Australia

Thinking about Australia does strange things to a person. We all seen the nature shows and read about the unique and stunning wildlife that occupies the massive continent. New Zealand falls into this category too, and thinking about them gives any nature a rush while simultaneously breaking their hearts. Not do both seem like they are on another planet, both seem impossible to get to. I never thought I would get the chance to go. The flights are usually long and expensive, and with a host of other travel options it may just be better to focus on other places.

Eastern Rosella

At least that’s what I told Christina, when she suggested that I buy the Australian Bird Guide when I was online shopping for bird books. “The pictures of colorful birds will look good on your coffee table at least.” Sage advice. Covid entry restrictions that lasted through the first half of the year meant that I had 2 unbooked weeks of PTO left, and we decided to plan a longer trip. Argentina was the target, but plans changed. On my way to dinner on a Friday in June I got an email from Scott’s Cheap Flights. Dallas to Sydney for $815 and a quick layover in Los Angeles.

Within 24 hours we were looking at places to go in Australia. That is easier said than done. The options are limitless. We quickly realized that you can’t even scratch the surface of Australia in 2 weeks. Given our flight deal we decided to spend a few days in Sydney and the rest along the Victorian coast in the Melbourne area, which included Phillip Island and the Great Ocean Road, one of the most scenic road trips in the world.

Some of the 12 Apostles along the Great Ocean Road

Jetlagged, we touched down in Sydney and explored the city, not liking it at first. But this was the Central Business District, which was reminiscent of downtown Dallas. Some initial walks in the park got us Rainbow Lorikeet. Instead of grackles, they have gorgeous parrots flying around their city. The main birding started the next day, when we got up and went to Centennial Park. The gigantic city park is great for birds in the Lachlan Swamp area, which we hustled to after stopping for Little and Long-billed Corellas, Sulphur-crested Cockatoos, and Crested Pigeons. All of those are ridiculously common, but they were still breathtaking. You’ve got it pretty good if those are your boring birds.                          

Crested Pigeon

It looked like there were trash bags in the trees as we approaching the swamp. Confusingly they started to fly. I had no clue what bird I was looking at. Then it hit me. Those aren’t birds, they’re Flying Foxes! There were thousands of them in the trees, and we forgot about any birds as we gawked at them. Birding brings some moments of disbelief at what you are looking at, and this was certainly one of them, even if it was not a bird. I snapped out of when a Laughing Kookaburra started calling, reminding me that there are high quality birds that needed to be admired as well. Our main quarry was a Tawny Frogmouth, but we had no clue where to look. We saw 2 birders across a pond and worked our way towards them, stopping to look at waterfowl like Pacific Black Duck and Black Swan before being invited to tag along with them. The tour ground to halt when an Australasian Figbird revealed itself, causing a welcome delay. We would not find a frogmouth on that day, but we did pick up Superb Fairywren! Fairywrens were a gateway drug to Australian birding for me, as they felt so otherworldly that I couldn’t believe they existed. Seeing one in person gave me this pride in myself for venturing all the way across the world to see a bird I thought I never would get to see.

Flying Fox

Australasian Figbird

Superb Fairywren

But the party did not end there as lunchtime approached. On our way out we stopped at a Powerful Owl roost and were told they were almost impossible to find even in the tree. I had to lay on the ground to avoid neck cramps as I gazed up in the tree. Christina gave a shout that she thought she had one. She didn’t have one, she had two! She did not let me forget that all trip, and that was fine with me. Powerful Owl was on my most wanted list.

Powerful Owl

We spent the afternoon being tourists in Sydney on a nice sunny day. What started as a leisurely walk turned into us walking the entire Bondi to Cooge Beach trail. We ended up walking something like 15 miles on the day but it was worth it. There were great looks at Superb Fairywrens and New Holland Honeyeater, as well as our first Nankeen Kestrel. The coastal views stole the show, and it was a great end to an exhausting but exciting day.

