2008 SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Field Trips Schedule & Registration Process

April 30-May 6, 2008

Hotel information may be found via the website http://natureali.org/accommodations.htm.  The Kernville Chamber of Commerce can provide lodging information call (760) 376-2629.

Field Trips at a Glance

BIRD BANDING

TRIP A: Bird Banding Demonstration at Kern River Preserve

BIRDING

TRIP B: Butterbredt Spring & East Kern Desert Oases
TRIP C: Butterbredt Spring & Piute Mountains
TRIP D: Canebrake Ecological Reserve
TRIP E: Chimney Peak National Backcountry By-way
TRIP F: Fay Ranch Road
TRIP G: Galileo Hill-Silver Saddle Resort
TRIP H: Greenhorn Mountains Transect
TRIP I: Inyokern – Le Conte’s Thrasher & Much More
TRIP J: Isabella Reservoir
TRIP K: Kelso Creek Sanctuary
TRIP L: Kern River Preserve Headquarters
TRIP M: Kern River Valley & Southern Sierra Nevada
TRIP N: Kern River Preserve Bird Walk
TRIP O: Little Lake & Owens Lake
TRIP P: Migrant Corner Trail & Prince’s Pond
TRIP Q: Mojave Desert & Great Basin
TRIP R1: Owling – All Night Owling on Breckenridge Mountain
TRIP R2: Owling – All Night Owling in the Greenhorn Mountains
TRIP S: Owling – High Country
TRIP T: Owling – Low Country
TRIP U: San Joaquin Valley & Greenhorn Mountains
TRIP V: San Joaquin Valley/Tulare Lake Basin
TRIP W: South Fork Wildlife Area
TRIP X: Target Species Tuesday

BUTTERFLIES

TRIP Y: Introduction to Kern River Valley Spring Butterflies

GEOLOGY

TRIP Z: Southern Sierra Geology

HABITAT RESTORATION

TRIP AA: Kern River Preserve Habitat Enhancements & Stewardship

PHOTOGRAPHY

TRIP BB: Basic Bird Photography Workshop at the Kern River Preserve
TRIP CC: Advanced Bird Photography Workshop at Isabella Reservoir

NATURAL HISTORY

TRIP DD: Natural History of the Kern River Watershed

Field Trips Introduction

This year's Nature Fest features all day Wednesday through Tuesday Kern River Valley and Southern Sierra Nevada birding trips. Shorter bird banding, birding, butterfly, geology, owling, and photography trips are featured as well. Destinations will include the Sequoia National Forest and South Fork Valley GLOBALLY IMPORTANT BIRD AREAS and the Butterbredt Spring NATIONAL IMPORTANT BIRD AREA.

New in 2008!!!!! is a slate of Saturday and/or Sunday all morning field trips to historically productive, specific birding areas: Canebrake Ecological Reserve, Chimney Peak National Backcountry Byway, Fay Ranch Road, Inyokern/Le Conte’s Thrasher, Isabella Reservoir, Kelso Creek Sanctuary, Kern River Preserve Headquarters, Migrant Corner Trail/Prince’s Pond, and South Fork Wildlife Area. If your idea of a great half day of birding getting to know a single area well, these trips may be for you.

New in 2008!!!!! is a slate all day field trips: Butterbredt Spring & Piute Mountains, Galileo Hill-Silver Saddle Resort, Little Lake & Owens Lake, and San Joaquin Valley & Greenhorn Mountains, and Target Species Tuesday.

New in 2008!!!!! is the addition of two All Night Owling trips, one on Breckenridge Mountain and the other in the Greenhorn Mountains.

Habitat Diversity
The habitat diversity found in such close proximity is unsurpassed in the United States and Canada. The mixing of habitats representative of the Great Basin, Mojave Desert, and Sierra Nevada results in the presence of very high bird species diversity, peaking in late April and early May. The totals recorded for the last five festivals were 2003 - 227 species, 2004 - 231 species, 2005 – 227 species, 2006 - 237species, and 2007 - 244 species.

Specialty Birds
Among the early May “specialty birds” found in the Kern watershed which occur regularly in eight or less states are: Sooty Grouse (may be snowbound in early May), California Quail, Mountain Quail, White-tailed Kite, Lesser Nighthawk, Vaux’s Swift, Anna's Hummingbird, Costa’s Hummingbird, Acorn Woodpecker, Red-breasted Sapsucker, Nuttall's Woodpecker, White-headed Woodpecker, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Black Phoebe, Vermilion Flycatcher, Brown-crested Flycatcher, Hutton’s Vireo, Oak Titmouse, Verdin, Cactus Wren, Wrentit, Bendire’s Thrasher (very rare), California Thrasher, Le Conte's Thrasher, Phainopepla, Hermit Warbler, California Towhee, Black-chinned Sparrow, “Thick-billed” Fox Sparrow, Golden-crowned Sparrow, Tricolored Blackbird, Hooded Oriole, and Lawrence's Goldfinch.

Spring Migration Phenomenon
Butterbredt Spring, Galileo Hill, Migrant Corner, South Fork Valley … These are some of the Kern River Valley and Kern desert oases locations which are known for the diversity of spring migrants present in late April and early May … swifts, flycatchers, vireos, swallows, thrushes, wood-warblers, tanagers, and grosbeaks. If conditions are right, the magnitude will present a “Best in the West” migration phenomenon.

Expert Leaders
The Kern River Valley Spring Nature Festival is known for the excellence of its field trips and field trip leaders. Let experts lead you to experience the region's "among the best in the west" bird migration and natural history phenomena. There is no better time to capture this experience than the first week of May.

Field Trips Logistics

Fees
Trip fees vary. Please read very carefully the fees for each individual field trip. Owling trips may be significantly higher in cost when participation per trip is highly restricted.

Trip Planning
Trip fees cover personalized trip planning services (E-mail: bbarnes@lightspeed.net, Phone: 760-382-1260).

Payment
There is no pre-payment for field trips. Payments for all field trips will be made during the festival. Fees will be collected at the start of your first field trip unless otherwise directed at that time.

Where to Meet
Field trips will start and end at more than one location. Be sure to check the detailed festival schedule very carefully to determine exactly where each of your field trips start and end. Please arrive at each trip’s departure point 10-15 minutes before scheduled departure.

What to Bring
All trips will be via private car caravan. Carpooling is highly encouraged. Bring food and water to last all day. Bring comfortable walking shoes and layered clothing for weather that may range from cloudless to rainy and cold to hot. If possible, bring two-way radios for inter-car communication.

Magazine Articles
California Cornucopia - Birding Kern County by Bob Steele, WildBird Magazine, September/October 2005.
(Available by going to: http://www.bobsteelephoto.com/home/articles/birding_Kern.html)

Find It Here! The Kern River Valley and Southern Sierra Nevada of California by Bob Barnes and Bob Steele, in the American Birding Association’s Birding magazine, April 2003.
(Available by going to http://www.bobsteelephoto.com/home/articles/Kern2.pdf)

Kern and Tulare Counties bird sightings (Available by going to www.birdingonthe.net)

Reference Books
A Birder’s Guide to Southern California edited by Brad Schram, American Birding Association, 2007 (Kern River Valley and Southern Sierra Nevada, pp. 120-139; Kern Desert Oases and Piute Mountains, pp. 140-147; Inyokern – Le Conte’s Thrasher, pp. 148-149; and Other Good Birding Spots – Kern County, pp. 328-332)

Birding Northern California by John Kemper, The Globe Pequot Press, 2001 (Western Divide Highway, pp. 319-321 and Kern River Valley, pp. 322-326)

Web Sites
Kern County Birding – www.natureali.org/birding.htm
Kern River Valley Birding - www.krvbirding.org
Kern and Tulare Counties bird sightings - www.birdingonthe.net/birdmail.html
Bob Steele Photography - http://www.bobsteelephoto.com/home

Other References (butterflies, other insects, other vertebrates, plants, general natural history) http://www.naba.org/meeting/planning.html

Travel Information
http://kern.audubon.org/visiting_krp.htm

Accommodations
http://www.natureali.org/accommodations.htm.

