December 5 – Colorado Winter Birding

After a long year of travel, we were ready for our final push to reach our goal of 500 species for our Big Year. We planned our first-ever birding trip to Colorado, and thanks to the Colorado Birds group on Google, we found an amazing community of birders, including Doug Kibbe, who generously offered to take us out on Saturday morning.

Day One: Foothills and Mountain Highs

We met Doug the next morning near Golden and drove to the home of Ira and Tammy Sander. Tammy has created an amazing garden and bird habitat, complete with native plants, feeders, and water features that attract a wide variety of birds year-round. It’s not every day you see a Black-billed Magpie in someone’s yard! We logged 14 species at their home, including a Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay, a species that was recently split, making this a special find. We found out later that Ira was also doing a little ‘big year’ and he tied Sharon for 2015.

Next, we drove west into the mountains near Squaw Pass to the home of Ruth and Dan Brown. The view from their window was spectacular, and the feeders were buzzing with activity. It was here, watching the feeders with new friends and enjoying hot tea and danish, that we finally did it. We hit our goal of 500 species and added three life birds: Clark’s Nutcracker, Pine Grosbeak, and Cassin’s Finch. It was a perfect moment.

Mountain Towns and a Search for Finches

We headed down the mountain to Idaho Springs, where we stopped to check out feeders on Soda Creek Road. Among the 14 species we saw were four varieties of Dark-eyed Junco. After parting ways with Doug, we drove to Georgetown, where we were surprised to find Bighorn Sheep grazing by the roadside.

Next, we drove through the tunnel to Silverthorne and stopped at the water treatment plant, finding our target bird, the Barrow’s Goldeneye, among other ducks. All of this was before 1:00 p.m., so we stopped for a well-deserved lunch at the Sunshine Café. Our next destination was a secret location with feeders swarming with Rosy and Brown Finches.

After our successful hunt, we drove around the beautiful Dillon Reservoir before checking into the Hotel Frisco, a charming and traditional inn. Dinner was next door at Vinny’s, which we agreed served the best food in town.

Day Two: The Continental Divide and a Snowy Owl

Sunday morning, we took the back roads, passing Keystone and Arapahoe ski resorts on our way to Loveland Pass and the Continental Divide. What an awesome view! We came across a group of young people with skis and snowboards who were heading down the mountainside for free skiing adventures. We hoped to find a White Ptarmigan, which is notoriously difficult to spot. We were told to look for “snow that moves,” but didn’t have any luck with that today.

We drove back toward Denver for some final birding. At Chatfield State Park, we found many Red-breasted Mergansers, along with Western Grebes and a variety of gulls. Next, it was on to Barr Lake State Park for our fix of over 5,000 Canada and Cackling Geese, with a few Snow Geese and Greater-white Fronted Geese mixed in.

Doug sent us a tip about a Snowy Owl near the airport. We drove down Tower Road toward the back side of the airport, finding many raptors hunting in the prairie dog fields. We eventually found a group of birders scoping the owl and had great looks. On our way out, we had an even better surprise: a lifer Prairie Falcon!

Downtown Denver was our final stop. We headed to Larimer Street for a drink at the Ginn Mill and dinner at a very cool place called Ophelia’s Electric Soap Box, which has live entertainment most nights. After a quick look into one of the local smoke shops, our whirlwind 48-hour weekend was done. We were tired but incredibly happy, having reached our goal. Our final tally was 509 species, and we’re not stopping yet!

 

 Trip Summary:

• Total Species: 56
• Year Birds: 10
• Life Birds: 5

2015 Summary:

• Year Birds: 509
• Life Birds: 83
• 2015 Bird List

Next up: Savannah & South Carolina