New Holland Honeyeater

Our birding continued when we flew to Melbourne. The southern coast of Victoria was much rainier than Sydney throughout our time in the country, which did impact birding. This area of the country was experiencing higher than usual rain and we were there in one of the rainier periods of the year. Nevertheless, we started our Great Ocean Road birding at You Yangs Regional Park outside of Geelong. Due to a flight delay we arrived later than anticipated and with bad weather we didn’t expect much. The area around the park headquarters is one of the better spots in the park and it was teeming with birdlife despite the dreary afternoon. Large, pink Galahs naturally caught our attention until we saw Eastern Rosellas, including a mating pair nuzzling up against each other. Eastern Rosella was another bird I had been dying to see for good reason, and this epitome of the uniqueness of Australia nature put on a dazzling display, even with the gray backdrop.

Galah

We got our first kangaroo on the trail as well, and we got it in the best way possible. The forest was silent as Little Ravens flew overhead and Striated and Brown Thronbills flitted in the undergrowth. Silently, a large kangaroo gray kangaroo came hopping out of a clearly, turned on the trail, and hopped away. This 5 second encounter brightened our day that had been hectic and riddled with travel stress. We could not have asked for a better start to our road trip, and Christina beaming ear to ear made me feel less bad for making her go on a bird walk in the rain. What a trooper.

Kangaroo. This one is a joey

While not the best birding route, the Great Ocean Road is one of the most scenic drives in the world and still has fantastic birding stops. Some people start it in Geelong and follow the coast to the terminus at Port Campbell, but we opted to do the opposite and drive to Port Campbell through the interior before taking the GOR back to Melbourne. Given the weather we made a good decision. It rained all day but the weather was wonderful when we got up early to start the Great Ocean Road, with the first stop being the Loch Ard Gorge. While there was not specific birding on this day, we did see some of the most stunning scenery I have ever seen. Most of the birds are common, but did see our only Singing Honeyeater of the trip. To be honest it was hard to look at birds because the ocean and coastline was all we could look at.

Silvereye

We quickly fell behind schedule, which is a good thing because it meant we were having so much fun. We left the coast and ascended to Melba Gully State Park. This would have been an amazing place to start a morning at. Gang-gang Cockatoo and Pink Robin are said to be present as well as bioluminescent larvae and potentially Platypus. We saw none of those, but the towering ferns were breathtaking. I also my first leeches for the year, which is notable because I saw none in Southeast Asia but found them in Victoria of all places. It freaked out Christina and kept her on edge for the rest of the walk. Her bravery was rewarded, as we got fantastic looks at Crimson Rosellas on our way out!

Laughing Kookaburra

By this point it was very late in the day, much later than we hoped and we still had to get another hour and a half to Lorne. But we had to stop at Blanket Bay to look for Koalas. It was one of our better opportunities to see them and it was down a dirt track that had me a little on edge with all the rain. We had some good omens with kangaroos for Christina and the only Beautiful Firetail of the trip and the first Gray Shrikethrushes for me. Once we got there we got some directions to the area for them with the key advice being to look for droppings. I felt like a tracker as we left no stone unturned looking for koala poop. We finally found a clump, and after a few minutes of searching against a gray sky we found one! We almost cried there together. Birders know about rosellas and firetails, but everyone knows how special a koala is. We laid down next to the poop so we could look up without straining our necks. It’s a moment I’ll never forget. It was the perfect way it end an exhausting but productive day.                    

Our first Koala

We got up before dawn in Lorne and made the short drive to the Sheoak Picnic Area. Our goal was Australian King Parrot and Gang-gang Cockatoo, neither of which were seen here. The Sheoak area is known for nocturnal animals as well, but we did not see any. We saw some kangaroos, but not much else was there. The foliage was dense and the weather was overcast. Nervously we decided to go up Sharps Track, a gravel road where high clearance and 4WD was advised. Turns out neither was needed, and it was quite east to get up.

