LOCAL TOURS
FINDING ACADIA'S EARLY BIRDS: A SPECIAL MAINE BIRDING EXCURSION - MAY 16-19, 2024
Schoodic Institute’s bird ecology director Seth Benz will lead this special tour designed to enhance your enjoyment of all birds, especially those that frequent Acadia National Park and its immediate surroundings. Be among the first to see and hear colorful wood warblers returning to Acadia National Park, and enjoy a chartered boat trip to Petit Manan Island to see an active Atlantic puffin colony.
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SPRING BIRDS OF ACADIA - MAY 21 - 24, 2024
Spring Birds of Acadia is a multi-day program with an emphasis on returning songbirds at known land bird hotspots and features a chartered cruise to Petit Manan Island, an Atlantic puffin breeding colony. Holly Merker, author of Ornitherapy, teams up with Seth Benz, Schoodic’s Bird Ecology Director, to lead this tour.
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KATAHDIN SPLENDOR – Birds and Wildlife in the Shadow of Maine’s Highest Peak - JUNE 4-7, 2024
The combined scenic expanse of Baxter State Park and Katahdin Woods and Waterways National Monument is the stage for this extraordinary tour. Here, the history of nature exploration and birding is as rich and captivating as the landscape itself. We’ll search for boreal bird specialties – spruce grouse, black-backed and three-toed woodpeckers, boreal chickadee and Canada jay – as well as a variety of warblers, and moose! Lodging and dining will be at Big Moose Inn, a charming oasis featuring Fredericka’s restaurant’s casual fine dining and the Loose Moose Bar and Grille. The scenery on this adventure is equal to the birds and wildlife to be found.
This 4-day, 3-night tour begins in Bangor and travels by van immediately to The Maine Highlands in and around Baxter State Park, where we'll search for some of Maine's most elusive birds, including American Three-toed and Black-backed Woodpeckers. Spruce Grouse and Boreal Chickadees also haunt this locale, and we should witness Fox and Lincoln's Sparrows singing on their territories. We'll have a great chance to find some of the tougher warblers, such as Blackpoll, Bay-breasted, Tennessee and Mourning, and northern forest flycatchers such as Alder, Least, Yellow-bellied and Olive-sided.
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COASTAL SPLENDOR: Puffins, Warblers, Lobster and Lodging by the Edge of the Sea – JUNE 8-10, 2024
Petit Manan Island is home to an active seabird breeding colony. Schoodic Institute staff will take you there on a boat trip to observe nesting Atlantic Puffin, Common Eider, Razorbill, and Arctic and Common terns. We will also search coastal waters and ledges for Gray and Harbor seals, Bald Eagle, and Peregrine Falcon. Back at Schoodic Institute, we will enjoy locally-sourced foods, including fresh-caught lobster. Birding highlights include nesting warblers, bobolinks, and a field trip to nearby Blueberry Barrens in search of Upland Sandpiper. Participant lodging is nestled within earshot of pulsing ocean waves on the campus of Schoodic Institute. This promises to be an exciting 3-day experience.
Acadia National Park and the Downeast Maine region feature world class glacially-sculpted volcanic mountain-top balds as well as nearshore ledges bathed by impressive tidal fluctuations. Treeless offshore islands are home to iconic breeding birds as are the spruce-dominated peninsulas that reach out into the cold coastal waters of the Gulf of Maine. Join us for a brief and exciting journey through this scenic landscape in search of its fascinating birdlife.
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ABA ADVENTURE AT ACADIA NATIONAL PARK - July 7-12, 2024
The ABA is partnering with the National Parks to provide an amazing adventure for younger birders, ages 9-12, with an accompanying adult. This unique experience provides an all-inclusive birding vacation set in the pristine landscape of Schoodic peninsula in Acadia National Park with all the comforts of private lodging, delicious meals prepared with fresh, locally sourced ingredients, expertly planned daily outings, a puffin and seal boat trip, and in-session transportation. Allowing you to fully enjoy your time in Maine’s Acadia National Park.
Acadia National Park and the Downeast Maine region feature world class glacially-sculpted volcanic mountain-top balds as well as nearshore ledges bathed by impressive tidal fluctuations. Treeless offshore islands are home to iconic breeding birds as are the spruce-dominated peninsulas that reach out into the cold coastal waters of the Gulf of Maine. Join us for a brief and exciting journey through this scenic landscape in search of its fascinating birdlife.
DETAILS
ACADIA'S ICONIC BIRDS, WHALES, and SCENIC VIEWS - July 13-17, 2024
Explore Acadia National Park, featuring an Atlantic puffin tour and a separate whalewatching tour in the nutrient-rich waters of the Gulf of Maine. Observe common loons, shearwaters and humpback whales, and learn about regional ecology at a comfortable pace. Enjoy an exclusive tour to the summit of Cadillac Mountain. Experience the thrill of discovery while being immersed in Acadia National Park’s history and outstanding beauty, her landscapes and seascapes.
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MAINE'S BOLD COAST: SCHOODIC TO HEAD HARBOR PASSAGE - August 27 - 31, 2024
Schoodic Institute’s bird ecology director Seth Benz will lead this special tour designed to enhance your enjoyment of all birds, especially those that frequent Acadia National Park and its immediate surroundings. Be among the first to see and hear colorful wood warblers returning to Acadia National Park, and enjoy a chartered boat trip to Petit Manan Island to see an active Atlantic puffin colony.
DETAILS
FALL MIGRATION AND MONHEGAN - SEPTEMBER 8-13 and 15-20, 2024
This special, small-group session is devoted to fall migration, and will include one or two day trips to the iconic Monhegan Island. The rest of the week will be spent traveling to the best migrant hotspots based on the weather, tides, and bird migration patterns.
This camp is devoted to the wonders of autumn migratory season. This intensive week of birding will take participants from tidal marshes and beaches to hawk watches, spruce forests, and the outer islands and waters of Muscongus Bay, depending on where the birding is hottest. The highlight will be day trips to Monhegan Island, one of the best "migrant traps" in the Northeast -- a place justly famous for its birding and dramatic rocky coastline, which has inspired artists for more than a century. Learn about how and why birds migrate and the conservation challenges facing them. (The session's name is taken from director Scott Weidensaul's Pulitzer Prize-finalist book, "Living on the Wind: Across the Hemisphere with Migratory Birds.")
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