The southern part of Colorado has extensive Pinyon Juniper habitat which affords many different and hard to find species. We will spend time getting to know this habitat as well as the other amazing habitat types near La Junta. These two full days and two half days feature species often overlooked. In addition, the Arkansas River provides a rich wildlife corridor to bird including the secretive Black Rail and breeding Snowy Plover. Finally, we will add mountain and hummingbird species on the last morning to round out our species list. This tour is designed to be in conjunction with the first or second Prairie to Mountains Tours or can be booked seperatly. Take $100 off if two tours are booked. No need to rent a car as we will pick you up and drop you off at Denver International Airport.
Pinyon Juniper Plus
| Dates | 2025, July 10-13 |
| Duration | 4 days / 3 nights |
| Limit | 10 (2 guides) |
| Price | $1295 / SS $350 |
| Focus | Birding, Photography |
| Pace | Moderately Easy |
| Includes | hotels, ground transportation, guide, and food as noted on the itinerary, 80mm Swarovski scope available for group use |
| Deposit | $500 |
Itinerary
Day 1: Denver International Airport pickup and transfer to La Junta
We will pick you up from the Denver International Airport (DEN) by 2:00 pm. La Junta is our destination and home for the next two nights. This location in southeastern Colorado provides unique habitat and a variety of different bird species. Once we get settled in the hotel, the Hampton Inn, we have our welcome dinner and preview the Pinyon Juniper Plus Tour. (D)
Day 2: Higbee Valley area and Rails in PM
This full day of birding starts in Otero County, just a short drive away. Here we explore several habitat types including Pinyon Juniper, foothill scrub, river edge, riparian, and Ponderosa Forest. Due to this variety of habitats and southern location, we can see lots of unique bird species. After dinner is an evening birding trip where Black Rail is our target. (B, L, D)
Day 3: Pinyon Juniper habitat, Cheraw Lake, and transfer to Colorado Springs
Traveling southeast down to Las Animas County, we spend all morning in pristine Pinyon Juniper habitat. Here we target many of the pinyon species that are so difficult to locate. Back to La Junta for lunch and off to an amazing prairie lake that has breeding Snowy Plovers plus other goodies. The evening is our travel time to Colorado Springs for our final day with lots of different birds. (B, L, D)
Day 4: Foothills and Montane habitat with transfer to Denver International Airport
Our early start is rewarded by the morning chorus in North Cheyenne Canyon. Here we add foothills and mountain species. After we visit hummingbird feeders, we drive back to Denver International Airport (DEN) for departure. Plan on airport arrival at 2:00 PM. (B, L)
Additional Information
Difficulty
Depending on our destinations, we may do some walking on moderately smooth trails, out on the prairie, or along dirt or paved roads. The elevation range is about 5,000-8,000 fett. Our total walking distance each day is around 1-2 miles. Many birds can be found right along the paved roads or a short distance away from the car.
Considerations
Most of our time in Pinyon Juniper habitat will entail walking along dirt and paved roads. The temperature range is 60-95 degrees with some insects and little shade. Temperatures on the prairie will oscillate between 50-90 degrees. With not much shade, the sun will be direct at 4,900 feet above sea level. Bring a hat, sun protection including plenty of water for the tour. We average only five rainy days each month so lots of sun is expected. Light hikers or sneakers are fine for short jaunts on the prairie and walking along the road. Our last morning is spent going up to about 8,000 feet. You might need a light jacket as the temperature range is 50-70 degrees. Layers are the key to success for birding in Colorado.
Altitude
The altitude range for most birding around colorado Springs ranges from 5,200 – 8,000 feet above sea level. For visitors living outside of Colorado, you should be aware of the potential impacts of altitude. If you have health conditions that may be affected by altitude, you should consult with your health care professional. Drinking lots of water usually helps alleviate some of the systems. Please look through these considerations about altitude sickness here.
Here are our target species for this trip. Let’s see how many we can find!
