A new, exciting four day tour to the Texas Hill Country, with hopes of finding our two limited breeding range specialty birds - the Golden-Cheeked Warbler and Black-capped Vireo!
Texas
Hill
Country
Post Trip SOLD OUT
April 29 - May 1
This lucky tour group will stay in a lovely Hill Country home, that can accommodate singles, doubles or a party of three with each bedroom having a private bathroom. A private chef will travel with the group providing hot coffee and continental breakfast each morning plus two "family-style" evening dinners for all to enjoy.
The cost of this trip includes!
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Transportation from Corpus Christi
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Guidance from an experienced leader
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Park entry fees
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Lodging for three nights
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Hot coffee and continental breakfast
Ticket price does not include lunches except on Day 1, and does not include dinner on Day 1. The cost per person is $1375.00. There is a minimum of five participants and a maximum of eight to make this a very birder friendly trip.
The tour will leave from the Botanical Gardens on the first day at 6:30 am. Plan to arrive 15 minutes early for check in and loading. Parking will be in the back parking area. The gates will be locked every night and patrolled by security.
All locations and times are subject to change depending on birding conditions and sightings. In any event, it will be fabulous!
Day One
Leave Botanical Gardens 6:30 am.
We start with a 2 ½ hour drive to the 15,000 acre Chaparral WMA where we will explore the South Texas brush country trails from 9:00-12:00 searching for brushland specialties:
Black-throated, Cassin’s and Clay-colored Sparrows, Pyrrhuloxia, Chihuahuan Raven, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Audubon’s Oriole, Common Poorwill, Bewick’s and Cactus Wrens. We will enjoy a box lunch in the shady picnic area then continue north to Cook’s Slough just outside of Uvalde targeting Common Raven, Lazuli Bunting, Verdin, plus ducks, herons, egrets, kingfishers,
We can settle in to our accommodations and rest up for dinner at a local restaurant.
Day Three
We will visit Garner State Park in the morning, which has 16 miles of scenic trails and the Frio River winding its way through beautiful Hill Country terrain. Golden-cheeked Warbler, Black-capped Vireo, Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay, Olive-sided, Ash-throated, Vermillion, Brown and Great-crested Flycatchers, White-eyed, Bell’s, Yellow-throated and Red-eyed Vireos are on our target list this morning. Lunch at local eatery.
Possible afternoon locations include Uvalde Memorial Park, City of Uvalde Cemetery, and Utopia Park or we could return to earlier spots for any earlier bird misses or seek out reported rarities.
Day Two
We will check the eBird hotspot Uvalde Fish Hatchery in the morning hoping for Vermilion Flycatcher, Curve-billed Thrasher, Olive Sparrow, Verdin, Ash-throated Flycatcher, and Scarlet Tanager. Our next stop is the famous Neal’s Lodges on the Frio River for Tropical Parula, Golden Cheeked Warbler, Zone-tailed Hawk, Clay-colored Sparrow, Hooded Oriole, and the feeders at Cabin 61.
We will have lunch at a local eatery then travel to Chalk Park Bluff for Black-throated, Cassin’s, Clay-colored, Olive, and White-crowned Sparrows, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Canyon Wren, Spotted and Canyon Towhee, Audubon’s Oriole. And of course we will enjoy the beautiful bluff and crystal clear Nueces River.
We will travel to the Concan Frio Bat Cave area for Greater Roadrunner, Pyrrhuloxia, Canyon Wren, Bell’s Vireo, Cassin’s and Lark Sparrows, as well as maybe catching a glimpse of the 10-12 million Mexican Free-tailed bats that fly out at sunset and the raptors that dive into the exciting swirl of bats including Zone-tailed, Red-shouldered, Swainson’s and Harris’s Hawks, American Kestrel, Merlin and Peregrine Falcon. After this long thrilling day we will return to our house for a homemade dinner prepared especially for the group.
Day Four
After breakfast and packing up, we will explore County Road 202 at the Nueces River. We will stop for lunch along our route and then make our way back to the Botanical Gardens for a mid-afternoon return. This will conclude our tour!