Crescent Honeyeater

The birding at Sharps Track was outstanding. Australian King Parrots were in the parking where it was at a higher elevation than Sheoak and there were kangaroos as well. Sharps Track continued up higher than we actually made it due to time constraints. The sun coming out helped, but we had a few honeyeater species and a Golden-whistler. I wish we had more time to spend here because the habitat was fantastic. Coming down we had a highlight of the trip. A Koala was on the ground and we got to observe it as it and climbed a tree while very close to us. It was quite bold and we gawked at it for a solid half hour. Great spot, and it was our only birding of the day before we explored Lorne and went surfing.

An amazingly close Koala encounter

The weather in Victoria can be uncooperative at times, and on the day we began our drive to Phillip Island was pouring rain and howling winds. Did a certain have meltdown when the weather did not clear up and their fanny pack clip snapped? Yes, yes he did. Having my SE Asia trip impacted by rain and poor weather that day got to me. Christina will get a kick out of this paragraph despite me not wanting to mention it.

Australia King Parrot was worth the rainy day

Thankfully that was the low point of the low point of the trip because things got much, much better on Phillip Island, which is on the eastern side of Melbourne. The main draw here is the Penguin Parade, where Little Penguins nest on a beach, as well as Cape Barren geese, a globally rare but locally common species. The island is gorgeous with scenic beaches and plenty of farmland. It got less than a page in the site guide to Australia but it deserved way more. We first went to Swan Lake where we saw oodles of the desired geese with their florescent bills, as well as a Swamp Harrier. There was a small chance at Musk Duck, which thankfully we got to see. It was our only one of the trip and for such a weird Australian bird we were really lucky to be here.

Cape Barren Goose

Musk Duck

After breakfast we went to Oswin Roberts Preserve, which is full of Swamp Wallabies. We loved it so much that it was our first stop on our second day where we could get more activity. Both mornings had perfect weather and amazing birds. I knew it was a good omen when the first bird we saw on day 2 was a pair of Sacred Kingfishers. We also got some active Musk Lorikeets, a bird I didn’t think we had much of a chance of seeing. 3 soaring Wedge-tailed Eagles caused angry screeching from the many honeyeaters below, including White-eared and White-naped. Black-faced Cuckooshrike was also present. It was a fantastic preserve and a must stop.

Sacred Kingfisher

Swamp Wallaby

Our biggest reason for coming here was the Penguin Parade. Little Penguins nest on one of the beaches and researchers monitor them. You can buy tickets to watch them come up from the ocean and then follow them along boardwalks to their nests. It was dumbfounding to watch these small birds waddle by us and the low light on the boardwalks allowed us to hear them everywhere but not see them. Poor Christina braved the rain and sat in the front row as the wind whipped, but in the end it ended up being worth the effort. Before the parade we also had an Echidna nearby at the Nobbies, a cold, windy, but stunning point on the island where we heard seals and saw thousands of gulls, including a Pacific Gull!

Little Penguin

Silver Gull with chick

Hooded Plover, a really rare and good find

Back in Melbourne we had a morning before our flight, and we spent it at the famous Banyule Flats, which is a large trail complex in the city that has a pond for great birding. Walking in we had a Spotless Crake and you just knew it some serious birding was about to go down. They main birds we were hoping for here were Tawny Frogmouth and Red-rumped Parrot, but we could not find the trail to get down to the water’s edge. Fortunately we bumped into Lynn Easton, who has been birding the park daily for decades, and she showed us where we needed to go, and we would have totally missed the spot if it weren’t for her. From there the birding erupted. Lifers were everywhere and my head was spinning, Hoary-headed Grebe, then Pink-eared Duck, then Australian Reed-warbler, all while the stunning Rainbow Lorikeets are flying overhead. Then we had our first Red-rumped Parrot. Even on a cloudy to bright red rump and electric blue and green colors popped out at us. Lynn also showed us a frogmouth roost while explaining that recently foxes had been the demise of a few other pairs. She pointed them out to us and I was taken aback by how massive they were. I imagined small birds resembling twigs, not behemoths, and I realized I had been looking for these in the wrong places while down here. Massive shoutout to Lynn, that was some of the best 30 minutes of birding I ever had thanks to her knowledge.