A – Prairie to Mountains Tour
B – Pinyon Juniper plus Tour
Blue-winged Teal (A)
Cinnamon Teal (A)
Wild Turkey (A)
Scaled Quail (B)
Greater Roadrunner (B)
Eared Grebe (A)
Western Grebe (A)
Clarks Grebe (A)
Yellow-billed Cuckoo (B)
Common Nighthawk (A)
White-throated Swift (A, B)
Black-chinned Hummingbird (A, B)
Calliope Hummingbird (A, B)
Rufous Hummingbird (A, B)
Broad-tailed Hummingbird (B)
Virginia Rail (A)
Sora (A)
Black Rail (B)
Black-necked Stilt (A, B)
American Avocet (A, B)
Mountain Plover (A)
Snowy Plover (B)
Wilson’s Phalarope (A, B)
Lesser Yellowlegs (B)
Willet (B)
Greater Yellowlegs (B)
Stilt Sandpiper (B)
Baird’s Sandpiper (A, B)
Franklin’s Gull (A)
Black Tern (B)
American White Pelican (A)
Mississippi Kite (B)
Golden Eagle (A)
Northern Harrier (A)
Swainson’s Hawk (A, B)
Ferruginous Hawk (A)
Burrowing Owl (A, B)
Williamson’s Sapsucker (A)
Red-naped Sapsucker (A)
Red-headed Woodpecker (B)
Am Three-toed Woodpecker (A)
Ladder-backed Woodpecker (B)
Hairy Woodpecker (A)
Prairie Falcon (A)
Western Wood-Pewee (A, B)
Western Flycatcher (A, B)
Gray Flycatcher (B)
Hammond’s Flycatcher (A)
Dusky Flycatcher (A)
Eastern Phoebe (B)
Say’s Phoebe (A, B)
Ash-throated Flycatcher (B)
Cassin’s Kingbird (B)
Western Kingbird (A, B)
Eastern Kingbird (A)
Gray Vireo (B)
Plumbeous Vireo (A)
Warbling Vireo (A)
Loggerhead Shrike (A)
Steller’s Jay (A)
Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay (A, B)
Black-billed Magpie (A)
Chihuahuan Raven (B)
Common Raven (A)
Black-capped Chickadee (A)
Mountain Chickadee (A, B)
Juniper Titmouse (B)
Horned Lark (A)
Violet-green Swallow (B)
Cliff Swallow (A)
Bushtit (B)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (A)
Golden-crowned Kinglet (A)
Pygmy Nuthatch (B)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (B)
Rock Wren (A, B)
Canyon Wren (A, B)
Bewick’s Wren (B)
Marsh Wren (A)
American Dipper (A)
Curve-billed Thrasher (B)
Sage Thrasher (B)
Northern Mockingbird (A)
Western Bluebird (B)
Mountain Bluebird (A)
Townsend’s Solitaire (A)
Cedar Waxwing (A)
Pine Grosbeak (A)
Brown-capped Rosy-Finch (A)
Red Crossbill (A)
Pine Siskin (A)
Lesser Goldfinch (A, B)
Chestnut-collared Longspur (A)
Thick-billed Longspur (A)
Cassin’s Sparrow (A)
Grasshopper Sparrow (A)
Chipping Sparrow (A)
Brewer’s Sparrow (A)
Black-throated Sparrow (B)
Lark Sparrow (A, B)
Lark Bunting (A)
Canyon Towhee (B)
Rufous-crowned Sparrow (B)
Fox Sparrow (A)
White-crowned Sparrow (A)
Vesper Sparrow (A)
Lincoln’s Sparrow (A)
Green-tailed Towhee (A)
Spotted Towhee (A)
Yellow-breasted Chat (A, B)
Yellow-headed Blackbird (A, B)
Western Meadowlark (A)
Orchard Oriole (A)
Bullock’s Oriole (A, B)
Scott’s Oriole (B)
Virginia’s Warbler (B)
MacGillivray’s Warbler (A)
Common Yellowthroat (A)
Yellow Warbler (A)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (A)
Wilson’s Warbler (A)
Western Tanager (B)
Summer Tanager (B)
Black-headed Grosbeak (A, B)
Blue Grosbeak (A)
Lazuli Bunting (A)
Painted Bunting (B)
