Denver Field Ornithologists
March 2013 Field Trips
Saturday, March 2 Belmar Park
Leader: Bob Shade, 303.975.2476
Meet leader at parking lot at 0800. Belmar Historic Park is at 800 S. Wadsworth Blvd. in Lakewood. From Alameda and Wadsworth go south on Wadsworth, turn west at the light on West Ohio Avenue. Drive a short two blocks to the parking lot. Half day trip. Trip leader may also visit other Lakewood areas if time permits.
Sunday, March 3 Wheat Ridge Greenbelt
Leader: Tom Parchman 303.274.7951
Meet Tom at 0800 at Prospect Park in Wheat Ridge for a 1⁄2 day trip. Bring water and snacks; dress appropriately, in layers, for the weather. From I-70 exit 267, take Kipling south about 3/4 of a mile and turn right (west) on 44th Avenue. Go one mile west. Look for the entrance to Prospect Park on your left (south). Meet just inside the park in the lot right next to the lake. We'll check the lake for waterfowl before birding the paved and dirt paths along Clear Creek. The walking is easy but may involve up to three miles of walking.
Saturday, March 9 Red Rocks Park
Leader: Tom Bush, 303.904.4576
Time: Meet at 0800 at the Red Rocks Trading Post for a half day of foothills birding. We'll spend some time checking out all the activity at the feeders - possible rosy finches, golden-crowned sparrow (?), jays, chickadees. We will do some walking looking for the prairie falcon and other raptors. Bring water, snack and lunch. To reach Red Rocks Trading Post go west out of Morrison on Hwy 74. Less than .5 mile out of Morrison you will turn right on Red Rocks Park Road (entrance 2 to Red Rocks Park). Stay right at the first fork. Continue on Red Rocks Road approximately a mile to the Trading Post.
Sunday, March 10 Chatfield State Park
Leader: Randy Lentz, 303.680.3381
Meet leader at the swim beach at 0800. Bird until noon so lunch is optional. Bring scopes, binoculars, water, and dress for the predicted weather.
Saturday, March 16 Walden Ponds
Leader: Paula Hansley, Hm. 720.890.2628 Cell 303.263.1714
Meet leader at 0800 at Cottonwood Marsh parking lot at Walden Ponds in Boulder County. Bird until about 11:00. Walden is accessed from a short road, which goes west from 75th Street 0.9 mi. north of Valmont Rd. The group will look at ducks/early migrants on ponds and in woods in both Walden and Sawhill areas. We will also look for Dippers and other birds along Boulder Creek near 75th St. Bring a scope if you have one, along with snacks, water, and warm clothes.
Sunday, March 17 Cherry Creek State Park
Leaders: Cheryl Teuton and Dan Brooke, 303.912.3341
Meet the leaders at the west side marina at 0800. From Belleview and Yosemite go east on Belleview until you reach the park entrance and follow the signs to the marina. State parks pass and $3 fee required. (You may ask at the entrance gate about the $3 pass on the way out if there is no one there upon arrival.) The trip will be mostly driving from place to place looking for ducks, grebes, and gulls with a sharp eye out for hawks, early migrants and late winter holders-on. There will be some walking at various locations as well as some walking on level trails at the Cottonwood Creek Reclamation area. Bring a lunch and after lunch there will be a walk at the Twelve Mile picnic area looking for rails, wrens, and other marsh denizens.
Saturday, March 23 Longmont Area Birding
Leader: Chris Owens, 303.772.6048
Joint trip with the BBC. Meet leader at 0800 at Jim Hamm Natural Area parking lot. From I-25 take Exit 240. Go west 4 miles on CO 119 to Boulder- Weld CO Line Road, then approximately two miles north to park on left at E 17th Ave. Bird until 1 or 2 pm. Walking will be held to a minimum, less than two miles, and we will drive from site to site. We will be looking for waterfowl, raptors, and any early migrants: possible flycatchers, shorebirds, etc.
