Colorado Grouse
Highlights
Highlights
- Superlative wildlife, from memorable lekking grouse to rosy-finches and large mammals
- Excellent bird and mammal watching across a range of elevations and habitats
- Spectacular mountain scenery and canyonlands
Map
Map
Overview
Tour Overview
Join us on our Colorado Grouse tour to experience an amazing wildlife spectacle – the foot-stomping, cooing and cackling of lekking grouse!
April in Colorado is a wonderful time of year. Snow-capped peaks straddling the Continental Divide, immense prairies and plains, wildlife-rich riparian corridors, and magnificent canyons and remarkable rock formations. And April is the time when Greater and Gunnison Sage-Grouse, and Lesser and Greater Prairie-Chickens are foot-stomping, cooing and cackling, as the males try to impress females and dominate rivals.
Travel around Colorado is usually easy (as long as we do not experience a late snowfall!), with fine accommodations, and although there are several long drives, we travel through superlative and photogenic scenery. Mesas along the Colorado River, extensive grasslands and sagebrush, many snow-capped peaks over 4000 metres, magnificent canyons and wonderful vistas, alkaline lakes, and beautiful montane spruce-fir forests. Target species include 5 grouse, Mountain Plover, three rosy-finches, Dusky Grouse, Pinyon Jay, Thick-billed Longspur, and a host of mammals: Bighorn Sheep, Pronghorn, Elk, Mule Deer, Coyote and Red Fox.
Dates & Prices
DATES & PRICES
Please note that this tour runs bi-annually.
What's Included
What's Included
Tour Price Includes
- All accommodations
- Breakfast and lunches
- Ground transportation
- One guide and vehicle with 4 - 7 participants, 2 guides and vehicles with 8 - 12
- All park, conservation and entrance fees
Tour Price Does Not Include
- Flights to and from start / end location
- Travel Insurance
- Items of a personal nature
Gallery
Gallery
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival in Denver, CO
Our Colorado Grouse tour starts in Denver, where we gather for a welcome dinner. Night in Denver.
Day 2: Drive to Scott City, Kansas
Our first target grouse is Lesser Prairie-Chicken, which is sadly in steep decline across its breeding range. There are no reliable sites to find the Lesser Prairie-Chicken in Colorado, so we will head east towards Kansas to find this species. Along the way we will be looking for a variety of birds including White-crowned Sparrows, Horned Larks, Ferruginous Hawks, Thick-billed and Chestnut-collared Longspurs. Night at Scott City, Kansas.
Day 3: Lesser Prairie-Chicken lek
We will be up very early to visit the Lesser Prairie-Chicken lek. This will be a magical experience watching the males shuffling and darting back and forth, while the females watch on. Afterwards we enjoy a well-deserved breakfast, and check out of our hotel. We may visit Scott State Park for Eastern and Western Bluebirds, Hawks and an array of waterfowl. We will then drive northwards towards Wray. En route we may find Swainson’s Hawk, Long-billed Curlew, Burrowing Owl and Great-tailed Grackle. If we have time, we may make a late afternoon visit to the lek site, but will plan to visit there early the next morning. Night in Wray.
Day 4: Greater Prairie-Chicken lek, Pawnee Grasslands
We will wake up early and visit the Greater Prairie-Chicken lek site, located on a private ranch.
Greater Prairie-Chickens have done well recently and we should be treated to lengthy and very close views of males dancing on the lek. There should be great photo opportunities.
Afterwards we will refuel and then head west towards the Pawnee Grasslands. The famed short-grass prairie holds Ferruginous Hawk, Golden Eagle, Mountain Plover, Long-billed Curlew, Prairie Falcon and Thick-billed Longspur and we will spend much of the afternoon covering the area. If we have time we will visit wetland areas for waterfowl. Night in Fort Collins.
Day 5: Drive to Walden
Today’s route takes us west to Walden, through a variety of habitats, from stream valleys to high mountain passes. Along the rivers we will look for American Dipper, while Bighorn Sheep may be spotted on the slopes above us. At Cameron Pass we are in the high country, and Northern Goshawk, American Three-toed Woodpecker, Pine Grosbeak and rosy-finches are possible. Near Walden we may encounter Golden Eagle and we should see Pronghorns. Walden Reservoir is often good for waterfowl. Overnight at Walden.
