• Up to 9 species of owl possible on tour, including Western Screech Owl, Northern Pygmy Owl and Boreal Owls.
• Good chances for woodpeckers like Black-backed and American Three-toed Woodpecker, as well as Williamson's Sapsucker
• Spring migration and possible local rarities
• Chances of seeing interesting mammals
• Low cost of tour also a bonus!!

Western Screen Owl

British Columbia's Okanagan Valley is a paradise for birds and birdwatchers alike. With Canada's nicest climate, the Okanagan typically enjoys milder and drier conditions due to the fact it is in a rain shadow. The valley is a beautiful place lined up and down with rolling mountains covered in bunchgrass and stately Ponderosa Pines. The valley bottom is dotted with exquisite lakes, the largest of which, Okanagan Lake, stretches nearly 100 kilometers from one end to the other.

The Okanagan Valley is Avocet Tours home base so nobody knows it better then us!

Itinerary

Tuesday, April 3 – Meet at 9 AM at the Parkinson's Rec Centre in the south end of the parking lot near Hwy 97. From here we will carpool, making our first stop at Hardy Falls in Peachland. Here, a short stroll up the creek will not only give us a chance to stretch our legs, but it will also give us an opportunity to look for Pacific Wren, American Dipper, Downy Woodpecker and the first migrant Yellow-rumped Warblers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets of the season.

Next stop is at Okanagan Falls where we can scan the rapids along the Okanagan River for American Dippers, and both Common and Barrow's goldeneye. A quick look in the campground itself should produce some early migrants, possibly even our first Red-naped Sapsucker of the season. We'll continue along to Green Lake Rd, pausing in the Ponderosa Pine forest for White-breasted and Pygmy nuthatches, Western Bluebirds, Evening Grosbeaks, Red Crossbills and Cassin's Finches. As we pass by White Lk we'll add Western Meadowlark and Mountain Bluebird to our list. Perhaps a Say's Phoebe will be in attendance. A stop at Three Gates Farm is always in order on one of my tours, so we'll pop in and see if we can find our first Calliope or Rufous hummingbirds of the year, or perhaps we'll see the resident pair of Northern Pygmy-Owls.

Depending on the time of day, we may have a chance to scan Vaseux Lake for waterfowl, which should include a few lingering Trumpeter Swans and perhaps a Eurasian Wigeon. The cliffs at Vaseux, if time permits again, are where we'll find Canyon Wren, White-throated Swift and the elusive Chukar. Overhead, we'll keep our eyes peeled for Golden Eagle and Peregrine Falcon.

After dinner we'll make our way out for some owling. We'll first head up the Shuttleworth Ck Rd E. of Okanagan Falls. How far up the road, and how much we might see, will depend on the condition of this road. We will easily be able to make it into good habitat for Northern Saw-whet Owl. We will have a fair chance at finding Barred Owl also, but whether we will be able to make it up to Boreal Owl habitat is unknown. We'll come down the mountain once we've found or tried for what we were after. We'll then put a little work into finding Western Screech-Owl. We have two classic locations to try for this owl along White Lk Rd so, if need be we'll check both.

Night in Okanagan Falls.

Wednesday, April 4 – After breakfast we will head back to Vaseux Lk if the need arises, to try once again for the hard-to-get species on the cliffs. Next stop will be determined by Shuttleworth Rd condition. If the road allows us to get up to km 23 and Rabbit Lk area we'll head there in search of Pine Grosbeak, White-winged Crossbill, Boreal Chickadee and more. If we cannot make it up to this elevation, we'll instead visit Camp McKinney Rd, where Mount Baldy Ski Area offers us the chance of the same species, but has ploughed roads. Wherever we go, we'll keep an eye open for woodpeckers such as American Three-toed, Black-backed, Pileated, Lewis's and the White-headed woodpecker, the latter of which is almost of mythical occurrence it's so rare. Williamson's Sapsuckers may be back in their Western Larch habitats by this time and if so their drumming and calling is often quite evident this early in the season.

We will spend the remainder of the day exploring the oxbows along the Okanagan River at the N. end of Osoyoos Lk. Walking through these woods can produce Great Horned Owl, Long-eared Owl, Northern Saw-whet Owl, Barred Owl, Barn Owl and Western Screech-Owl, although we'll be happy to see just one or two of these beauties. Other species more common in this area include Northern Harrier, Marsh Wren, Ring-necked Pheasant, Yellow-headed Blackbird and perhaps a Prairie Falcon. Long-billed Curlews could be back in local fields along with Violet-green, Tree, N. Rough-winged and Cliff swallows possible in the skies over Road 22.

After dinner we will head out for some more owling. Where we go will depend on what we have or have not seen.

Thursday, April 5 – This morning we will make our way back to Osoyoos, via a stop along River Road and a quick stop at Inkameep Provincial Park where riparian species including rare appearances by Bewick's Wren can be had. From Osoyoos, we'll turn W. and explore the Richter Pass. Along the lower reaches of Kilpoola Lk Rd we'll see what we can find, before making our way to Chopaka Rd. A short drive down this road should provide us with numerous Western Meadowlarks, and possibly American Kestrel, Northern Shrike and an early Vesper Sparrow. As we make our way up through the Similkameen Valley we'll watch fields for Long-billed Curlews. Eurasian Collared-Doves are common in this valley also. We'll cut back over the ridge to the E. and return to the Okanagan Valley, making one final stop at the Red Roost Gift Shop where feeders attract a wide variety of avian visitors. Hummingbirds could be back in action here, and Rufous and Calliope are the two possibilities during this part of the season. Anna's Hummingbird, while rare, is always a possibility too. This location is fantastic for Evening Grosbeak, Cassin's Finch, Pine Siskin, Spotted Towhee, Hairy Woodpecker, and much more. Raptors often seen here include Sharp-shinned and Cooper's hawks, Red-tailed Hawk and Golden Eagle. From here we'll say goodbye and return to Kelowna by 5 PM.