The Kernville Chamber of Commerce may also provide lodging information. Phone: (760) 376-2629.

Field Trips Registration

Unless just plain impossible, please provide your registration using e-mail. To help us, here is what we need from you:

• Read carefully the detailed field trips descriptions following to help you decide which ones to select.

• Name, city, state (and country if from outside the U.S.) for each registrant…
EXAMPLES: Bob Barnes, Ridgecrest, California; John Doe, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

• Days attending the festival…
EXAMPLES: 4 days (Thursday-Sunday, May 1-4); 7 days (Wednesday-Tuesday, April 30-May 6)

• Arrival and departure point/dates in California…
EXAMPLE: Arrive in Kern Valley from Las Vegas on April 29 and depart Kern River
Valley for Sacramento on May 5.

• CAPITAL LETTER and abbreviated title for each field trip you select in order of your priority…
EXAMPLE: X-Butterbredt/Piutes, Y-Canebrake, Z-Greenhorns

• Provide at least TWO alternative field trip choices.
EXAMPLE: If you plan to go on four field trips in four days, please send us six field trip
choices in your priority order.

Here is what we will send to you:

• CONFIRMATION of your field trip choices ASAP…

• CONFIRMATION of your specific field trip schedule before your departure from home for the festival…

• NOTIFICATION of the amount of payment due at the festival…

Detailed Field Trip Descriptions

NOTE
Field trips will depart from several locations. Please read each of the following field trip descriptions very carefully to determine from where each of your field trips depart. Departure points are Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon, Park-and-Ride in Lake Isabella, Riverside Park in Kernville, and the Sprague Ranch in Weldon.

BIRD BANDING

TRIP A: 7am-Noon (Saturday & Sunday only), Bird Banding Demonstration at Kern River Preserve. Licensed bird banders from Weldon’s Southern Sierra Research Station  will conduct a morning bird banding session at the banding station located along the Nature Trail east from Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. Learn how banding is used to conserve birds, listen to the heartbeat of a bird, and otherwise observe birds up close & personal. Visit anytime 7am-Noon. An extended stay is recommended, especially late in the morning when bird activity may be the slowest. FREE.

BIRDING

TRIP B: 4:45am-4pm/5pm, Butterbredt Spring & East Kern Desert Oases.
“The early birder catches the worm.” Get off to an especially early start to visit to the desert oasis of Butterbredt Spring, a National Important Bird Area, found in the hills of the Western Mojave Desert about one hour south of Audubon California’s Kern River Preserve. Several noted birders consider Butterbredt Spring during spring migration as one of their ten favorite birding locations in the United States. If conditions are right, the birding at Butterbredt is phenomenal, with 100s to 1000s of migrants passing through, with the greatest concentration during the first hour of daylight starting about 6am … swifts, flycatchers, vireos, swallows, thrushes, wood warblers, tanagers, grosbeaks, buntings, and orioles making up the majority. If conditions are just so-so, species diversity, if not numbers, is still likely to be high. In addition to migrants passing through, birders visit Butterbredt to see nesting species such as Mountain Quail, Costa’s Hummingbird, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Rock Wren, California Thrasher, Le Conte’s Thrasher, California Towhee, Black-throated Sparrow, and Scott’s Oriole. After thorough birding of Butterbredt Spring, this trip will continue to California City’s Central Park and Silver Saddle Resort at Galileo Hill on the Mojave Desert floor. Central Park hosts migrants and waterbirds. During the 2007 festival, Galileo Hill was one of the highlight destinations with an estimated 1000-1500 migrant landbirds on the lawns at Silver Saddle Resort. If time permits, a return to the Kern River Valley via Ridgecrest’s Cerro Coso College and the City of Ridgecrest’s Watchable Wildlife Area will be made. Leave at 4:45am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last all day. FEE: $40.

TRIP C: NEW in 2008!!!!! 4:45am-3pm/5pm, Butterbredt Spring & Piute Mountains. After thorough birding of Butterbredt Spring (see TRIP B description), this trip will explore the Piute Mountains region first reached just four road miles to the west. Among the birding options will be grassland, oak woodland, and chaparral habitats alongside Jawbone Canyon Road; irrigated pasture, Joshua tree woodland, and ranch pond habitats alongside Kelso Valley Road; and desert scrub, pinyon pine woodland, Jeffrey pine woodland, and mountain meadow habitats alongside Piute Mountain Road. The impressive mix of habitats in very close proximity to each other during this trip may yield a very impressive species list. Besides those mentioned for Butterbredt Spring (see TRIP B description), among the species known to be in this area in early May are: Chukar, California Quail, Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon, Band-tailed Pigeon, Greater Roadrunner, Say’s Phoebe, Loggerhead Shrike, Pinyon Jay, Horned Lark, Violet-green Swallow, Oak Titmouse, Pygmy Nuthatch, Cactus Wren, Western Bluebird, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Green-tailed Towhee, Brewer’s Sparrow, Lark Sparrow, Sage Sparrow, “Thick-billed” Fox Sparrow, Western Meadowlark, Cassin’s Finch, and Red Crossbill. Leave at 4:45am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last all day. FEE: $40.

TRIP D: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6am-11/30am/1pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), Canebrake Ecological Reserve. This 6900-acre California Department of Fish & Game Ecological Reserve is part of the land protecting most of the cottonwood and willow riparian forest found along the lower fourteen miles of the South Fork Kern River. The Public Access Trail is wheelchair friendly and winds for over a mile, one way, through Joshua tree woodland, riparian forest, irrigated pasture, marsh & pond, grazing land, and rocky hillsides. The scenery is stunning. Spring migration can be first rate in terms of species diversity and numbers, especially in the vicinity of the footbridge over Canebrake Creek. The footbridge area is where Summer Tanager is most often found on the reserve. Tricolored Blackbirds fly back and forth over the Public Access Trail from their nesting colony, often foraging in pasture close at hand. An impressive mix of birds found throughout the rest of the South Fork Valley is present here as well … swallows, warblers, sparrows, grosbeaks, finches. If there is time, stops will be made below the cliffs east of Cottage Grove Cemetery Leave at 6am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot just alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last through lunch at Scodie Park in Onyx. FEE: $30.

TRIP E: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6am-2pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), Chimney Peak National Backcountry Byway. The eleven miles of this road from Highway 178 to Chimney Peak Campground goes through desert scrub & Joshua tree woodland, a fairyland of rock formations, pinyon-juniper woodland, Chimney Creek riparian woodland, and mountain meadows characteristic of the Great Basin. Key target species include breeding Gray Flycatcher, Plumbeous Vireo, Black-throated Gray Warbler, and Scott’s Oriole. Additional local breeding season species which are possible include Chukar, Mountain Quail, Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon, Band-tailed Pigeon, Greater Roadrunner, White-throated Swift, Calliope Hummingbird, Ladder-backed, Nuttall’s, & White-headed Woodpecker, Mountain Chickadee, Oak Titmouse, Cactus. Rock, and Canyon Wrens, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Western Bluebird, Wrentit, California Thrasher, Western Tanager, Green-tailed, Spotted, & California Towhees, Chipping, Brewer’s, Lark, Black-throated, & Sage Sparrows, Black-headed Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Cassin’s Finch, Red Crossbill, and Lawrence’s Goldfinch. Leave at 6am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last through picnic lunch at Chimney Creek Campground. FEE: $30.