Day 6: Greater Sage-Grouse lek
Before dawn we visit the nearby Greater Sage-Grouse lek, where we will watch the antics of both males and females. The males put on a great display; one male will usually attract most of the females. Afterwards, we will give Walden Reservoir another scan. We will then drive west towards Craig. Night in Craig.
Day 7: Sharp-tailed Grouse and Colorado National Monument
We will begin early this morning at a Sharp-tailed Grouse lek on private property just outside of Craig. This will be another wonderful experience watching males and their golden combs and purple air sacs dancing in the openings.
Afterwards, we head to Grand Junction, where we will visit the amazing Colorado National Monument this afternoon. The Colorado National Monument not only provides stunning scenery, but should deliver Golden Eagle, Gambel’s Quail, Western Scrub-Jay, Juniper Titmouse and Black-throated Sparrow. Night at Grand Junction.
Day 8: Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
Today we leave Grand Junction and drive to Gunnison. We will explore the spectacular Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park on the way. The main attraction for birders here is Dusky Grouse, but we can also expect White-throated Swift, Western Scrub-Jay, Juniper Titmouse and more. Night in Gunnison.
Day 9: Gunnison Sage-Grouse lek
We have our last very early morning at the Gunnison Sage-Grouse lek. We will be viewing from a trailer, with the birds quite far off, so photography opportunities are not great. Afterwards, we may visit Crested Butte and Mount Crested Butte in search of rosy-finches. There will be some time to relax in the afternoon. Night at Gunnison.
Day 10: Gunnison to Denver
We will depart Gunnison and head back to Denver. On the way we will visit the Silverthorne area to look for Rosy-finches and Loveland Pass to look for Ptarmigan. Night in Denver.
Day 11: Departure
Our Colorado Grouse tour ends today. You can depart anytime for home.
What to Expect
What to Expect
Overview
The Colorado Grouse tour is a moderately paced tour. We focus on finding a diversity of birds and also enjoying scenic landscapes. You can expect very early morning starts (at lek before daylight) on five days, the other days we will aim to be on the road by 8am.
Food
Some days we will be birding before breakfast. On other days, we will have breakfast at the hotel before we head out for the day. We often take a picnic lunch in the field, but will occasionally stop at a restaurant for lunch. Dinner is usually at the hotel or a nearby restaurant. Each evening after dinner we compile the day’s checklist, review the day’s activities, birds, mammals and other observations, and plan the next day’s activities.
Accommodation
We stay in accommodations close to the best birding locations. This means we are often staying in rural locations and hotels, which may be basic. Because we are visiting many sites on this tour, there will be many 1-night stays.
Walking
Walking on this tour is easy. Walking will usually be on well-maintained trails or along roads. We do not anticipate any prolonged hikes.
Driving
Many days involve a considerable amount of driving as we move from one hotspot to the next; we break up the drive with many frequent stops. We will be viewing the leks from vehicles or from a viewing trailer, which will be positioned in a way for all to see and appreciate the grouse.
Climate
Weather conditions during the trip will range from mild to cool. We may experience windy conditions and rain or possibly even snow. Higher altitudes and nights may be cold. Sometimes weather impacts our itinerary, and we have to modify our daily plan. Clothing should be appropriate for the cold, such as warm jackets, gloves, scarves and warm headgear, and we recommend dressing in layers. High altitude can pose problems from altitude sickness; those with heart or respiratory conditions should consult their physicians.
Featured Wildlife
Featured Wildlife
While we cannot guarantee sightings of the birds or mammals listed below, we believe that encountering these species is quite likely during this tour.
- Gunnison Sage-Grouse
- Greater Sage-Grouse
- Lesser Prairie-Chicken
- Greater Prairie-Chicken
- Thick-billed Longspur
- Mountain Plover
- Pinyon Jay
- Brown-capped Rosy-Finch
- Moose
- Bighorn Sheep
- Pronghorn
Past Tour Checklists
Past Tour Checklists
View the list of birds and other wildlife we encountered on our past tours.