KLAMATH BASIN: Northern California Tour
March 21 to 31, 2009
 

GENERAL INFORMATION
If you are looking for a getaway from the doldrums of March birding in New Jersey, join us for an adventure to the spectacular Klamath Basin, one of North America’s great late winter/early spring staging areas for thousands of waterfowl, as well as a haven for raptors. Along the way we will visit world famous Point Reyes National Seashore, Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, the great complex of National Wildlife Refuges in the Sacramento area, the majestic Mount Shasta and the magnificent northwest California coast, including a drive through California Redwood country. You will want to bring your camera for this tour as scenic vistas will abound.

Expected birds include: Pacific Loon, Western, Clark’s and Eared Grebes, Brandt’s and Pelagic Cormorants, Greater White-fronted and Ross’s Geese, Tundra Swans, Cinnamon Teal, Redhead, White-tailed Kite, Ferruginous and Rough-legged Hawks, Prairie Falcon, Black Oystercatcher, Black-necked Stilt, American Avocet, Wandering Tattler, Surfbird, Black Turnstone, Marbled Godwit, Long-billed Curlew, California, Mew and Heermann’s Gulls, Common Murre, Pigeon Guillemot, Marbled Murrelet, Anna’s Hummingbird, Lewis’s and Acorn Woodpeckers, Red-breasted Sapsucker, Black Phoebe, Northern and Loggerhead Shrikes, Hutton’s Vireo, Steller’s and Western Scrub-Jays, Yellow-billed Magpie, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Oak Titmouse, Bushtit, Pygmy Nuthatch, American Dipper, Western and Mountain Bluebirds, Varied Thrush, California Thrasher, Townsend’s Warbler, California Towhee, Golden-crowned Sparrow, and Lesser Goldfinch.

PACE, WEATHER AND TRAVEL CONDITIONS:
The pace of the trip will be moderate to easy, with days typically beginning at 7:00 a.m. and ending at 6:00 p.m.

The weather at this time of year is variable. Daytime temperatures in the San Francisco area should range from 50 to 79F degrees, while temperatures in the Klamath Basin could drop into the 20s, so dressing in layers is appropriate. Although we should see a fair amount of sunshine, rain or snow are a possibility; so pack accordingly.

We will walk along refuge roads and trails, as well as back roads, and in parks and campgrounds, but none of the hiking will be strenuous.

TOUR SIZE: Our transportation will be a 15 passenger van and a mini-van. Participation in this tour is limited to 12 participants.

You will receive an additional information packet including a list of things to bring, a list of motels and information regarding accessing the motel and meeting the group. This information will be mailed well in advance of the tour.

DATES: Saturday, March 21 to Tuesday, March 31, 2009 (Trip begins and ends in San Francisco)

PRICE: Cost for this tour is $2,350.00 per person, based on double occupancy.  Single occupancy To Be Determined. A deposit of $500 will hold your space. 

PRICE INCLUDES: A motel accommodation for ten nights, expert leadership, land transportation from San Francisco and all entry fees, but does not include airfare and meals.

SEND DEPOSITS AND OTHER PAYMENTS TO:
NJAS Eco-travel
9 Hardscrabble Rd
Bernardsville, New Jersey 07924
(908) 204-8998
Make checks payable to the New Jersey Audubon Society
Gray Jay photo courtesy E Kopec

TOUR LEADERS:
 Pete Bacinski is Director of the New Jersey Audubon Society’s Sandy Hook Bird Observatory (SHBO), with over 25 years of tour and workshop experience. He grew up in Lyndhurst, NJ with an interest in natural history since early childhood. He attended Pace University in New York City receiving a B.S. in biology followed by M.S. in biology, specializing in entomology, and an MBA in marketing, both from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Pete began volunteering for New Jersey Audubon Society in 1971, leading his first field trip for the organization in 1973. He has participated in every World Series of Birding competition since the event’s inception in 1984, and was a member of winning teams in 1984, 1988 and 1990. Pete was a member of the New Jersey Bird Records Committee for eleven years and was a regional field notes editor for Records of New Jersey Birds for eight years. He established and directs the Sandy Hook Bird Observatory for NJAS and is co-compiler and voice of the Voice of New Jersey Audubon rare bird alert for the state of New Jersey. Pete has also been a steering committee member and regional coordinator for the Birds of New Jersey atlas project and currently writes a weekly column in the Newark Star Ledger entitled “Seen in New Jersey.” Pete’s favorite natural history interests are birds, butterflies, wildflowers, ferns, insects, “herps”, and mammals. Other interests include classical music, American History, audio-books, weather, public speaking and photography.
Pete currently resides in Atlantic Highlands.

Linda Mack’s interest in birding began twenty years ago on a Cape May Weekend and she has been hooked ever since.  She is a member of the New Jersey Audubon Society's Board of Directors, an Associate Naturalist, and bookstore co-manager at Sandy Hook Bird Observatory.  She is a past President, Program Chair, and Conservation Chair for Monmouth County Audubon Society.  Linda has a special interest in seabirds and other coastal species; she co-leads pelagic birding trips off New Jersey with See Life Paulagics.  Linda has traveled extensively throughout North America studying birds and natural history, with multiple trips to Arizona, California, Florida, Montana, North Carolina, Texas, and Utah.  Her infectious enthusiasm and willingness to share knowledge is well known.  She has co-led tours to Minnesota and North Dakota, Nebraska, New Mexico, the Rio Grande Valley and Big Bend in Texas and is a regular leader on SHBO's long weekend trips to coastal Massachusetts, the Adirondack Mountains, and Bombay Hook, as well as the Cape May Spring and Fall Weekends.

For tour itineraries, to register, or for more information contact:

NJAS Eco-Travel at: (908)-204-8998
9 Hardscrabble Road
Bernardsville, NJ 07924
or email travel@njaudubon.org

If you are not a member and would like to become one, consider Joining New Jersey Audubon Society.