TRIP F: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6am-11/30am/1pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), Fay Ranch Road.
The birding along this four mile long road in the heart of the South Fork Valley has produced remarkable birding during past Spring Nature Festivals. Offered for the first time is a trip concentrating on birding along Fay Ranch Road for a full morning. A highlight will be the opportunity to access hundreds of acres of Kern River Preserve land that is off-limits except for special events such as the Spring Nature Festival. Cottonwood & willow riparian forest, desert scrub, freshwater marsh, gray pine woodland, irrigated pasture, and live oak woodland habitats are present. The South Fork Valley’s population of breeding pairs of Vermilion Flycatcher is here. The mix of species is unique. Lots of spring migrants may be present on any particular morning. Among those species which have been encountered during prior Spring Nature Festvals are: Wood Duck, Wild Turkey, White-tailed Kite Prairie Falcon, Solitary Sandpiper, Wilson’s Snipe, Band-tailed Pigeon, Greater Roadrunner, Vaux’s & White-throated Swifts, Acorn & Nuttall’s Woodpeckers, eleven flycatcher species including Hammond’s, Dusky, Gray, & Pacific-slope Flycatchers and Black & Say’s Phoebe, six swallow species, Oak Titmouse, five wren species, Western Bluebird, Wrentit, California Thrasher, Phainopepla, Summer Tanager, California Towhee, Brewer’s, Lark, Black-throated, Sage, Savannah, & Grasshopper Sparrows, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged & Tricolored Blackbirds, Western Meadowlark, Bullock’s Oriole, and Lesser & Lawrence’s Goldfinches. Start at 6am from Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last until lunch. FEE: $30.

TRIP G: NEW in 2008!!!!! 4:45am-3pm/5pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), Galileo Hill-Silver Saddle Resort. This resort in the Mojave Desert of eastern Kern County is known throughout California as an excellent place to search for migrant diversity and numbers during both spring and fall migration. The overall list of birds for Galileo Hill stands at 324 species through 2007. As a likely result of the 2006/2007 drought year, 1000-1500 migrants were found at Silver Saddle Resort during the run of the 2007 Spring Nature Festival, most of those foraging on the ground in plain sight – flycatchers, warblers, tanagers, grosbeaks, bunting, sparrows. As much time will be taken as necessary to cover Galileo Hill. If time permits, additional east Kern desert oases will be visited from among California City’s Central Park, the campus of Cerro Coso College in Ridgecrest, and the City of Ridgecrest’s Watchable Wildlife Park. Leave at 4:45am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last through lunch. FEE: $40.

TRIP H: 5:45am-4pm/6pm, Greenhorn Mountains Transect. Visit prime birding spots from the west shore of Isabella Reservoir to 6102' Greenhorn Summit. If there is time, a visit to Cedar Creek Campground will be made. Leave from Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville. The habitat diversity is impressive: reservoir, oak woodland, chaparral, and mixed conifer. Possible bird species present include: California & Mountain Quail, Western & Clark’s Grebe, American White Pelican, Osprey, Northern Goshawk, Golden Eagle, Band-tailed Pigeon, Black-chinned, Anna’s, & Calliope Hummingbird, Red-breasted Sapsucker, Acorn, Nuttall’s, White-headed, & Pileated Woodpeckers, Western Wood-Pewee, Dusky & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Black Phoebe, Western Kingbird, Cassin’s & Hutton’s Vireos, Steller’s & Western Scrub-Jay, Violet-green Swallow, Mountain Chickadee, Oak Titmouse, Bushtit, Bewick’s & Winter Wrens, Western Bluebird, Townsend’s Solitaire, Wrentit, California Thrasher, Phainopepla, Orange-crowned, Nashville, Black-throated Gray, Hermit, MacGillivray’s, and Wilson’s Warblers, Western Tanager, Green-tailed, Spotted, and California Towhee, Rufous-crowned, Chipping, Lark, and “Thick-billed” Fox Sparrow, Black-headed Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Bullock’s Oriole, Purple Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, and Lawrence’s Goldfinch. Meet at 5:45am at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville. Bring food & drink to last all day. FEE: $40.

TRIP I: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6am-11/30am/1pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), Inyokern – Le Conte’s Thrasher & Much More. This is THE trip to try for Verdin and Le Conte's Thrasher. Explore a desert “oasis” on private property north of Inyokern in the Mojave Desert. If there is time, short stops will be made in the vicinity of Walker Pass and/or South Fork Valley. Among many species which may be observed are: California Quail, Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon, Greater Roadrunner, White-throated Swift, Costa's Hummingbird, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Gray Flycatcher, Pinyon Jay, Verdin, LeConte's Thrasher, California Towhee, Brewer’s Sparrow, Black-throated Sparrow, Hooded Oriole, Scott's Oriole, and Lesser Goldfinch. During all days of the 2007 festival spring migrant birding was excellent at the desert “oasis” with numerous flycatcher, warbler, and sparrow species being seen at close distance. If there is time, stops will be made at locations from among Walker Pass, Milepost 74, and the cliffs east of Cottage Grove Cemetery. Leave at 6am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last through picnic lunch at Scodie Park in Onyx. FEE: $30.

TRIP J: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6am-11/30am/1pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), Isabella Reservoir. This trip will visit numerous locations around Isabella Reservoir. This is the trip to try for American Dipper. Both landbirds and waterbirds will be sought. Among species which might be encountered are four grebe species (including Western & Clark’s), American White Pelican, Osprey, Peregrine Falcon, Ring-billed, California, Herring, & Bonaparte’s Gull, Caspian & Forster’s Tern, Greater Roadrunner, Acorn & Nuttall’s Woodpecker, Black & Say’s Phoebe, Western Kingbird, Loggerhead Shrike, Western Scrub-Jay, Horned Lark, six swallow species, Oak Titmouse, Rock, Canyon, & Bewick’s Wren, American Dipper, California Towhee, Savannah Sparrow, “Kern” Red-winged, Tricolored, Yellow-headed, & Brewer’s Blackbird, Great-tailed Grackle, and Lesser Goldfinch. A Pacific Loon, rare inland in California, was observed on Isabella Reservoir during the 2007 Nature Fest. Leave at 6am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last until lunch. FEE: $30.

TRIP K: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6am-11/30am/1pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), Kelso Creek Sanctuary. The Kern River watershed’s desert oases often attract migrants like magnets attract iron particles. This field trip will visit several desert oases along Kelso Valley Road south seven to seventeen miles from the Kern River Preserve. Oases include Audubon-California’s 156-acre Kelso Creek Sanctuary, Frog Springs, Sageland, and the USDI-Bureau of Land Management’s riparian preserve below Rocky Point. Habitats along the route include cottonwood & willow riparian, desert wash, Joshua tree woodland, pasture & rangeland, rocky cliffs & hillsides, and wetlands. Kelso Creek Sanctuary is the most reliable Kern River Valley location for Brown-crested Flycatcher. On addition to numerous spring migrants and Brown-crested Flycatcher, among other species which have been encountered during past short, festival visits are: Chukar, Mountain Quail, Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon, Greater Roadrunner, Long-eared Owl, Costa’s Hummingbird, Ladder-backed & Nuttall’s Woodpeckers, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Pinyon Jay, Cactus, Rock, & Canyon Wrens, Le Conte’s Thrasher (rare), Brewer’s, Lark, Black-throated, Sage, & Savannah Sparrows, and Scott’s Oriole. Leave at 6am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last until lunch. FEE: $30.

TRIP L: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6am-11:30am/1pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), Kern River Preserve Headquarters. The early May dawn chorus of birds at KRP Headquarters can be very impressive. At dawn, the hummingbird feeders start being swarmed by Black-chinned and Anna’s Hummingbirds (and one or two possible Costa’s, Calliope, and Rufous). The dawn chorus is made up variously of vocalizing California Quail, Red-shouldered Hawk, Mourning Dove, Nuttall’s, Downy, & Hairy Woodpeckers, Northern Flicker, Western Wood-Pewee, Black Phoebe, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Western Kingbird, Tree Swallow, Oak Titmouse, Bushtit, White-breasted Nuthatch, Western Bluebird, American Robin, Yellow Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Summer Tanager, Lark & Song Sparrows, Bullock’s Oriole, House Finch, and Lesser & Lawrence’s Goldfinch. Nesting season Yellow-breasted Chat, Blue Grosbeak, and Lazuli Bunting may be seen along the trails radiating out from Preserve Headquarters. Add in spring migrants passing through plus a visit to the bird banding demonstration, and a memorable morning is possible, even likely. Start at 6am at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last until lunch. FEE: $30.