Red-rumped Parrot

Tawny Frogmouth

Back in Sydney we were racing to snag more birds, and decided to take a gamble on the Rawson Parade Trail at Royal National Park over the Blue Mountains and Katoomba. Naturally it was on a day where the metro was doing track work, so after a disjointed delay we arrived at a beautiful trail that had some great birds. There is not much info on it on eBird but I did see birds like Green Catbird and Wonga Pigeon recorded. While neither were out there I expected as much, since I had no idea really where to go once on the trail. We still got Eastern Yellow Robin, one of Christina’s trip highlights, Lewin’s Honeyeater, and Eastern Spinebill. Final stop was Landing Light Wetlands near the airport, but we were really let down here. Despite a high species count reported, it was dead when we were there. Still, we got Golden-headed Cisticola and Yellow-rumped Thornbill to put us at 98 lifers.

The strange looking Pink-eared Duck

On our final morning we ran to see if we could get any lifers at Centennial Park, and we were rewarded for our early efforts with a Channel-billed Cuckoo, but that was about it. After admiring the flying foxes we had to go to the airport and head home. We finished with 99 lifers,, which has caused non-birder Christina to lose sleep because she really wanted 100. We will be coming back, as we only scratched the surface of how amazing Australia is.

Masked Lapwing

Eastern Rosellas

Cape Barren Geese at the Nobbies

Singapore and Malaysia

Singapore has a reputation of being a great introduction to Asian birding. The city-state is actually a large island off of Peninsular Malaysia and is primarily well known as an economic hub akin to a city like Dubai. That reputation came at a cost, as a lot of awesome habitat, and animals that come with it, is gone. Despite that, there are some great spots and a state of the art public transportation system that make it really to get around and get familiar with different habitats.

 

After consulting with my companion for the week, the legendary Tom McKean, we also decided to gamble on Kuching, Malaysia as a second stop, in the state of Sarawak on Borneo. Sarawak is more economically developed, which means it has considerably weaker nature than Sabah, the other Malaysian state in Borneo, or Kalimantan, which is the Indonesian state that occupies Borneo. 

 

Probiscis Monkey

Sabah is home to legendary sites like Mt. Kinabalu, Sepilok, the Kinabatagan River, and the Danum Valley, but we did not have  enough to visit these places and do them justice. With only a few days, we opted for Kuching because it had some accessible sites right outside of town and neither of us had been to SE Asia before. It was either Kuching or Fraser’s Hill on the peninsula.

Crimson Sunbird

 

After a very late arrival, Tom and I slept in and got a late start to the morning at the Windsor Nature Park , where there is a canopy walk. The walk was closed for the day, but the trails below were still open. The humidity was unreal, but we still got great looks at Black-naped Oriole and and Olive-backed Sunbird. Sunbirds remind me of hummingbirds of the Americas, and I really wanted to see at least one, although my main target was Crimson Sunbird.

 

Black-naped Oriole

After a  rainy lunch at the Newton Food Centre we headed off towards the botanical gardens, which were pretty birdy late in the day. There were some major highlights, like Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, a Gray-headed Fish Eagle feeding on a fish in a tree, and a pack of Smooth-coated Otters chasing a water monitor lizard. I also got my first Crimson Sunbird of the trip!

Smooth-coated Otter

 

Chinese Fried Oysters

Our next leg started with a flight to Kuching, and we went to Kubah National Park the following morning. We arrived before they opened and killed some time by admiring a stunning Blue-throated Bee-eater. I found Kubah surprisingly not super birdy, but our pace was probably too fast. We also got into the forest, which made it much harder to observe birds. Tropical birding is TOUGH, and I think we would have been better served being on the road. 

Blue-throated Bee-eater

 

I jolted to a stop on the road at one point by a waterfall. My bird senses were tingling and even though the forest was quiet I felt like we had a good chance at seeing something. Sure enough a flash of red alerted to one of my top targets: Scarlet-rumped Trogon! Trogons are my favorite family of birds, and getting to see one made my day. It was at this point that we entered the forest saw little to know bird activity, although the scenery was incredible. On the way we also had a Crested Serpent Eagle soaring in the clouds. I was pumped to come back the next day!

