 2: Today we will bird the hotspots around San Francisco including Presidio, Lake Merced, Golden Gate Park, and various other sites on the Pacific coastline. Species expected include Clark's and Western Grebes, Black Oystercatcher, Brandt's and Pelagic Cormorants, Western and California Gulls, Pigeon Guillemot, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Black Phoebe, Pygmy Nuthatch, California Towhee, Hooded Oriole, Allen's Hummingbird, Steller's and Western Scrub Jays, Brewer's Blackbird, Bushtit, and the Pacific race of the Red-shouldered Hawk.
Overnight: Larkspur Hotel, Mill Valley
Day 3: We will bird north of the Golden Gate Bridge today, including inland areas of Marin County. World-famous birding site Point Reyes will be one highlight of today's activities. We hope to find Nuttall's and Acorn Woodpeckers, Oak Titmouse, Western Kingbird, Bullock's Oriole, White-tailed Kite, White Pelican, American Avocet, Black-necked Stilt, Cinnamon Teal, Pelagic Cormorant, California Quail, Spotted Towhee, Wrentit, Hutton's Vireo, White-crowned Sparrow, Swainson's Thrush, Wilson's Warbler, Lesser Goldfinch, Western Bluebird, Band-tailed Pigeon, Western Meadowlark, Violet-green Swallow, plus more possibilities.
Overnight: Larkspur Hotel, Mill Valley
Day 4: After some early morning birding, we will drive inland today to Alameda County. Birding in the Liverpool area, including Sunol Regional Wilderness area should yield Yellow-billed Magpie, California Thrasher, Lawrence's Goldfinch, Black-headed Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Nuttall's and Acorn Woodpeckers, Oak Titmouse, Western Bluebird, Steller's Jay, California and Spotted Towhees, Ash-thorated Flycatcher, Phainopepla, Greater Roadrunner, Lewis's Woodpecker, Western Tanager, and many more species.
Overnight: LaQuinta Inn, Dublin/Pleasanton
Day 5: The Sierra Footlhills will provide many opportunities for new species today, including White-headed Woodpecker, Spotted Sandpiper, Band-tailed Pigeon, Rufous Hummingbird, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Western Pewee, Violet-green Swallow, Steller's Jay, Mountain Chickadee, Bushtit, Hermit Warbler, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Wilson's Warbler, Western Tanager, and Black-headed Grosbeak. One of our many stops will be at Calavaras Big Trees State Park.
Overnight: LaQuinta Inn, Dublin/Pleasanton
Day 6: After an early morning breakfast, we will drive to Monterey to board a whale-watching boat for a 3-4 hour pelagic outing. Among the many species we could see are Black-footed Albatross, Ashy Storm-Petrel, Marbled Murrelet, Cassin's Auklet, Pink-footed and Sooty Shearwaters. We also expect to see whales, dolphins, seals and sea lions. After we disembark, we will drive to Big Sur, birding along the way.
Overnight: Big Sur Lodge
Day 7: Early morning birding at Big Sur and along Highway 1. Our main target bird is the California Condor, but we have many stops on our way to Ventura and also hope to see Pigeon Guillemot, Vaux's Swift, Black Swift, Band-tailed Pigeon, Bushtit, American Dipper, Marbled Murrelet, Snowy Plover, Cassin's Auklet, maong others.
Overnight: Courtyard Inn Oxnard/Ventura
Day 8: We will start our day with an Island Packers Boat to Santa Cruz Island to search for the endemic Island Scrub Jay. We will also keep our eyes open for 9 endemic subspecies found on the island, and expect to spot some pelagic species from the boat.
Overnight: Courtyard Inn Costa Mesa
Day 9: We will visit Newport Beach and Bolsa Chica for area specialties like California Gnatcatcher, Heermann's Gull, Elegant, Least, and Royal Terns, Black Skimmer, Snowy Plover, Cactus Wren, and many others.
Overnight: Holiday Inn Express LAX
Day 10: Departure from LAX
To see more photos from the trip, click HERE.
ITINERARY
Day 1: Arrive in San Francisco today; transfer to the Holiday Inn Express San Francisco Airport North.