TRIP M: 5:45am-4pm/5pm, Kern River Valley & Southern Sierra Nevada. This trip will spend the morning visiting several birding areas in the South Fork Valley (Fay Ranch Road, Migrant Corner, Kelso Valley Road, Kern River Preserve Headquarters, Scodie Park, and South Fork Wildlife Area). A picnic lunch will be held at KRP Headquarters or Scodie Park in Onyx. Depending on the remaining time, the rest of this trip will be spent birding Isabella Reservoir, the Piute Mountains, or Sierra Way above Kernville to the Giant Sequoia National Monument. South Fork Valley possible bird species include: Wood Duck, White-tailed Kite, Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon, Wilson’s Snipe, Vaux’s & White-throated Swift, Black-chinned & Anna’s Hummingbird, Nuttall’s Woodpecker, fourteen flycatcher species (including Olive-sided, 4-5 Empidonax, Vermilion, Ash-throated & Brown-crested Flycatcher, Black & Say’s Phoebe), vireos, swallows, Oak Titmouse, Bushtit, Western Bluebird, Swainson’s Thrush, eleven warbler species, Western & Summer Tanager, three towhee species, fourteen small sparrow species, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, “Kern” Red-winged & Tricolored Blackbird. Hooded & Bullock’s Oriole, Lesser & Lawrence’s Goldfinch, and, perhaps lingering American Goldfinch from winter. Leave at 5:45am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last all day. FEE: $40.

TRIP N: 9am-11am (Saturday & Sunday only), Kern River Preserve Bird Walk. A Kerncrest Audubon Society volunteer will lead this walk through a portion of California’s largest Fremont cottonwood and red willow riparian forest; a Globally Important Bird Area. Kern River Preserve Headquarters is the best place to study hummingbirds as they visit feeders in the yard. This trip will include a visit to the bird banding station. Meet at the Festival Information table at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. Beginners welcome! DONATION.

SOLD OUT TRIP O: NEW in 2008!!!!! 5:30am-4pm/5pm, Little Lake & Owens Lake w. Mike Prather.
Little Lake: Mike has arranged for trip participants to experience early morning, spring migration on a wildlife-rich private property alongside U.S. Hwy. 395 at Little Lake at a “best time of year.” In addition to residents and winter season lingerers, the desert, lake, marsh, and riparian habitats found in very close proximity to each other on this private wildlife preserve will likely yield an impressive diversity of spring migrant bird species including from among waterbirds, swifts, flycatchers, vireos, swallows, thrushes, warblers, sparrows, grosbeaks, blackbirds, and orioles. If conditions are right, numbers of individual migrants may be impressive as well. After thoroughly birding Little Lake, this trip will continue north on U.S. Hwy. 395 to Owens Lake.

Owens Lake: Less than thirty minutes north from Little Lake and ninety minutes from the Kern River Preserve is Owens Lake, at the base of the 14,000 feet tall High Sierra. Owens Lake is returning to wildlife. Today, after being dried up when Los Angeles completed its 1913 aqueduct, the lake is once again an important stopover for thousands of migrating shorebirds and waterfowl. An enormous dust control project that is spreading shallow water has recreated many square miles of rich habitat for migrating and resident birds. This trip will visit wetlands around the shore of Audubon’s Owens Lake Important Bird Area and also explore out onto the lakebed’s dust control project.

Owens Lake supports more nesting pairs of Snowy Plover than anywhere else in California, c. 400 pairs! Among additional shorebird species which may be present are Black-necked Stilt, American Avocet, Western Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitcher, Dunlin, Wilson’s Phalarope, and Red-necked Phalaropes; some of which may be present in very impressive numbers in late April/early May. Many waterfowl species are also possible along with hundreds, if not thousands, of California Gulls. Perhaps White-faced Ibis and Peregrine Falcon will also be found. Depending on remaining time, birding visits may be made to the Sage Flat in the foothills to the southwest of Owens Lake and/or along Hwy. 178 on the return to the Kern River Valley.

Much of the history and geology of the Owens Valley will be shared during the day’s outing. Look forward to observing many birds and experiencing the awesome vertical relief of the Eastern Sierra. All participants will receive an Eastern Sierra Birding Trail map.

Leader: Lone Pine’s Mike Prather. A thirty-five year resident of Inyo County, Mike has been actively studying and promoting wildlife at Owens Lake since 1985 and has been active in a myriad of conservation causes in the Eastern Sierra over the decades. He is a retired school teacher and dedicated to life-long learning as well as contemplative recreation and natural quiet.

Leave at 5:30am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last all day. FEE: $40.

TRIP P: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6am-11:30am/1pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), Migrant Corner Trail & Prince’s Pond. This area of Audubon-California’s Kern River Preserve is the place to witness spring migration in the Kern River Valley. Species which dominate migration with their numbers are Western Tanager and Black-headed Grosbeak, which can number in the high hundreds counted in a single morning. The list of possible species to be seen is long and includes from among Wood Duck, California Quail, Least Bittern, Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon, Virginia Rail, Sora, Solitary Sandpiper, Wilson’s Snipe, Greater Roadrunner, Vaux’s & White-throated Swift, Black-chinned & Anna’s Hummingbird, Nuttall’s Woodpecker, nine flycatcher species, Cassin’s & Warbling Vireo, six swallow species, Oak Titmouse, Bushtit, five wren species, Western Bluebird, Swainson’s & Hermit Thrush, Phainopepla, ten warbler species, Summer & Western Tanager, sixteen large (towhees) and small sparrow species, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged & Tricolored Blackbird, Great-tailed Grackle, Bullock’s Oriole, House Finch, and Lesser & Lawrence’s Goldfinch. Leave at 6am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last until lunch. FEE: $30.

TRIP Q: 6am-4pm/5pm, Mojave Desert & Great Basin. This is THE trip to try for Verdin and Le Conte's Thrasher. Explore a desert “oasis” on private property north of Inyokern in the Mojave Desert and Great Basin habitat along Chimney Peak National Backcountry Byway and Kennedy Meadows Road. If there is time, short stops will be made in the vicinity of Walker Pass and/or South Fork Valley. Among many species which may be observed are: Chukar, California Quail, Mountain Quail, Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon, Greater Roadrunner, White-throated Swift, Costa's Hummingbird, Calliope Hummingbird, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, White-headed Woodpecker, Gray Flycatcher, Plumbeous Vireo, Pinyon Jay, Oak Titmouse, Bushtit, Verdin, Cactus Wren, Rock Wren, Canyon Wren, Wrentit, California Thrasher, LeConte's Thrasher, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Green-tailed Towhee, California Towhee, Brewer’s Sparrow, Black-throated Sparrow, Sage Sparrow, Lazuli Bunting, Hooded Oriole, Scott's Oriole, Cassin’s Finch, and Lawrence's Goldfinch. During all days of the 2007 festival, the first time this field trip was offered, spring migrant birding was excellent at the desert “oasis,” adding greatly to this trip. Leave at 6am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Bring food & drink to last all day. FEE: $40.

TRIP R1: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6pm-Conclusion (Saturday night only), All Night Owling on Breckenridge Mountain. Try for Flammulated, Western Screech, Northern Pygmy, Spotted, and Northern Saw-whet Owls. Look to hear or see as many of the nesting owl species found in the Kern River watershed in early May as time and energy permits. Unless the weather is disastrous this trip gives a “best chance” of seeing and/or hearing many species. Meet at the Lake Isabella Park-and-Ride located just northwest of the junction of CA State Hwy. 155 and CA State Hwy. 178 in Lake Isabella at 5:45pm. Return will be as late as Sunday morning. FEE: $60.

TRIP R2: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6pm-Conclusion (Friday and/or Saturday nights only), All Night Owling in the Greenhorn Mountains. Try for Flammulated, Western Screech, Northern Pygmy, Spotted, and Northern Saw-whet Owls. Look to hear or see as many of the nesting owl species found in the Kern River watershed in early May as time and energy permits. Unless the weather is disastrous this trip gives a “best chance” of seeing and/or hearing many species. Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station), Kernville at 5:45pm. Return will be as late as Sunday morning. FEE: $60.