Gray-headed Fish-Eagle

 

An ultimate highlight of the trip was later that night. Tom and I booked a sunset cruise to look for Probiscis Monkeys and Saltwater Crocodiles. But larger animals were not the only things out there. As we were driving 2 Rhinoceros Hornbills flew in the opposite direction. It was a quick view, but I was going nuts. I wasn’t expecting to see one, and it was the bird of the trip! Once we got on the boat Common Sandpipers were abundant in the low tide, and we got our first looks at Common Kingfisher that were quickly one upped by a Stork-billed Kingfisher with a bright orange bill. 

 

We slowed to a crawl as we scanned for monkeys, and within 5 minutes we got cooperative views of a large male. This was the nature highlight of my life. Probiscis Monkeys are all over National Geographic and are a staple of any show about rare or cool looking animals. Now we had one right in front of us. I was so slack-jawed that I outright ignored another Stork-billed Kingfisher. Probiscis Monkeys are extremely shy around people due to over hunting, but they do well on the coasts after Muslim traders converted coastal tribes hundreds of years ago. Eating monkey meat is haram, and therefore we are able to see them more on the coasts. 

 

What an unreal animal

We stopped seeing the monkeys around sunset, and at that point we switched to spotlighting for saltwater crocodiles. We wouldn’t see much more than eye shine, but the beasts were all over the water. It was a little unsettling due to the small size our boat and dock that looked like it was a strong wind away from being destroyed.

 

Gunung Santubong from the boat

Unfortunately the next day did not go as well. Rain caused Kubah to be closed, despite no rain at the lower levels of the park. Annoyingly there was no way of knowing until I got there, and by that point it was midmorning. In an effort to make something out of nothing, I ended up taking a boat ride to Bako where the rain was pouring. I got my first looks at Asian Fairy Bluebird and had the amazing experience of sitting 5 feet under a grazing Probiscis Monkey, but overall the weather made it very difficult.

Asian Fairy Bluebird. The humidity is what makes the pictures look hazy.

Our final place to stay in Borneo was the Permai Rainforest Resort. We stayed in a treehouse that made canopy birding very easy outside of the pouring rain. Still, there were some babblers and Common Ioras that were fun to look at. Permai was stunning, and our treehouse overlooked the South China Sea crashing against the rocks. The beach offered the best sunset I've ever seen. Tom and I went on a night hike to try to see if we chance upon any mammals and came up short, but that was first time I have tried to go mammaling so it was to be expected. We just liked being out there at dark. We did get something out of it, though. I looked up at the right time and saw a Sunda Scops Owl silently swoop by. That brief glance was breathtaking, and it has made me way more excited about future night excursions. The rain continued into our last day as well, although we got to see more Probiscis Monkeys and Silvered Langurs on our waterfall hike.

Silvered Langur

From a birding perspective I was crushed about Malaysia. We left a lot on the table, but it was out of our hands with the rain and park closures. If you're just birding, skip Kuching and focus on other areas of the island that can cater to birding better. But Kuching is still worth a visit. The food, culture, people and beaches were incredible. I am so glad that we got to experience the city. I fully intend on going back, whether that is Fraser's Hill or the Danum Valley. It was safe and English was widely spoken as well. There is no excuse to not go!

Sunda Giant Squirrel

I wound up only birding at one other place in Singapore, but I went both days. Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve is on the edge of the country, about a 25 minute drive from Little India or an hour on the MRT. This little reserve has amazing birding and other really cool animals, like fruit bats, snakes, and crocodiles. Walking in I had the bird of the trip: Buffy Fish-Owl. This sighting was extra special because I read Owls of the Eastern Ice earlier this year and learned about them. Local birders were casual about it but I was buzzing. The visitor center has a colony of fruit bats underneath the pavilion that were extremely cooperative, and my mind was torn away from them to see a Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker.

