Resource person: Josh Engel, josh@redhillbirding.com

Location: Marina Village Conference Center | 1936 Quivira, San Diego, CA, 92109

Description:

Central Valley, Mountain Foothills, and Santa Cruz Island
Nights 1 and 2: Taft | Nights 3 and 4: Ventura
Ends in San Diego around mid-day on Thursday, February 29.
Per person cost: $2180

This tour leaves San Diego on Sunday after festival activities have wrapped up, and heads north through Los Angeles, spending our first night in
Taft, at the southern end of the Central Valley. Basing ourselves in Taft for two nights will give
us a full day to explore the area. We will spend the morning on the Carrizo Plain tracking
down LeConte's Thrasher, Bell's Sparrow, Ferruginous Hawk, and possibly Mountain Plover. In the afternoon, we'll head up in elevation to Bitter Creek NWR, which is the best spot in
Southern California to see California Condor. If we still have time, we will visit nearby forest to
look for White-headed Woodpecker and other montane birds.
The next day we will head over the coastal mountains to look for Yellow-billed Magpie in the
foothills of Santa Barbara County. We could also have another chance to look for condor if we
missed it the previous day, and we could also find birds like Chestnut-backed Chickadee,
Lawrence’s Goldfinch, and Tricolored Blackbird along the drive. After spending our night in
Ventura, the final full day will have us taking a boat ride to Santa Cruz Island, home of the
endemic Island Scrub-Jay (and Island Fox). We could see a few seabirds en route. After a final
night in Ventura, the next morning we'll drive back to San Diego, arriving by mid-day.

Fees for this trip are non-refundable after December 20, 2023.

Please note: overnight parking is not available at Marina Village Conference Center. Please make arrangements for secure parking on your own.

Available: 14/14

Price: $2,180.00 Taxes waived

Notes: In partnership with Red Hill Birding

More information: Fee is based on double occupancy. Single supplement $395.

Tags: Land-based Water-based

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