TRIP S: 6pm-10pm/11pm (Friday and/or Saturday nights only), High Country Owling. Look to hear or see as many of the nesting owl species found in the Kern River watershed in early May as time and energy permits. Unless the weather is disastrous there is a good chance of seeing and/or hearing two or more species. Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station), Kernville at 5:45pm. FEE: $40.

TRIP T: 6pm-9:30pm/10pm (Friday night only), Low Country Owling. Try for Barn, Western Screech, and Great Horned Owls. Unless the weather is disastrous there is a very good chance of seeing and hearing Great Horned Owl and Barn Owl on this trip. Western Screech Owl is a good possibility for hearing. Long-eared Owl will be a target species, although unlikely to be seen or heard. If a Burrowing owl location has been pinned down, it will be visited. Otherwise, enjoy evening birding before the owls come out. Meet at Kern River Preserve, Weldon at 5:45pm for orientation and carpooling. FEE: $30.

TRIP U: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6:30am-4pm/5pm, San Joaquin Valley & Greenhorn Mountains
This trip will proceed down Hwy. 178 through the Lower Kern River Canyon with stops to look for American Dipper and Rufous-crowned Sparrow. In Bakersfield, stops will be made to search for Rose-ringed Parakeet in Hart Park and Spotted Dove & Rose-ringed Parakeet in Beale Park. Then it is on to the 11,000 acre Kern National Wildlife Refuge located northern Kern County nineteen miles west of Delano. Ducks, grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, herons, egrets, and up to 6,000 pairs of nesting White-faced Ibis may be present Kern NWR. White-tailed Kite and Peregrine Falcon are often seen in this area. The Kern NWR is the best area in Kern County for marsh birds including American Bittern, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Virginia Rail, Sora, and Common Moorhen. Up to six species of swallows may be present. Marsh Wren, Common Yellowthroat, and Song Sparrow are abundant species. Loggerhead Shrike may be common. Blackbirds (Red-winged, Tricolored, Yellow-headed, and Brewer’s) may be present, sometimes in the thousands. The strips of riparian habitat on the Kern NWR may have a diversity of spring migrant flycatchers, vireos, thrushes, wood-warblers, tanagers, and grosbeaks.

From the Kern National Wildlife Refuge, this trip will continue east on Garces Highway and Hwy. 155 through agricultural areas in the southern San Joaquin Valley, up into the foothills of the Greenhorn Mountains, over 6102’ Greenhorn Summit to the Kern River Valley at Wofford Heights, from where it is a ten minute drive to the Lake Isabella Park-and-Ride. The west side foothills area offers a chance for Golden Eagle. Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Hutton’s Vireo, Oak Titmouse, and Lawrence’s Goldfinch may be found at Cedar Creek Campground. Bird species which may be found in the area around Greenhorn Summit include Mountain Quail, Northern Goshawk, Red-breasted Sapsucker, White-headed Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Dusky Flycatcher, Cassin’s Vireo, Violet-green Swallow, Mountain Chickadee, Townsend’s Solitaire, Nashville Warbler, Hermit Warbler, MacGillivray’s Warbler, Western Tanager, Green-tailed Towhee, and “Thick-billed” Fox Sparrow. Leave at 6:30am from the Lake Isabella Park-and-Ride located just northwest of the junction of CA State Hwy. 155 and CA State Hwy. 178 in Lake Isabella. Bring food & drink to last all day.

NOTE: If hot coffee or a quick snack is desired to start the day, there is a restaurant and a mini-mart located on opposite corners of the nearby traffic light in Lake Isabella. Both businesses open at 6am. FEE: $40.

TRIP V: 6:30am-3pm/5pm (Monday only), San Joaquin Valley/Tulare Lake Basin via the Kern River Canyon. This trip will proceed down Hwy. 178 through the Lower Kern River Canyon to Hart Park and Beale Park in Bakersfield. Then it is on to the 11,000 acre Kern National Wildlife Refuge (See TRIP U description). From the Kern NWR this trip will stop at Kings County wetland areas in the search for late migrant shorebirds and waterbirds. Leave at 6:30am from the Lake Isabella Park-and-Ride located just northwest of the junction of CA State Hwy. 155 and CA State Hwy. 178 in Lake Isabella. Bring food & drink to last all day, or as long as you plan to stay with the trip. This is an excellent trip for those of you who want to “bird your way” out of the Kern River Valley after NatureFest weekend.

NOTE: If hot coffee or a quick snack is desired to start the day, there is a restaurant and a mini-mart located on opposite corners of the nearby traffic light in Lake Isabella. Both businesses open at 6am. FEE: $40.

TRIP W: NEW in 2008!!!!! 6am-11:30am/1pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), South Fork Wildlife Area. The South Fork Wildlife Area (SFWA) is a 1200 acre unit of the Sequoia National Forest bordering both sides of the South Fork Kern River between the western boundary of the Kern River Preserve and the eastern shore of Isabella Reservoir. Birds of grassland, open water, riparian, and shoreline habitats will be sought. The SFWA is the best place in the South Fork Wildlife Area to find Brown-crested Flycatcher. Learn how to access this area and enjoy many of the bird species present. Species which have been present, even common to abundant during past festivals include Western Grebe, Clark’s Grebe, American White Pelican, Osprey, Tree Swallow, Western Bluebird, Yellow Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Summer Tanager, Blue Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Tricolored Blackbird, and Lawrence’s Goldfinch, along with spring migrants. Leave at 6am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Binoculars are helpful. Bring food & drink to last until lunch. FEE: $30.

TRIP X: NEW in 2008!!!!! 5:45am-3pm/6pm (Tuesday only), Target Species Tuesday. Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. Even after several days of birding, some species and trip destinations will have been missed. After a short group discussion, participants will be split into field trip groups depending on which target species they wish to try to observe for first time and/or for follow-up observations. Options for birding new locations will be offered, too. Multiple leaders to realize trip route flexibility. Bring food & drink to last all day. FEE: $40.

BUTTERFLIES

TRIP Y: 9am-3pm (Saturday and/or Sunday only), An Introduction to Kern River Valley Spring Butterflies. The Kern River Valley and Southern Sierra Nevada is such a great area for butterflies that the North American Butterfly Association (NABA) will hold their 8th Biennial National Meeting here June 26-29, 2008, the first time this meeting has been held in California. Get a head start at this year's Spring Nature Festival by joining butterfly experts Bill Bouton and Fred Heath on visits to South Fork Valley and Erskine Creek hotspots to look for some of the Kern River Valley's most beautiful and rare butterflies. Butterfly species which have been known to fly in late April include the Western Tiger Swallowtail, Western Pygmy-Blue (the world's smallest butterfly), and California Sister (Erskine Creek). The San Emigdio Blue and Alkali Skipper may be flying, butterflies which are rare enough that people from around the world come to the Kern River Valley to see them. Although this field trip is especially designed to introduce participants to butterflies, anyone is welcome, from beginner through expert. Leave at 9am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Binoculars are helpful. Bring food & drink to last until 3pm. FEE: $20.

GEOLOGY

TRIP Z: 8am-1:30pm (Saturday only), Southern Sierra Geology. Geologist Joe Fontaine returns to conduct his immensely popular geology field trip. This geological transect will interpret millions of years of the Sierra Nevada. See metasedimentary rocks, granite batholith, and limestone dikes along several stops along Sierra Way from the Kern Canyon north of Kernville to the South Fork Valley near Weldon. Joe will reveal the story told by the exposed soils and rocks at each stop. Leave from Riverside Park, across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville. Bring food & drink to last until 1:30pm.Trip Limit. FEE: $30 (includes detailed booklet).