Buffy Fish-Owl

One of the cooler bird experiences of the trip was walking around the boardwalks and stumbling on a Pink-necked Green-Pigeon sitting on a branch. These birds are ridiculously common in Singapore, but the vibrant colors reminded me of why I came here. I wanted to venture to Asia or the South Pacific partially because of the fruit doves I saw in field guides and partly for the parrots and kingfishers. We equate pigeons to being boring, bland, and brown. Not all are like that. I also got up close to Collared Kingfishers, another thing that drew me over here. The kingfisher of the trip was a White-throated that I saw on the way to Sungei Buloh and unfortunately couldn't photograph. Shorebird migration was also popping off at the wetlands, and I got great looks at Intermediate and Little Egrets, Purple and Gray Herons, and Common Redshanks. Getting to watch a fishing White-bellied Sea-Eagle was also fascinating. All of this was happening in one of the most metropolitan areas of the world!

Pink-necked Green-pigeon

Collared Kingfisher

I tried, and failed to find a Mangrove Pit Viper, but I was undoubtedly looking in the wrong place. I got caught in a torrential but brief downpour as well on a bridge, and during that time a 12 foot long crocodile emerged in the river below me! This was yet another moment of the trip that was dumbfounding at nature that exists on this planet. 

Saltwater Crocodile

There was one final place that I had to get to. With little phone battery I tried to take the 2 hour MRT journey from the northwest side of the island, Sungei Buloh, to Pasir Ris Park on the southeast side of the island to look for Oriental Pied Hornbill. I had no clue where to find them, but eventually I asked around enough to get to a spot where I might find one. Sure enough, high up in a tree there were 2! The birds flew from tree to tree for about half an hour. After logistical nightmares and rain, here I was staring at a hornbill, the bird I wanted to see most. It was a fitting end to a fantastic trip.

Oriental Pied Hornbill

This trip was well worth it. The company was amazing, the birds were great, and SE Asia is a region I cannot wait to get back to. This was a trip that I learned a lot on. Foreign birding adds a layer of challenges, and the weather was a lot to contend with, but now that I know what to expect I can better prepare for it. While I did not see a ton of birds, the quality of hornbills, sunbirds, and owls was clearly there. The nature in general crushed expectations. The hikes were stunning, and the mammals and reptiles made up for any birding misses. Singapore is a great place to fly into and the food scene was great, but it is only worth a day or two. Unless I was using it as a connection to somewhere else (which it is really great for) I don't think I would go back, but that is more of testament to how amazing the region is. I could spend a month in Kuching, and that was definitely the better city between the two. As I wrap this up after months of writing this, I can't help but dream of the next SE Asian destination. 

The best sunset ever

BBQ Stingray

Reconnecting with the Local Birds at Harry Moss Park

I started really getting into birding about 7 years ago, and since then the way I've birded has changed a lot. I used to stop for every cardinal, now I usually pay minimal attention to them. In college I had 2 patches, and in Dallas I had 2 patches. Spending a day on the Texas coast was a monumental endeavor, now a trip to Central America is easy. My Nat Geo field guide was all I read, now my bookshelf is running out of room with field guides from Chile to India and everywhere in between. 

Coming home and looking through a field guide to the "Birds of (insert far flung place here" can make you forget about the birds that made you fall in love with birding in the first place. Fortunately for me that changed when I went back to Harry Moss Park.

Eastern Bluebird

Migration is in its earliest stages here so no warblers would be seen, but I just wanted to get out. It was the pefect time of  year to do so. One day the trees are empty, the next day they are bright green and full of leaves and birds. The weather was neither cold nor hot and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. 

The first bird that caught my eye was a Blue Jay. This is another bird I can sometimes walk past, but this time I stopped and looked. The bright blue contrasting with the black collar was stunning. The crest and barred tail add eye popping detail. I was stunned. In that moment I remembered how I always encourage people to bird tropical areas to see all the color, and I realized we have plenty of color here. Believe it or not, people will travel here to see Blue Jays.