Sunday, March 24 Barr Lake
Leaders: Mark Amershek and Bruce Neuman, 303.329.8646 or mamershek@msn.com Meet leaders at the Nature Center at 0800. Half day trip finished by noon or, if the birds are good, by 1:00pm. You do not need lunch but you do need a State Parks Pass or be willing to purchase a day pass at the entrance kiosk. Expect to walk no more than two miles. We will be looking for migrating waterfowl, any early or late migrants, as well as resident woodpeckers, sparrows, etc.. Please RSVP to Mark at the above phone number or e-mail address after Feb. 24th.
Wednesday, March 27 Morgan County Hotspots
Leader: Joe Roller, Contact Information: jroller9@gmail.com
Time: 0700. Meeting Place: Colorado Division of Wildlife - 6060 North Broadway – Exit I-25 at 58th Ave, go west 2 blocks to Broadway, then north 2 blocks to parking lot on right. Trip description, written by Joe - We will carpool and head out to Jackson Reservoir, then hit other Morgan County Hotspots. Waterfowl can be plentiful at this time of year, and there are several places we can hit for passerines. Local sage, Bruce Bosley, will join us. Who knows what birds we'll find? The trip will cater to birders of all levels of experience, from eager neophytes to jaded pros. It's an all-day trip, return- ing to the DOW around 4:30 PM, so bring lunch, water, snacks, 2-ways and a scope if you have one. Dress for the weather. State parks pass required. This trip is limited to 30 participants. Please email Joe Roller at jrol- ler9@gmail.com, if you will be going, and for urgent or last-minute matters, you may call Joe at 303.204.0828.
Saturday, March 30 Denver City Park-Cormorant Photo
Trip Leader: Chuck Hundertmark, 303-604-0531
0730. Meet leader at parking strip at Duck Lake. From Colorado Blvd., turn west onto 22nd Ave. and go past the Museum of Nature and Science. Turn left just before the zoo at the sign to the Pavillion Bandstand. Park on the left at the parking area closest to Duck Lake. We'll photograph and observe early nesting behavior of Double-crested Cormorants at Duck Lake for about an hour. For SLRs, a 300mm lens or better is recommended. We'll also walk the park for migrants and early nesters. An easy morning walking. Late morning, we'll head to the museum for lunch. Bring laptops to download photos and compare shots. Bring water, snacks, binoculars, camera with optional tripod and scopes. Half day trip plus lunch at the museum. Limit of 10 participants. Call or email leader if you plan to attend. chundertmark8@gmail.com.
Sunday, March 31th Ptarmigan Finding -- Guanella Pass
Leader, Paul Slingsby This trip is limited to 8 persons so please register with the leader (303-422-3728). Meet the leader, 0900 at the Stegosaurus Park and Ride. We will car pool to Guanella Pass, approximately 60 miles from our meeting place. Have clothing suitable for both windy and very cold weather, the pass is almost 12,000 ft. in altitude and is especially exposed to wind. Our trip begins late to arrive at the pass during the warmest part of the day. We'll also hope to avoid rush hour on I-70. Bring binoculars, spotting scopes and 2-way radios if you have them. Plan to eat lunch at the pass, possibly in the car. We should be back to Stegosaurus by 3 pm. We will also look for other bird species that spend winter high in the mountains. Guanella Pass has not had great amounts of snow in recent years and many areas blow free of snow. Bring snowshoes if you have them, but most likely we will be able to walk everywhere we need to walk without them. Traction devices for shoes (Yaktracks for example) and walking sticks can be helpful. We will walk less than a mile at the pass, but plan to walk more at other places we will visit for additional mountain bird species. I will scout the trip before the day and will also check the weather. In the event that weather is prohibitive, we will change our destination to Bear Creek Lake Park. (Day pass required.) Ducks, cormorants, avocets and bluebirds will have begun migration by this date. Water should be open in the ponds and in Clear Creek so we should have an interesting day even if we can't visit the ptarmigan. Stegosaurus Park and Ride is familiar to visitors to the RMBO spring Hawkwatch. Take I-70 to exit 259, go south on Colorado Highway 26 for about 200 yards. Stegosaurus is on the left. We will meet near the lower, south, end of the lot.
Schedule prepared by Chris Owens
Submitted by Chris A. Blakeslee - DFO Board Member
Centennial, Colorado
CorvidColo@aol.com