HABITAT RESTORATION

TRIP AA: 9am-11am (Saturday only), Kern River Preserve Habitat Enhancements and Stewardship. Join Preserve Manager Reed Tollefson on a walk around the restoration sites on the Kern River Preserve. Learn about ongoing habitat improvements including exotic plant removal that has contributed to greater numbers of nesting species of birds. Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. DONATION to the Kern River Preserve.

PHOTOGRAPHY

TRIP BB: 7am-10am+ (Saturday only). Basic Bird Photography Workshop with Bob Steele. Learn how to set-up natural habitat shots to photograph birds in a semi-controlled setting. Get tips and techniques for using your camera more effectively. Minimum equipment requirements: Digital or Film SLR camera, 300mm lens, teleconverter. Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. See Bob Steele's website. FEE: $30.

TRIP CC: 3pm-5pm+ (Saturday only). Advanced Bird Photography Workshop with Bob Steele. Learn how to photograph birds in flight. This workshop will take place along the shore of Isabella reservoir. Gulls will be the target species. Minimum equipment requirements: Digital or Film SLR camera, 300mm lens, teleconverters, flash (not required, but suggested). Meet at Kissack Cove in Mountain Mesa just inside the westernmost entrance (where the speed limit changes). See Bob Steele's website. FEE: $30.

NATURAL HISTORY

TRIP DD: 7 am - 5 pm. (Monday only). Natural History of the Kern River Watershed with Nature Ali. This trip covers the whole enchilada of geology, botany, birding, other wildlife, Indigenous cultures, and recent history of the Kern River Watershed. Bring water, food, sunscreen, bug spray, hat, field guides, notebook, and dress in layers anticipating any type of weather from hot to freezing. Meet at 6:50am at Kern River Preserve Headquarters for carpooling. FEE $40.

FRIDAY, May 2nd

5 pm - 6:30 pm. Catered Deep Pit Barbeque Dinner (vegetarian option available upon request). Join us for dinner as we share 2008 Nature Festival experiences and socialize with Festival participants and community guests. Location: South Fork Middle School, 5225 Kelso Valley Road, Weldon (No host gathering 5 - 5:30 pm, food served buffet style at 5:30 pm sharp). Dinner cost $20 each, which includes dinner, taxes, tip, evening program and door prizes). 

• 6:30 pm-7:45 pm - Evening Program. $10 at the door if only attending the program.

• Highlights of the 2008 Nature Festival

• Drawings for prizes.

• PROGRAM: Warblers of the Kern River Valley and Southern Sierra Nevada by Bob Steele

Bob Steele, a resident of Kern County, works as a civilian engineer for the U.S. Navy. Bob has been involved in birding and bird photography for over 20 years. He has traveled around the country and to Costa Rica and Australia to photograph the few species not available in this area. He is one of the country's best nature photographers and an accomplished author as well.

He has photographed over 500 species of birds, many location and habitat photos, and images of local flowers, butterflies, and dragonflies. Bob's equipment has grown from great film cameras to the latest digital cameras. In addition to Friday nights program, Bob will be giving two workshops on Saturday on bird photography.

His numerous credits include: photo researcher and major contributor for National Geographic "Birding Essentials", "Find it Here" feature article April 2003 Birding magazine, Birding, Birder's World Magazine, North American Birds, Audubon Watch List, Kern River Courier, New York Times, WildBird Magazine, National Geographic Books, Studies in Avian Biology, Western Birds, and many others.

SATURDAY, May 3rd

7 am-10 am+. Basic Bird Photography Workshop with Bob Steele. Learn how to set-up natural habitat shots to photograph birds in a semi-controlled setting. Get tips and techniques for using your camera more effectively. Minimum equipment requirements: Digital or Film SLR camera, 300mm lens, teleconverter. Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. See Bob Steele's website. FEE: $30.

7 am - Noon. Bird Banding Demonstration at Kern River Preserve. Join the Southern Sierra Research Station to learn how banding is used to conserve birds, listen to the heartbeat of a bird and otherwise observe birds up close & personal. Observers may release birds after they are banded but otherwise this is a show and tell event not a hands on workshop. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

8 am - 10 am. Spring Nature Run 10K/ 5K. Start from Whiskey Flat Trailhead, Burlando Road, Kernville. This event takes walkers and runners along the historic Whiskey Flat trail 10K runners will cross two log bridges on the Whiskey Flat Trail. A fundraiser to help Run-4-A-Way, a local non-profit organization, Kernville.

8 am - 1:30 pm. Southern Sierra Geology. Geologist Joe Fontaine returns to conduct his immensely popular geology field trip. This geological transect will interpret millions of years of the Sierra Nevada. See metasedimentary rocks, granite batholith, and limestone dikes along several stops along Sierra Way from the Kern Canyon north of Kernville to the South Fork Valley near Weldon. Joe will reveal the story told by the exposed soils and rocks at each stop. Leave from Riverside Park, across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville. Bring food & drink to last until 1:30pm. Trip Limit. FEE: $30 (includes detailed booklet).

8 am - 2 pm. Rare Plants of the Kern River Watershed. The southern Sierra Nevada is a floristic melting pot between the Central Valley and the Mojave Desert and also between the High Sierra and the Southern California Mountains. This confluence of diverse floras creates a high density of rare endemic plants and many interesting plant communities. Fletcher Linton, Sequoia National Forest Botanist will lead a trip on a trip to rare plant locations. Possible flowers in bloom include: Shirley Meadows Star Tulip, Piute Mountain. Jewelflower, Kern Canyon Clarkia, Kern Canyon Larkspur, Alkali Mariposa Lily, and  Pygmy Poppy. There will be a discussion of the ecology of the Piute Mtn Cypress while in Sequoia National Forest's Piute Cypress botanical area. Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station), Kernville. Carpool. FEE: $20.

9 am - 11 am. Kern River Preserve Bird Walk. A Kerncrest Audubon Society volunteer will lead this walk through a portion of California’s largest Fremont cottonwood and red willow riparian forest; a Globally Important Bird Area. Kern River Preserve Headquarters is the best place to study hummingbirds as they visit feeders in the yard. This trip will include a visit to the bird banding station. Meet at the Festival Information table at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. Beginners welcome! FREE

9 am - 11 am. Habitat enhancements and stewardship at the Kern River Preserve. Join Preserve manager Reed Tollefson on a hike around the restoration sites of the Kern River Preserve. Learn about the ongoing efforts of habitat improvements and exotic plant removal that has contributed to greater numbers of nesting species of birds. Meet at the Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE

9 am - 3 pm. An Introduction to Kern River Valley Spring Butterflies. The Kern River Valley and Southern Sierra Nevada is such a great area for butterflies that the North American Butterfly Association (NABA) will hold their 8th Biennial National Meeting here June 26-29, 2008, the first time this meeting has been held in California. Get a head start at this year's Spring Nature Festival by joining butterfly experts Bill Bouton and Fred Heath on visits to South Fork Valley and Erskine Creek hotspots to look for some of the Kern River Valley's most beautiful and rare butterflies. Butterfly species which have been known to fly in late April include the Western Tiger Swallowtail, Western Pygmy-Blue (the world's smallest butterfly), and California Sister (Erskine Creek). The San Emigdio Blue and Alkali Skipper may be flying, butterflies which are rare enough that people from around the world come to the Kern River Valley to see them. Although this field trip is especially designed to introduce participants to butterflies, anyone is welcome, from beginner through expert. Leave at 9am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Binoculars are helpful. Bring food & drink to last until 3pm. FEE: $20.

9 am - 5 pm. Kern River Preserve Festival Headquarters. Kern River Preserve, Weldon: Children’s activities, Information, Educational & Interactive Exhibits, Field Trip Departures, Live animals, and more. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE (Donations welcome).