Overnight: Holiday Inn Express, SFO North
Day 2: Today we will bird the hotspots around San Francisco including Presidio, Lake Merced, Golden Gate Park, and various other sites on the Pacific coastline. Species expected include Clark's and Western Grebes, Black Oystercatcher, Brandt's and Pelagic Cormorants, Western and California Gulls, Pigeon Guillemot, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Black Phoebe, Pygmy Nuthatch, California Towhee, Hooded Oriole, Allen's Hummingbird, Steller's and Western Scrub Jays, Brewer's Blackbird, Bushtit, and the Pacific race of the Red-shouldered Hawk.
Overnight: Larkspur Hotel, Mill Valley
Day 3: We will bird north of the Golden Gate Bridge today, including inland areas of Marin County. World-famous birding site Point Reyes will be one highlight of today's activities. We hope to find Nuttall's and Acorn Woodpeckers, Oak Titmouse, Western Kingbird, Bullock's Oriole, White-tailed Kite, White Pelican, American Avocet, Black-necked Stilt, Cinnamon Teal, Pelagic Cormorant, California Quail, Spotted Towhee, Wrentit, Hutton's Vireo, White-crowned Sparrow, Swainson's Thrush, Wilson's Warbler, Lesser Goldfinch, Western Bluebird, Band-tailed Pigeon, Western Meadowlark, Violet-green Swallow, plus more possibilities.
Overnight: Larkspur Hotel, Mill Valley
Day 4: After some early morning birding, we will drive inland today to Alameda County. Birding in the Liverpool area, including Sunol Regional Wilderness area should yield Yellow-billed Magpie, California Thrasher, Lawrence's Goldfinch, Black-headed Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Nuttall's and Acorn Woodpeckers, Oak Titmouse, Western Bluebird, Steller's Jay, California and Spotted Towhees, Ash-thorated Flycatcher, Phainopepla, Greater Roadrunner, Lewis's Woodpecker, Western Tanager, and many more species.
Overnight: LaQuinta Inn, Dublin/Pleasanton
Day 5: The Sierra Footlhills will provide many opportunities for new species today, including White-headed Woodpecker, Spotted Sandpiper, Band-tailed Pigeon, Rufous Hummingbird, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Western Pewee, Violet-green Swallow, Steller's Jay, Mountain Chickadee, Bushtit, Hermit Warbler, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Wilson's Warbler, Western Tanager, and Black-headed Grosbeak. One of our many stops will be at Calavaras Big Trees State Park.
Overnight: LaQuinta Inn, Dublin/Pleasanton
Day 6: After an early morning breakfast, we will drive to Monterey to board a whale-watching boat for a 3-4 hour pelagic outing. Among the many species we could see are Black-footed Albatross, Ashy Storm-Petrel, Marbled Murrelet, Cassin's Auklet, Pink-footed and Sooty Shearwaters. We also expect to see whales, dolphins, seals and sea lions. After we disembark, we will drive to Big Sur, birding along the way.
Overnight: Big Sur Lodge
Day 7: Early morning birding at Big Sur and along Highway 1. Our main target bird is the California Condor, but we have many stops on our way to Ventura and also hope to see Pigeon Guillemot, Vaux's Swift, Black Swift, Band-tailed Pigeon, Bushtit, American Dipper, Marbled Murrelet, Snowy Plover, Cassin's Auklet, maong others.
Overnight: Courtyard Inn Oxnard/Ventura
Day 8: We will start our day with an Island Packers Boat to Santa Cruz Island to search for the endemic Island Scrub Jay. We will also keep our eyes open for 9 endemic subspecies found on the island, and expect to spot some pelagic species from the boat.
Overnight: Courtyard Inn Costa Mesa
Day 9: We will visit Newport Beach and Bolsa Chica for area specialties like California Gnatcatcher, Heermann's Gull, Elegant, Least, and Royal Terns, Black Skimmer, Snowy Plover, Cactus Wren, and many others.
Overnight: Holiday Inn Express LAX
Day 10: Departure from LAX
| cabirdsseenlist_2010_jun.pdf |
