Posted by Les Barstow on March 7, 2007 at 12:18 PM
Anyone else heading out to the Crane Festival this weekend in Monte Vista?
I'll be there Sat. and Sun. both; hopefully the Cranes will be co-operative this year.
Posted by Todd Caudle on March 7, 2007 at 12:48 PM
There were a bunch of cranes right along the road west of San Luis Lakes State Park on Saturday, so I'll bet the refuge is looking good. Never been out there for that, do the cranes wear party hats for the festival or anything?
From what I understand, the cranes don't take well to wearing hats, but the FWS does put out a big spread for the cranes on the South end of the Refuge, and provides crash space for cranes who are just passing through for the party.
The Crane Fest is a good way to get to know the area a bit better. The festival offers Raptor Tours (bus-based tours that generally know the best owl, eagle, and other BOP locations), and this year they're offering a "Blanca Wetlands Tour", which is apparently on BLM lands. I've gotten some decent owl locations from the Raptor Tours in the past, and I'll be taking the Blanca tour this year. Of course, they offer sunrise and sunset crane viewing, too, but if you're marginally adventurous, you can probably figure that part out on your own...
Discussion
4 repliesI'll be there Sat. and Sun. both; hopefully the Cranes will be co-operative this year.
The Crane Fest is a good way to get to know the area a bit better. The festival offers Raptor Tours (bus-based tours that generally know the best owl, eagle, and other BOP locations), and this year they're offering a "Blanca Wetlands Tour", which is apparently on BLM lands. I've gotten some decent owl locations from the Raptor Tours in the past, and I'll be taking the Blanca tour this year. Of course, they offer sunrise and sunset crane viewing, too, but if you're marginally adventurous, you can probably figure that part out on your own...