Vendors: Audubon California, Bureau of Land Management - Ridgecrest, CNPS Kern County Chapter, Children's Activities, Friends of the Kern River Preserve, HerpEcology, Kern Audubon Society, Kern River Parkway Foundation, Kern River Valley Birding, Kerncrest Audubon Society, Nevada Birding: Wildly Unexpected, Sequoia Forest Keepers, Southern Sierra Research Station, Spring Wings Bird Festival (Fallon, Nevada)

9:30 am - Noon. Musical Entertainment "Mama's Mid-Life Crisis" Circle Park, Kernville - Bakersfield's premiere all-woman, mostly Irish quartet, play with originality and a dash of attitude. (And why shouldn't they? They all still have their day jobs.) Members are: Nancy Sharp on mandolin, fiddle, and high and low whistles; Jill Egland on flute, high and low whistles, accordion, and bodhran; Georgann Greene on fiddle; and Teresa McFarland on 6-string guitar. They take traditional Celtic tunes, add a dash of jazz and rock, find the sweet spot between the old and new, then stir it all up with playfulness and an exquisite sense of musicality. FREE (Donations welcome).

10 am - 10:30 am. Southwestern Pond Turtle Demonstration. Learn about the Kern River Preserve's preservation efforts for this rare species. Darrell Barnes will talk about turtle biology and share photos and videos of the project. Question and answer session to follow. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE (Donations welcome).

10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. - Archie Logsdon. LIVE MUSIC with Archie Logsdon, folksinger and environmental activist. Bring your folding chair or blanket and sit down and enjoy. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE.

10 am - 4 pm. Children’s Activities at the Kern River Preserve. Charlotte Goodson Nature crafts, storytelling, live snakes & frogs. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

10 am - 4 pm. Kern Valley Museum. Visit the excellent museum run by the Kern Valley Historical Society and learn about the Valley’s fascinating history: Native Americans, gold mining, farming & ranching, lumbering, and western movies (John Wayne, Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and Humphrey Bogart). Art gallery and gift shop. Located at 49 Big Blue Road (1 short block from Circle Park). FREE (Donations welcome).

10 am - 4 pm. Live Native Amphibians & Reptiles. Educational presentations throughout the day by Herp-Ecology. On display will be a wide variety of California reptiles and amphibians. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE

10 am - 4 pm. Paiute Nuui Cunni Cultural Center (Native American) French Gulch, Wofford Heights. Meaning "our house" in Piute/Shoshone, the Nuui Cunni Cultural Center is a place of renewal and gathering for local Native peoples. Language, crafts and many tribal programs take place here. Open to the public are exhibits of Native American art, a reference library and a friendly staff that can help explain the history and living traditions of the Kern Valley's original People. Gift Shop. Located south of Kernville in the French Gulch Campground. For more information, call (760) 549-0800. FREE (Donations welcome).

10 am - 4 pm. Official United States Postal Service Kern Valley Spring Nature Festival Postal Station, Kern River Preserve, Weldon. Steve Kenton, Weldon Postmaster, has once again arranged to set up an official USPS postal station at the Kern River Preserve offering Special Festival Cancellation, stamped envelopes. These stamped envelopes are the "real deal" and may be purchased for the price of a first class stamp. They may be used for first class mailings over the following month or added to collectors' stamp collections. Collectors from all over the world have contacted Steve to order Kern Valley Festival special cancellations from past years' festivals. You may also order and purchase envelopes with this year's Spring Nature Festival cancellation from Steve during regular hours at the Weldon Post Office. Contact Steve for the exact time period for picking up your order. Kern River Preserve Headquarters

10 am - 4 pm. CIRCLE PARK FESTIVAL HEADQUARTERS, Circle Park, Kernville: Information, Educational & Interactive Exhibits. Informational displays, live animals, music, and more. Non-profit organizations, agencies, artists, and photographers will be among those with booths set up throughout the town’s Circle Park. Check at the information booth for any additions. FREE.

Circle Park Vendors: Al Robbins Herpetological Society, Avian and Wilderness Art, Buena Vista Group Sierra Club, Bureau of Land Management, Children's Activities, Fire Defensible Space, Kern County Waste Management, Kerncrest Audubon Society, Mama's Mid-life Crisis, Optics for Birding, Rainey Day Studios, Sequoia Forest Keepers, Sequoia National Forest, Suzanne Rannals face-painting, Wandering Tattler, Winged Escape

11 am - noon. Native Plant Gardening Workshop. Marya Miller, local gardening columnist and native plant expert will talk about how to use native plants in your garden. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. - Out of the Blue. LIVE MUSIC from Pat Seamount, Mike Gallagher and Terry Harris with “Out of the Blue” Kern Valley favorites will play acoustic folk, Irish, and traditional songs to delight the crowds. Bring your folding chair or blanket and sit down to enjoy this talented trio. Although this concert is FREE, Pat, Mike, and Terry intend that this is a fundraiser on behalf of the Kern River Preserve and the Nature Festival so donations are heartily welcome. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE.

12:30 pm - 1:30 pm. GPS Workshop with Matt Reiter. Do you have a GPS unit that you don't know how to work? Join the Kern River Preserve's Land Steward and Doctoral Candidate in a lesson on using GPS, creating waypoints and mapping with the unit. Several temporary GEO-CACHES will be placed around the preserve, in a find and seek exercise. Plan on a little hiking after the lecture portion. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. - Robbie the Piper and the Out of Kilters. Robbie McRobinson and his local cohorts, Georgie and Bob Bergeron, and Jackie Smith have been entertaining at the Preserve for several years. They will be remembered from the Vulture Festival in 2003 where they introduced the Band “Rob the Piper with Carrion Luggage”. The Band features an eclectic mix of singing, recorder, mandolin, guitar and drum playing to accompany Irish, folk, and blues tunes. This year, Robbie in full Scotch regalia will be joined by the same gang in traditional garb. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE

1:30 pm – 2:30 pm. Nature Walk. Learn about the plants, trees, birds and animals that are all part of the Kern River Preserve. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. - LIVE MUSIC Jam with various local artists. Open Jam w/Jay Barush, Paul Webb, Jason O’Donnell, Lottie Angelsea, Pat Seamount, Terry Harris, other drop in artists and the remains of Carrion Luggage. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE.

3 pm-5 pm+, Advanced Bird Photography Workshop with Bob Steele. Learn how to photograph birds in flight. This workshop will take place along the shore of Isabella reservoir. Gulls will be the target species. Minimum equipment requirements: Digital or Film SLR camera, 300mm lens, teleconverters, flash (not required, but suggested). Meet at Kissack Cove in Mountain Mesa just inside the westernmost entrance (where the speed limit changes). See Bob Steele's website. FEE: $30.

5 pm - 6:30 pm Catered Barbecue Chicken Dinner (vegetarian option available upon request). Join us for dinner as we share 2008 Nature Festival experiences and socialize with Festival participants and community guests. Location: South Fork Middle School, 5225 Kelso Valley Road, Weldon (No host gathering 5 - 5:30 pm, food served buffet style at 5:30 pm sharp). Cost: $20: includes dinner, taxes, tip, evening program and door prizes). 

• NEW IN 2008!!! 6:30 pm-7:45pm - John Muir Laws - An Evening Exploring the Natural World of the Sierra Nevada from this amazing artist and author's eyes. Evening Program. $10 at the door if only attending the program.

• Highlights of the 2008 Nature Festival

• Drawings for prizes

• PROGRAM: Exploring the Natural World of the Sierra Nevada

Naturalist, educator and artist John (Jack) Muir Laws delights in exploring the natural world and sharing this love with others. He has worked as an environmental educator for over 25 years in California, Wyoming, and Alaska. He is trained as a wildlife biologist and is an associate of the California Academy of Sciences. His illustrations capture the feeling of the living plant or animal, while also including details critical for identification.

His most recent book, The Laws Guide to the Sierra Nevada, is an illustrated field guide to more than 1,700 species of plants and animals and is beautifully illustrated with 2,710 original watercolor paintings. This comprehensive and easy to use guide allows botanists to identify the insects that come to their flowers, birders to identify the trees in which the birds perch, or hikers to identify the stars overhead at night. Jack will present an illustrated lecture about the natural history of the Sierra Nevada, and the process of creating a field guide.

