Itinerary

Day 1- Arrival in St. John’s. Our tour starts after supper.

Days 2 - 5 - We are based in our comfortable hotel overlooking St. John’s harbour for the duration of our stay. We spend most of our time in and around St. John’s and the adjacent part of the Avalon Peninsula, maybe venturing further should we hear of a stray within driving distance. During our stay, we concentrate on gulls, alcids and Eurasian waterfowl, although we will not overlook several species of landbirds that are often desired species. We visit Cape Spear, the Easternmost Point of North America, and other scenic locations along the Avalon Peninsula coastline to see Great Cormorant, Common Eider, Purple Sandpiper, Dovekie, Thick-billed Murre and Black Guillemot. January is the best month of the year to see the charismatic Dovekie feeding close to shore (often just a few metres off the rocks!). St. John’s is unsurpassed in North America for the large number and rich diversity of gulls observed in comfort at close range. There are nine species present daily in winter including moderate numbers of Lesser Black-backed and Black-headed Gulls plus one or two European Mew (Common) Gulls. Glaucous Gulls are present in the hundreds and the ‘Kumlien’s’ Iceland Gulls by the thousands in the harbour and adjacent famous Quidi Vidi Lake. In most winters there is also one or two of each Yellow-legged Gull and European Herring Gull to look for. The St. John’s city ponds annually host significant numbers of wintering Eurasian Wigeon, ‘Eurasian’ Green-winged Teal and Tufted Ducks among the hundreds of Northern Pintail and Black Ducks. The boreal forest around St. John’s is home to resident Boreal Chickadee and the northern finches including Pine Grosbeak and White-winged Crossbill. Bohemian Waxwing is abundant within the St. John’s city limits in most winters. Winter weather in St. John’s is similar to that of the Great Lakes. We can drive to all the good birding locations and usually be birding next to the van. We spend time leisurely watching, examining and learning about many of the species we encounter. Nights in St. John’s.

Day 6 - Our tour ends after breakfast