March 19-20, 2011 (Saturday-Sunday)
Sandhill Crane Migration
location: Platte River Valley, Nebraska
focus: bird photography
meeting time & location: 3/18 10am at the Harmony Transportation Center (NE corner of lot)
Notes:
We have 4 drivers: Dawn, Bob, Harry and Carol
We have
12 riders, (3 other folks are heading out before us)
Cecil is leaving at 5am on Friday,
- contact him at H:970.587.0222 or C:970.290.5761 or chellyer@hotmail.com
If you are leaving before the main group, notify Dawn so we don't wait for you.
What to wear: warm boots that you can get muddy (fields and parking areas tend to be thawing out and we could hit rain); cold weather gear (blinds are not heated); hats, gloves; toe and hand warmers; dark, quiet clothing (darker colors will help blend into surroundings)
what to bring: Dawn will have one pair of binoculars (they aren't very good though) but bring any scopes or binoculars for viewing opportunities; the longest lens you have plus wide angle - both will be very handy; can bring coffee/hot chocolate/tea into blinds
DO NOT BRING to blinds: flashlights, cell phones or any other noisy device; flashes on cameras must be turned off (or bring black electrical tape to cover the flash if you are not sure how to turn off the flash)
- we will stop at Cabela's for shopping/window shopping and lunch near Cabela's
- I will make a reservation for us for dinner on Friday night for 6:30 at a local, inexpensive restaurant so we can arrange details for meeting Sat morning. We need to be at Rowe Sanctuary between 6:00 and 6:15 a.m. on Sat.; it is a half hour drive from the hotel so we should be prepared to meet in the lobby of Microtel Inn at 5:15 a.m. to depart by 5:30 a.m.
- full moon is Saturday night! Should be some great opportunities for photographing the moon rising/setting (I am thinking about scoping out a spot for Sat night or Sun morning)
- for passengers: please remember to help with the cost of gas for the drivers
- bring snacks for the rides and outing on Saturday
Dawn has reserved a Block of rooms in Kearney, Nebraska
- Block is sold out for us at Microtel Inn in Kearney, Nebraska for the nights of Friday, March 18 and Saturday, March 19
- $59.49 plus tax per night for the 2 queens
- $50.96 plus tax per night for the rooms with one queen bed
- Address: 104 Talmadge in Kearney
- Call 877.361.2512 to make reservation; use confirmation code 57282109
- These rooms have not been prepaid so you will need to provide a credit card when calling
- Web site for hotel: MicrotelInn Reservations
- I stayed here last year and it is a very lovely hotel for the money
- clean, convenient, newer, seem to remember there was a free cookie plus refrigerators and microwaves in each room
Sunrise blind reservation for Rowe Sanctuary
- 16 reservations were made for the blind at Rowe Sanctuary; there are two spots remaining; these will be canceled on March 9 if no additional attendees join the trip
- Address is 44450 Elm Island Road, Gibbon, NE
- This was prepaid by me at the rate of $26.37 per person including tax (I had old information on pricing)
- We will need to arrive by 6 a.m. on Saturday, March 19; we will be in two different blinds but both face the same side of the Platte River
- Web site for Rowe Sanctuary: http://rowesanctuary.org
Sunset blind reservations for Nebraska Nature & Vistor Center
(formerly Crane Meadows)
- 16 reservations were made for the blind at Nebraska Nature & Visitor Center; there are two spots remaining; these will be canceled on March 9 if no additional attendees join the trip
- Address is 9325 South Alda Road, Wood River, NE
- This was prepaid by me at the rate of $25.12 per person including tax (I had old information on pricing)
- We will need to arrive in time for our 6 p.m. tour on Saturday, March 19
- Web site for Nebraska Nature & Visitor Center: www.nebraskanature.org
For both of the blind reservations, I will cancel any non-reimbursed reservations the week prior to the trip to have the money refunded. Please send payment via check to my attention at: 2833 Sage Creek Road, Fort Collins, CO 80528 Or bring cash or check to the next FCDCC meeting.
Please see the proposed map of places to visit during the day to see the cranes in the nearby fields. The Nebraska trip will be a great event. Observing this migration and the patterns these birds have participated in for centuries is a must for any photographer.
A great web site to look at photos of this event is http://www.michaelforsberg.com/. Michael Forsberg is a photographer local to Nebraska who has won a lot of awards for his sandhill crane photos.
Another is www.joelsartore.com. To see their photos of sandhill cranes in Nebraska, just search for the bird on their stock images pages.
Yet another is www.mangelsen.com - Tom Mangelsen - great collection of sandhill crane photos
You might also want to take a look at these bird photography sites:
http://www.digital-photography-school.com/an-introduction-to-bird-photography
http://www.digital-photography-school.com/photographing-birds
More details from Dawn
Maps of the Sandhill Crane Viewing Areas
Crane CAM at Rowe Sanctuary You can hear the cranes during the day buy they only roost on the water at night so sunrise and sunset are the best times to see the birds in the camera
Listen to sandhill crane vocalizations |