He will also bring original illustrations that have been painted in the field. In the summer of 2004, Laws published Sierra Birds: a Hiker's Guide. He is also a regular contributor to Bay Nature magazine with his "Naturalists Notebook" column. He is currently coordinating efforts to create a curriculum to tie the field guide to the State of California education standards and secure funding to donate sets of field guides to every elementary and high school in the Sierra Nevada and teaching field sketching and natural history classes throughout the state.
http://www.johnmuirlaws.com/

TRIP FULL!!! NEW in 2008!!!!! 6pm-Conclusion. All Night Owling on Breckenridge Mountain. Try for Flammulated, Western Screech, Northern Pygmy, Spotted, and Northern Saw-whet Owls. Look to hear or see as many of the nesting owl species found in the Kern River watershed in early May as time and energy permits. Unless the weather is disastrous this trip gives a “best chance” of seeing and/or hearing many species. Meet at the Lake Isabella Park-and-Ride located just northwest of the junction of CA State Hwy. 155 and CA State Hwy. 178 in Lake Isabella at 5:45pm. Return will be as late as Sunday morning. FEE: $60.

SUNDAY, May 4th

7 am - Noon. Bird Banding Demonstration at Kern River Preserve. Join the Southern Sierra Research Station to learn how banding is used to conserve birds, listen to the heartbeat of a bird and otherwise observe birds up close & personal. Observers may release birds after they are banded but otherwise this is a show and tell event not a hands on workshop. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

9 am - 10 am. Falconry Workshop. Bill Foster, KRP volunteer and expert hawk handler will demonstrate the ancient art of falconry. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

9am - 11am. Kern River Preserve Bird Walk. A Kerncrest Audubon Society volunteer will lead this walk through a portion of California’s largest Fremont cottonwood and red willow riparian forest; a Globally Important Bird Area. Kern River Preserve Headquarters is the best place to study hummingbirds as they visit feeders in the yard. This trip will include a visit to the bird banding station. Meet at the Festival Information table at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. Beginners welcome! FREE

9am-3pm. An Introduction to Kern River Valley Spring Butterflies. The Kern River Valley and Southern Sierra Nevada is such a great area for butterflies that the North American Butterfly Association (NABA) will hold their 8th Biennial National Meeting here June 26-29, 2008, the first time this meeting has been held in California. Get a head start at this year's Spring Nature Festival by joining butterfly experts Bill Bouton and Fred Heath on visits to South Fork Valley and Erskine Creek hotspots to look for some of the Kern River Valley's most beautiful and rare butterflies. Butterfly species which have been known to fly in late April include the Western Tiger Swallowtail, Western Pygmy-Blue (the world's smallest butterfly), and California Sister (Erskine Creek). The San Emigdio Blue and Alkali Skipper may be flying, butterflies which are rare enough that people from around the world come to the Kern River Valley to see them. Although this field trip is especially designed to introduce participants to butterflies, anyone is welcome, from beginner through expert. Leave at 9am via carpool from the Audubon’s Sprague Ranch parking lot alongside Fay Ranch Road, 1.6 miles north of Hwy. 178 in Weldon. Binoculars are helpful. Bring food & drink to last until 3pm. FEE: $20.

9 am - 5 pm. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. Kern River Preserve, Weldon: Children’s activities, Information, Educational & Interactive Exhibits, Field Trip Departures, Live animals, and more. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE (Donations welcome).

Vendors: Audubon California, Buena Vista Group Sierra Club, Bureau of Land Management, CNPS Kern County Chapter, Children's Activities, FACT, Friends of the Kern River Preserve, HerpEcology, Kern River Parkway Foundation, Kern River Valley Birding, Kerncrest Audubon Society, Nevada Birding: Wildly Unexpected, Optics for Birding, Sequoia Forest Keepers, Southern Sierra Research Station, Spring Wings Bird Festival (Fallon, Nevada), Tule Elk Reserve, Windwolves Preserve

10 am - 10:30 am. Southwestern Pond Turtle Demonstration. Learn about the Kern River Preserve's preservation efforts for this rare species. Darrell Barnes will talk about turtle biology and share photos and videos of the project. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE (Donations welcome).

10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. - Archie Logsdon. LIVE MUSIC with Archie Logsdon, folksinger and environmental activist. Bring your folding chair or blanket and sit down and enjoy. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE.

10 am - 2 pm. Wildflowers in Bloom Workshop. The Kern Valley is centered in the area of highest plant diversity found in California. Join Fletcher Linton - Sequoia National Forest botanist to learn about the ecology and names of wildflowers at some of the areas best wildflower displays. Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station), Kernville. Carpool. FEE: $10.

10 am - 4 pm. Children’s Activities at the Kern River Preserve. Nature crafts, storytelling, live snakes & frogs. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

10 am - 4 pm. Kern Valley Museum. Visit the excellent museum run by the Kern Valley Historical Society and learn about the Valley’s fascinating history: Native Americans, gold mining, farming & ranching, lumbering, and western movies (John Wayne, Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and Humphrey Bogart). Art gallery and gift shop. Located at 49 Big Blue Road (1 short block from Circle Park). FREE (Donations welcome).

10 am - 4 pm. Live Native Amphibians & Reptiles. Kern River Preserve. Educational presentations throughout the day by Herp-Ecology. On display will be a wide variety of California reptiles and amphibians. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

10 am - 4 pm. Paiute Nuui Cunni Cultural Center (Native American) French Gulch, Wofford Heights. Meaning "our house" in Piute/Shoshone, the Nuui Cunni Cultural Center is a place of renewal and gathering for local Native peoples. Language, crafts and many tribal programs take place here. Open to the public are exhibits of Native American art, a reference library and a friendly staff that can help explain the history and living traditions of the Kern Valley's original People. Gift Shop. Located south of Kernville in the French Gulch Campground. For more information, call (760) 549-0800. FREE (Donations welcome).

11 am - noon. Gardening with Native Plants at the Kern River Preserve. Marya Miller, local native plant columnist will introduce visitors to the idea of gardening with local natives. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. - Out of the Blue. LIVE MUSIC from Pat Seamount, Mike Gallagher and Terry Harris with “Out of the Blue” Kern Valley favorites will play acoustic folk, Irish, and traditional songs to delight the crowds. Bring your folding chair or blanket and sit down to enjoy this talented trio. Although this concert is FREE, Pat, Mike, and Terry intend that this is a fundraiser on behalf of the Kern River Preserve and the Nature Festival so donations are heartily welcome. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE.

Noon - 1 pm. Propagating native riparian plants with Matt Reiter. Learn how to grow native trees and other riparian plants through various propagation techniques. FREE

1 pm - 2 pm. Native American use of Native Plants. Carol Wermuth, Native American expert will talk about traditional uses of native plants. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE

1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. - Robbie the Piper and the Out of Kilters. Robbie McRobinson and his local cohorts, Georgie and Bob Bergeron, and Jackie Smith have been entertaining at the Preserve for several years. They will be remembered from the Vulture Festival in 2003 where they introduced the Band “Rob the Piper with Carrion Luggage”. The Band features an eclectic mix of singing, recorder, mandolin, guitar and drum playing to accompany Irish, folk, and blues tunes. This year, Robbie in full Scotch regalia will be joined by the same gang in traditional garb. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE

2:30 pm – 3:30 pm, Nature Walk. Learn about the plants, trees, birds and animals that are all part of the Kern River Preserve. FREE

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. - LIVE MUSIC Jam with various local artists. Open Jam w/Jay Barush, Paul Webb, Jason O’Donnell, Lottie Angelsea, Pat Seamount, Terry Harris, other drop in artists and the remains of Carrion Luggage. Kern River Preserve Headquarters FREE.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Weather: Weather in the Kern Valley in late April is usually spectacular (sunny, 65-80° F daytime highs), but it can be variable. On mountain trips prepare for very cool to freezing weather. For your comfort, we suggest bringing water, snacks, a hat, sunscreen, insect repellent, jacket for cool weather, and sturdy shoes (waterproof boots may be handy in riparian areas).