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Field Trip ReportFriday-Sunday June 21-23, 2002 Trip report for the Fort Collins Audubon Canoe Trip June 21-23, 2002 with Centennial Canoe Outfitters, www.centennialcanoe.com, prepared by Joel Hurmence.
This was the first canoe trip offered by Fort Collins Audubon. An annual trip like this one would be a great idea-- a way to have fun and also raise funds (Centennial Canoe donated $50 from each participant's fee back to Fort Collins Audubon).
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| Birding by canoe is best done by ear. Most birds are hidden somewhere along the shore, and you can't stop to look for them. Viewing water birds, however, is easier because you are there on the water with them! Here is the complete bird list: | ||
Western Grebe Great Blue Heron Snowy Egret Mallard Blue-winged Teal Turkey Vulture Bald Eagle Wild Turkey Killdeer American Avocet Spotted Sandpiper Rock Dove Mourning Dove White-throated Swift Black-chinned Hummingbird Northern Flicker Say's Phoebe |
Ash-throated Flycatcher Western Kingbird Violet-green Swallow Bank Swallow Cliff Swallow Barn Swallow Western Scrub Jay Black-billed Magpie American Crow Common Raven Plain Titmouse Rock Wren Canyon Wren Bewick's Wren Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Mountain Bluebird |
American Robin Northern Mockingbird Solitary Vireo (whatever) Yellow Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Black-throated Gray Warbler Yellow-breasted Chat Black-headed Grosbeak Blue Grosbeak Spotted Towhee Black-throated Sparrow Song Sparrow Western Meadowlark Brown-headed Cowbird Bullock's Oriole American Goldfinch |
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The trip covered a 31-mile stretch of the Colorado River between Fruita,
Colorado and Westwater, Utah, winding through steep-walled Horse Thief and
Ruby Canyons. The water level was about three feet below normal, but still
provided some exciting moments. High winds made paddling an effort much of
the way.
26 people (including four guides from Centennial Canoe Outfitters) took
part, including people from Philadelphia, Grand Junction, Telluride,
Louisville, Boulder, and the Denver Metro area. Two people attended from
Fort Collins Audubon: Margaret Frohberg and her granddaughter, Karema
Worayeth. Others had signed up through the Denver Zoo, Denver Museum of
Nature and Science, and Denver area open space organizations. Although
most were not particularly interested in birding, they shared a general
appreciation of the natural setting.
The folks from Centennial Canoe Outfitters did a fantastic job guiding
the trip and preparing the meals. We were very well taken care of! The
high points of the trip were seeing a bald eagle nest and young
fledglings, a blue grosbeak suddenly popping up before our eyes, and the
tricky current near Black Rocks. Our first night campsite was in
tamarisk-not the best bird habitat, but the second camp was much better.
High winds on two of our paddling days almost exhausted us, but made us
better appreciate the hospitality of our hosts!