A well hidden Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

As I walked into the woods I was thrown off by how green it was. White-throated Sparrows were singing and Cardinals were whizzing by. It was almost sensory overload. Who have I become by getting mesmerized by a Cardinal? As I continued I heard the whizz of a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. Small, hidden, and not visually significant, I found myself searching through this bush to get a better look.

Stopping at the creek I had another treat: American Goldfinches in breeding plumage. Usually I only get to see them in their less appealing winter plumage. This time I got to see the reason why they are called goldfinches. A small flock of bright gold birds zipping across the creek is definitely a walk stopper. The last big at the spot was a swimming male Wood Duck.

Wood Duck

As I wrapped up my walk I found myself a little disappointed I didn't see bluebirds, but in the parking lot I got both a male and female Eastern Bluebird! The sunlight hit their deep blue plumage perfectly. My last few trips have been canceled due to Covid and weather, and I'm itching to get out of town. As I sit here planning my 2022 trips, I realized that I forgot how colorful and stunning the local birds are. It's going to be a great migration!

Guadalupe Mountains National Park

 I’ve been all over the state birding, except for one place: Guadalupe Mountains National Park. It’s one of the least visited parks in the country, and for reasons that aren’t it’s fault. It’s very isolated and there are no restaurants nearby, no showers, and the weather is not favorable for half the year due to crazy amounts of cold and wind. It’s not as popular as it’s neighbors Carlsbad Caverns or Big Bend, but it should be. 

Spotted Towhee

Making the effort to get out there is very rewarding from a birding perspective. The higher reaches of the Guadalupe Mountains offer unique habitat that can’t be found anywhere else in Texas. High elevation pine forest is scarce outside of the Davis and Chisos Mountains, but the Guads are more similar and closer to the Rockies. In fact, most of the tallest peaks in Texas are in the Guadalupe Mountains. As a result you get some birds that you can’t find in the other two. For example, this is the only place in Texas you can find Pygmy Nuthatch, and one of two places for Mountain Chickadee and Steller’s Jay (high up in the Davis Mountains is the other place).

I always have a top 5 of ABA and Texas birds that I want to tick, and the Guads had some of those. My top 5 for Texas was Williamson’s Sapsucker, Lewis’s Woodpecker, Mountain Chickadee, Pygmy Nuthatch, and Crimson-collared Grosbeak. 

My flight from El Paso arrived Friday night and I made the drive towards the Guads. Temps were dropping below freezing and wind gusts were 25+ mph. The nightly low ended up being 19° not including wind chill. I checked in at the ranger station and got my bearings. Starting at Frijole Ranch I did the Smith Spring loop. For the sake of length I’ll skim over this, but it’s a gorgeous trail and pretty easy. The wind was awful which kept the birds down. After that I hustled to Rattlesnake Springs just across the New Mexico to try for Blue Mockingbird, but no dice. That sucked, a definite brief low point of the trip. In hindsight I should have focused on McKittrick Canyon, that’s the spot to bird. Oh well.

Canyon Towhee

On to the really fun stuff. The Bowl is that area of pine forest that is so hard to find in Texas. Most people come to hike Guadalupe Peak, I came for the Bowl. Unfortunately it’s about 9 miles round trip and you gain 2,500 feet of elevation in 3 miles. It’s harder than the Colima hike. Side note: follow the wash to the frijole trail, I got confused but follow the Tejas Trail north. Anyways, the route I took up was Bear Canyon, the more direct, but steeper route. It took me about 2 hours and I saw no birds due to the insane wind. No worries, I was focused on just getting up. There’s a reason there are so few eBird checklists, especially in the winter, for the Bowl. But that’s why I decided to go in January.

View from The Bowl

My heart sank when I got to the top. The wind was worse than on Bear Canyon. I had the foresight to wear my light jacket and stuff my down sweater in my backpack, along with a balaclava and gloves. I was pouring sweat, but the wind and altitude cooled me off quickly and I needed both as layers for a chunk of the hike.

