WINTER OWLING We're adding a tour...

Guide Peter Burke has been reading the tea leaves, and the signs look promising for winter owls and other birds, so we are tentatively adding a Southeast Ontario: Winter Birds tour to our schedule for January 14-18, 2012. We'll accept bookings for the tour with no obligation until December 12, when we'll decide whether to run the tour based on an updated evaluation of the birding prospects. Early indications are that it should be a good year for Boreal and Snowy owls. No news yet of Northern Hawk Owl or Great Gray, though both occur some winters. Winter finch numbers are not projected to be huge, but we should find crossbills, redpolls, and others. There should also be Snow Buntings, Northern Shrike, and great selections of winter gulls and raptors (perhaps even Gyrfalcon?). We'll update you mid-December, then you can make your final decision. Contact us to hold space. Our 2009 tours were a huge hit!

HONDURAS Central America's best-kept secret

Will winter ever end? Who'll care if we're birding in Honduras!! March is the perfect time to get away to enjoy the birding sites of this amazing country, a large percent of which is  covered in forest. With growing ecotourism, the areas set aside for National Parks and Protected Areas have greatly increased in the last 10 years. Getting there? Flight options are good, and it's just a short journey down from Miami and Houston. The bird list is impressive, the culture is rich, and the food and lodging are great! We'll even get to experience the beautiful Lodge at Pico Bonito -- with terrific service and facilities -- our last three nights. It'll be a fabulous place to end the tour. Hope to see you there! --Jesse Fagan
Read more about "Honing in on Honduras" in Jesse's recent blog post.

AFRICA Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Egypt on tap

If you've visited this month's recent photos gallery and seen those great pics from Kenya, you've probably already got Africa birding on your mind! Coming up in our 2012 schedule on the continent are 8 departures, of which the following five still have a few spaces open:
NEW TOURS with Terry Stevenson
Birding Plus Egypt: Mar 3-20 with Terry Stevenson (5 spaces; with Petra extension)
Kenya Highlights: Jul 4-22 with Terry Stevenson (2 spaces)
LONGTIME CLASSICS with Terry Stevenson or Phil Gregory
Uganda: May 17-Jun 7 with Phil (3 spaces)
Kenya Safari Spectacular: Aug 31-Sep 28 with Terry (3 spaces)
East Africa Highlights: Oct 6-26 with Terry (Kenya/Tanzania; 2 spaces)
Check out our tour pages linked above for itineraries and more.

2011 winds down...
The year is rapidly coming to a close. Our last spaces for December getaways (incl. 2 tours over Christmas, 1 over New Year's) are:
Oman & the UAE: Dec 1-17 with George Armistead (2 spaces)
Uruguay: Dec 3-17 with Alvaro Jaramillo (3 spaces)
Brazil's Rio Roosevelt: Dec 15-28 with Bret Whitney (1 space)
Trinidad & Tobago: Dec 17-26 with Wayne Petersen (2 spaces)

Hawaii: Apr 1-10 with George Armistead
Colorado Grouse I: Apr 4-14 with Chris Benesh
Bhutan: Apr 6-27 with Richard Webster
Texas Coast Migration Spectacle I: Apr 14-20 with John Coons (1 space)
Colorado Grouse II: Apr 14-24 with Dan Lane (3 spaces)
Texas's Big Bend & Hill Country: Apr 21-30 with Chris Benesh
Dominican Republic II: Apr 28-May 5 with Jesse Fagan
Brazil's Rio Roosevelt: May 6-16 with Marcelo Padua
Arizona Nightbirds & More II: May 10-14 with Dave Stejskal (1 space)
Arizona I: May 11-20 with John Coons
Point Pelee Migration Spectacle: May 12-19 with Peter Burke (1 space)
Uganda: May 17-Jun 7 with Phil Gregory (3 spaces)
Arizona II: May 18-27 with Dave Stejskal

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