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01-19-2019, 04:52 PM
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#1
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Member
Join Date: Nov 2017
Location: San Juan Bautista, California
Trailer: 2016 Escape 19
Posts: 35
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Campgrounds and bird watching centreal Calif.
Hello,
Some friends from the east coast are visiting in March who are active birdwatchers. They will be renting a camper and would love us to all go camping in an area where they can see a variety of birds. Anyone have any ideas for campgrounds in California anywhere from San Francisco to Ventura region? Could be from the Sierras to the coast.
Thanks so much!
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01-19-2019, 06:37 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: Northern California, California
Trailer: 2019 Escape 21
Posts: 759
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You can sometimes view the rare California Condor at the Pinnacles National Monument. They also have some great hiking there as well. The California Condors are the largest wild birds in North America.
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01-19-2019, 07:00 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Benton County, Iowa
Trailer: 2013 Escape 21 Classic Number 6, pulled by 2018 Toyota Highlander
Posts: 8,234
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Birding trails
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mary LG
Hello,
Some friends from the east coast are visiting in March who are active birdwatchers. They will be renting a camper and would love us to all go camping in an area where they can see a variety of birds. Anyone have any ideas for campgrounds in California anywhere from San Francisco to Ventura region? Could be from the Sierras to the coast.
Thanks so much!
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There are a number of sites which describe areas around Ventura and the birds that can be seen there. The Ventura Audubon society is just one organization that promotes the concept of birding trails which are well researched by locals. Usually visitor information centers have printed brochures with a map, species observed in the area, parking sites, etc. When we developed one for eastern Iowa we received funding for printing from some commercial enterprises such as wineries and restaurants which were all well researched by the locals. A morning of pursuing the yellow bellied sapsucker can give a body an appetite.
Iowa Dave
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Ain’t no trouble jacking a double Burma Shave
Dave
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01-19-2019, 07:48 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Fremont, California
Trailer: 2016 21. '15 Ford Explorer V-6
Posts: 1,558
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bea
You can sometimes view the rare California Condor at the Pinnacles National Monument. They also have some great hiking there as well. The California Condors are the largest wild birds in North America.
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Yes, They fly back and forth between Pinnacles and the Big Sur Coast along Hwy. 1. Also, anywhere along the western foothills of the Sierras are good for a variety of smaller birds and larger raptors. We don’t have any favorite areas, but always have two pair of binoculars at the ready.
__________________
Steve and Debbie
2016 - 21'
“Get out the map and lay your finger anywhere down” -Indigo Girls
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01-19-2019, 08:19 PM
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#6
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Site Team
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Mid Left Coast, California
Trailer: 2014 Escape 21
Posts: 5,122
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a spectacular site for seeing wintering shore birds is the Elkhorn Slough behind Moss Landing. This would be a day trip from most anywhere in the Monterey to Santa Cruz area (its midway between them). https://www.elkhornslough.org/
there's a tiny KOA Express right in Moss Landing, if they do stay there I highly recommend lunch at the Moss Landing Cafe, far better than the more famous Phil's Fish Market which has degenerated into a tourist trap.
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01-19-2019, 08:32 PM
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#7
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Abbotsford, British Columbia
Trailer: 2011 19'
Posts: 223
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Here is a link to all the latest bird sightings in Ca. http://birding.aba.org/search.php
We use it all the time when we are down there.
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01-19-2019, 08:51 PM
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#8
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Ventura County, California
Trailer: 2015 Escape 17A
Posts: 2,344
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each time we've camped at San Simeon State Park (38 mi. N of San Luis Obispo on CA-1), we've encountered groups of Birders in the campground, on the trails, and along the beach.
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01-19-2019, 09:09 PM
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#9
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Fremont, California
Trailer: 2016 21. '15 Ford Explorer V-6
Posts: 1,558
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Great White Fronted Goose
Our Central Communty Park has been overrun with Canada Geese for decades, as they decided not to migrate. Today, on a little 2 miler around the lake, we saw our first Great White Fronted Geese having a social with the Canada Geese. Too bad we didn’t have our binocs!
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/...Goose/overview
__________________
Steve and Debbie
2016 - 21'
“Get out the map and lay your finger anywhere down” -Indigo Girls
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01-19-2019, 09:34 PM
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#10
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: SLO County, California
Trailer: 2014 Escape 21C 2019 Expedition
Posts: 5,210
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Morro Bay is a bird sanctuary; MB State Park and Montana de Oro SP have campsites.
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"We gotta get as far away as we can!"
- Russell Casse, Independence Day
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01-20-2019, 06:45 AM
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#11
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Central, Pennsylvania
Trailer: Escape#5 2022 E19
Posts: 26,268
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There is always San Juan Capistrano where the swallows migrate from Peru in March
http://www.missionsjc.com/about/swallows-legend/ and do not forget the Monarch butterfly migration.
__________________
Jim
Sometime life gets in the way of living.......
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01-20-2019, 11:12 AM
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#12
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Member
Join Date: Nov 2017
Location: San Juan Bautista, California
Trailer: 2016 Escape 19
Posts: 35
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Thank you all so much for your ideas! I live near Pinnacles National Park and condors fly over my house on occasion. They are spectacular. It's my friends' first time on the west coast so they are excited to see all types of birds. And, I am happy to have a new take on camping that I'd not really done much of before.
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01-20-2019, 02:56 PM
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#13
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Juneau, Alaska
Trailer: 2015 17A - Ready for more Maiden Voyages ....
Posts: 881
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I know geographically I'm off thread …. In SouthEast Alaska, go to the local dump to view up close many Bald Eagles and close ups of Brown (Grizzly) Bears. Sad but true. Likely environmental laws in California won't allow open dumping though.
Tom
__________________
Consciousness: That confusing time between naps
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01-20-2019, 04:36 PM
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#14
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Site Team
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Mid Left Coast, California
Trailer: 2014 Escape 21
Posts: 5,122
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a lot of bald eagles winter at Lake San Antonio, in south Monterey County... they used to have boat tours on the lake to view them, but these past few years the water level has been too low, so I don't know the state of that. there is a campground there run by county parks, but its been suffering due to the lack of water shutting down all boating activities, and without the income from the boaters, there's no money for park maintenance... I know their water system was down last year (no potable water in the camp, so you must bring your own drinking water).
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01-23-2019, 12:37 PM
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#15
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: Tehachapi, California
Trailer: none
Posts: 515
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I have to concur with those suggesting the Central Coast area for bird watching, having previously lived there for many years.
I used to work for the County of San Luis Obispo in the Communications shop. One of our tasks was to maintain the mountaintop radio communications sites in SLO and northern Santa Barbara counties. We have a site which overlooks San Simeon, as well as Nacimiento Lake which was always a good spot to see condors. In fact, they have been releasing juveniles in that area recently. While they are breath-taking birds to behold, we always found them annoying and destructive critters to our antenna arrays and buildings. They like to chew on rubber, tape, plastic, shingles, etc. Not the sharpest birds in the bird kingdom . . .
https://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/l...224917105.html
__________________
Greg
Formerly owned a 2007 24' HiLo/ 2003 Tahoe combo. Interested in the 5.0TA
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01-23-2019, 01:23 PM
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#16
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: Milpitas, California
Trailer: 2017 19'
Posts: 347
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San Simeon State Park might be a good basecamp, you can go up and down the coast from there. If renting and not wanting to tow the campground (also several others in CA) works with 3rd party vendor to deliver rental trailer to your site.
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