Way at the top is where the picture above this was taken

The birding was nonexistent for most of the hike due to the wind. I saw a flash of red at one point, which suggests Cassin’s Finch, but I couldn’t be sure. Still, the Bowl is enchanting. The tall pines do not feel like Texas, and despite no birds I didn’t want to leave. I could have spent all day up there, and I was the only person that made the hike that day.

This was the first time I’ve birded where I truly felt isolated. I was by myself in the mountains in the winter. Me, the bears, and the mountain lions. The feeling of being the only human up there is exhilarating. I resigned myself to not seeing any birds, which wasn’t that hard. The hike was worth it even if I didn’t see a single bird, which I didn’t until I reached an area that blocked the wind. 

Red-naped Sapsucker 

A Red-naped Sapsucker was the first identifiable bird I saw…an hour into the hike. It was a lifer, and one of the birds I came here to look for.  But what followed it up had me on the verge of tears. Another woodpecker started loudly calling and dropped. No way, a gorgeous male WILLIAMSON’S SAPSUCKER! 

Irregular in the Trans-Pecos in winter according to Nat Geo’s field guide, you have your work cut out to see one. The TOS handbook says that they are an annual visitor in very small numbers to West Texas. I dreamed of seeing one, but didn’t expect to. He was super cooperative and really allowed me to soak it in. To see it on a clear day in perfect habitat is indescribable.

Williamson's Sapsucker

I was high. This is why I’m a birder. The rush of the hike combined with the birds tipped me over the edge. This wasn’t some backyard feeder watching, “look at my redbirds” bullshit. This is the type of  birding that I want my friends to experience with me. It’s impossible to experience a moment like that and not love birds.

But I wasn’t done. A mixed flock turned up lots of usual suspects with a few Mountain Chickadees sprinkled in. Not a lifer, but a Texas lifer! No Pygmy Nuthatch, but honestly I ain’t even worried. I’m doing the Bowl again, maybe even later this year. 

Mountain Chickadee

Hiking down I paid no attention to birds because one false move was sending me down the mountain. Including early confusion, it took me about 2 hours to go up each way up and down, and I spent probably 3 hours in the Bowl itself, which is a pretty level trail minus one small part. 7 hours total to do about 9 miles, not bad. Next time I want to backcountry camp to spend even more time up there.

A surprisingly cooperative Sharp-shinned Hawk

I spent my last day in El Paso camping at Franklin Mountains. Overall a great park, the nature trail was productive and the Aztec caves were a great hike. I was able to add Green-tailed Towhee to my life list and Gambel’s Quail to my state list. 

Green-tailed Towhee

I spent my afternoon chasing Lewis’s Woodpecker at the El Paso Country Club. Finding one in Texas is a hard thing to do, and I somehow saw 2! My reaction is a little more muted because I saw it on a golf course and didn’t get great looks or photos. Nevertheless, I am HYPED to see one. 

Lewis's Woodpecker

The waning moments of my trip brought me to Rafa’s Burritos, which was 2 feet in length. Verdict: it slapped. Second best burrito after Roberto’s in San Diego. I wandered to Aguacaste Park literally along the border wall to work on my El Paso county list, where I may have gotten Greater Scaup but that is pending some photo reviews. By that point it was 3:30, time to head to airport and head home! To get 1 out of my top 5 is a good trip, 3 of 5 is mind boggling.

Texas Antelope Squirrel

I had high expectations for Guadalupe Mountains and I was still blown away. Birder or not, get there. It’s easily a three day trip between McKittrick Canyon, the Bowl, and Guadalupe Peak. I am really kicking myself for not doing McKittrick Canyon. You can even combine it with a trip to Carlsbad Caverns an hour up the road. The Guads having as little visitation as it has is honestly a crime, but it does give you some solitude that you can’t find at other parks. If you go, take me with you. I’m still digesting the experience, but it may be better than Boot Canyon. I’m not sure, the high hasn’t worn off yet. 

Black-throated Sparrow

Cold weather, high winds, it doesn’t matter. The challenges combined with the birds will make you feel more alive than you’ll ever feel.