Fri-Sun, October 16-18: This tour is designed with one thing and one thing only in mind: observing Big Game birds! Rare birds, hard-to-identify and/or distant birds, large numbers of fall migrants…I am here and at your service! We will focus our attention on Pelagic birding, watching from shore for jaegers, kittiwakes, loons, Bonaparte’s Gulls, Little Gulls, Forster’s Tern, Red Phalarope, Northern Gannet…and much, much more. Parasitic and Pomarine jaegers will be searched for; Long-tailed will be slightly out of season, but, still possible. Mid to late October is prime Black-legged Kittiwake season; they will definitely be searched for. Northern Gannet is a distant possibility…but still a possibility. Red Phalarope will be in-season. Sabine’s Gull will be slightly out of season, but, still possible. How about Pacific Loon? Let’s look for that, too, along with Red-throated Loon. The list of highlight birds goes on and on. The whole Hamilton area is a gold mine for rare birds and large numbers of migrants. The area along the shoreline of Lake Ontario and the adjacent birding sites slightly inland will be the focus of this tour. We will search diligently for rare birds and also keep a close eye on list-serves and RBA boards and make decisive decisions about chasing or not chasing the various highlight birds that may be found during the time of our birding in Hamilton. The dates of this tour have been carefully selected for best chances to observe Big Game birds such as Pelagics, rarities and more. Let’s get out there and get searching!
Field Guiding Philosophy: With birds (winged…prone to movement; i.e. not “fixed” in location), there are never guarantees, but the good news is you’ll have a professional guide at the helm with many years of experience searching for and identifying birds. As always, I will endeavour to make the most of each tour, and the philosophy I encourage is to “take whatever the day brings.” Field-guiding is far less about rarity chasing/stakeouts/listing, and far more about the flow of a particular day, time and location. As a guide, I typically don’t place pressure on the tour (i.e. have a long list of hopes and expectations); I simply allow the day to unfold before me, and interpret moments and themes to the best of my ability, on the fly. Birding is fluid, in my experience, and placing pressure on the day can lead to disappointment. If and when birding action is red hot, I will be there, guiding with bells on; the gloves are off, so to speak, and it’s “go time!” When it’s quiet, I will pull from my reservoir of information and field experience, and share information about birds and various natural history topics throughout the day.
What to pack/What to know: Please dress for the season and be sure to check on the weather conditions ahead of the tour. Dressing in layers, and packing extra clothes (so you’ll have extra options) during fall tours is a good idea, especially on full day tours. It’s also a good idea to pack a toque, gloves, rubber boots, extra socks (in case your feet get damp/wet) and your rain gear. Additional items to pack include insect repellent (earlier in the fall season), sunscreen and a field hat. Please pack your photographical and optical equipment of your choice; if you have a spotting scope, pack it, as well. Packing a cooler with a lunch, snacks and liquids is a good idea, whether you’re on a shorter or longer tour; it’s always better to have packed more, than to have packed less, during field tours. If we are on a full day tour, we will break for lunch; if it’s a half day tour, then there will be no lunch stop.
Accommodations: The tour will be centred around the Hamilton birding area. Hotel and Air BnB accommodations are suitable in Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington and the Hamilton area. Even the downtown Toronto area is less than one hour’s drive to Hamilton’s shoreline sites (with low traffic).
Passes & Permits Needed? Passes (access or parking fees) are likely, depending on the final itinerary. However, nothing needs to be booked in advance of the tour. We may need a daily permit to access some sites, or, to park, but those will be purchased on-site.
eBird Checklists: I will take care of all of the checklists for the day, and share them with you when the tour is complete. Your eBird statistics will automatically update when you accept the checklist. If you are not an eBird user, that is perfectly fine; I will email the checklists after the tour. You’ll be able to browse through the sightings list without having to be an eBird user.
Washrooms: I will schedule a washroom break every 90-120 min throughout the tour.
Activity rating: 2/5.
Meet-up time and location: TBD, on Friday, October 16th, in the Hamilton shoreline area. This information will be sent by email to the clientele who have registered for the tour, and will be sent once wind and weather considerations are carefully weighed.
Duration: We will be birding for approximately 8 hours per day, for a total of 3 days.
Cost: $675 CAD per person (HST-included). Single or 2-day registrations are possible, too; please reach out by email for more details. I accept payment via e-transfer to eontbird@gmail.com. I also accept mailed cheques sent to Eastern Ontario Birding, 751 Namur Street, Embrun Ontario, K0A 1W0.
Payment due date: Upon registration preferred. Please be sure to review my Cancellation Policy ahead of signing up for this tour. The cancellation policy comes into effect the moment the online registration form is inputted.
Register for this outing by using this sign-up form