HALF-DAY FIELD TRIPS - August 17
Local Hotspot: Sweetwater Wetlands for Beginners
6:00 am – 8:00 am; **meet at Sweetwater Wetlands**
Difficulty: 1 (flat walking on groomed trails or roads)
$20 per person
This is a "must see" destination for any birder with a few hours to spend in Tucson, and a great place to get started as a beginner birder. A stunning variety of species can be found here at any season, but we'll need to arrive early before the day heats up to catch the prime activity. We'll look for everything on the checklist from Cinnamon Teal to Abert's Towhee! Loaner binoculars available.
Cienega Creek & Davidson Canyon: An under-birded Gem
5:30 am – 11:00 am
Difficulty: 3 (steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails)
$50 per person
The perennial stream flow and lush riparian vegetation is an important nesting and migration corridor for a multitude of avian species. Home to Yellow-breasted Chats, Yellow-billed Cuckoos, Northern Beardless-Tyrannulets, Bell’s Vireos, and Lucy’s Warblers, the creek has also hosted of a number of vagrants. Under the shade of towering Fremont cottonwoods, we will explore this well-watered and increasingly rare habitat on a half-day outing. We will arrive back at the Riverpark Inn by 11:00am.
Las Cienegas National Conservation Area: Grasslands to lush riparian corridors
5:30 am – 12:00 pm
Difficulty: 3 (steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails)
$50 per person
This 45,000 acre conservation area, with high desert grasslands, riparian strips with perennial streams, marshes, juniper-oak woodlands, contains a great diversity of bird species. Located to the southeast of Tucson, Las Cienegas is home to monsoonal breeders including the highly-sought after Cassin’s, Botteri’s and Grasshopper Sparrows, as well as riparian-associated species including Gray and Zone-tailed Hawks, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet, and Summer Tanager. Scope views of grassland sparrows and up-close encounters with riparian and marsh species makes this half-day trip a fantastic choice. We will return to the Riverpark Inn around lunchtime.
FULL-DAY FIELD TRIPS - August 17
Borderland Specialties with Rick Taylor
5:30 am – 2:00 pm
Difficulty: 3 (steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails)
$85 per person
Join local expert Rick Taylor (author of the new Birds of Southeastern Arizona and ABA's A Birder's Guide to Southeastern Arizona) for an exploration of several of the region's "can't miss" birding sites. The exact itinerary will be determined by the latests sightings of borderland treats like Elegant Trogon, Arizona Woodpecker, and Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher, and other potential birds include Zone-tailed Hawk, Virginia’s and Grace’s Warblers, Painted Redstart, Flame-colored Tanager, and Botteri’s and Cassin’s Sparrows. Back to Riverpark Inn by 2:00 p.m.
Further afield: Huachuca Mountains
5:00 am – 3:30 pm
Difficulty: 3 (steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails)
$85 per person
We'll get an early start from Tucson to explore the madrean oak woodland and open pine forests of Carr Canyon. This scenic canyon on the east flank of the Huachucas supports species such as Arizona Woodpecker and Painted Redstart on its lower slopes, and species such as Olive Warbler, Buff-breasted Flycatcher and Greater Pewee along the upper stretches of the road. We'll spend a few hours exploring along the main road that winds up to near the peaks of the Huachucas before taking our picnic lunch and then descending to a nearby Ash Canyon, where a private bank of hummingbird feedeers should be awash with activity, including perhaps the range-restricted and very attractive Lucifer Hummingbird. We will be walking slowly along nearly level dirt roads, up to an elevation of about 7000 feet.
Santa Catalina Mountains: Sonoran Desert to Mixed Conifer Forest
5:00 am – 3:30 pm
Difficulty: 3 (steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails)
$85 per person
Rising over 6,000 feet above Tucson, Mount Lemmon, is the highest peak in the Santa Catalina Mountains at 9157 feet asl, and a popular escape from urban life and Arizona’s dry 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. The fascinating array of desert denizens like Gilded Flicker at the base, to Olive, Red-Faced and Grace’s Warblers on the easy drive up make this trip high on any birder’s list. Combine that with temperatures nearly 30 degrees cooler at the top and unparalleled scenery, it is hard to beat the Catalinas in August! Back to the Riverpark Inn by 3:30pm.
Sky Islands Naturalist Saunter
5:30 am – 4:00 pm
Difficulty: 3.4
$85 per person
Join Naturalist, Wildlife Biologist & Ethnobotanist Vincent Pinto in this detailed exploration of the Natural History of the Sky Islands region. Wandering the lush riparian areas, Mesquite bosques, and grasslands near Lake Patagonia you'll learn about the areas birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, native plants, ethnobotany, tracking, geology, and history. Walking at a moderate pace over varied terrain you'll soon discover why southeast Arizona harbors the greatest biodiversity in all of North America! The chance to see a number of regional speciatly birds as an added bonus of this all-day field workshop. We'll enjoy plenty of shade at mid-day and return to the hotel by 4pm.
"I love this region and its birdlife...I love the varied seasons of this country... especially that green time in August when the thunderstorms roll through and when birds are abundant everywhere from the grasslands to the high peaks." 
