Maine & New Hampshire

Common Yellowthroat by Simon Thompson

Puffins, Thrushes
& Boreal Specialties

June 3-13, 2023

Spruce Grouse by Kevin Burke

Your place on this Venture is reserved when your completed registration form and deposit of $300/person has been received. Deposit may be made via the ‘book now’ button above, or by contacting the Ventures office. We accept credit cards for an additional fee (2.9% for MC, Visa, Discover; 3.9% for AmEx), but you may also pay by bank transfer, cash, check, or money order (payable to ‘VENTURES BIRDING’) sent to PO Box 1095, Skyland, NC 28776. This Venture is limited to 8 participants.

Cost of Maine Venture $3,950 from Portland based on double occupancy (Single supplement $1050) Price includes: Van transportation from Portland, accommodation, meals, boat trips, admission fees, information packet & bird checklist, and guide/leader service Not included: Airfare to Portland, alcoholic beverages, and items of a personal nature.

Swap the southern summer heat for the cool northeast on this 11-day birding getaway to scenic Maine and New Hampshire. From the expansive boreal forest to rocky, offshore islands teeming with seabirds, our tour takes us through some of the most beautiful and bird-rich areas North America has to offer. Among the many notable highlights, we will visit Kennebunk Plains, a rare protected grassland where we expect to find Upland Sandpiper & Vesper Sparrow.

From there we turn our attention northward to the boreal forest of New Hampshire’s Mount Washington, home to such targets as Bicknell’s Thrush, Black-backed Woodpecker and Boreal Chickadee. We’ll then head to the breathtaking coast and deciduous forests of Acadia National Park. Our tour also includes 2 boat trips – one a whale watch and the other to Seal Island – which will get us up-close-and-personal views of thousands of seabirds including Atlantic Puffin, Common Murre, Roseate & Arctic Terns, plus an assortment of seals and whales. We’ll conclude the tour with a visit to Portland’s Scarborough Marsh, the largest of its kind in Maine and an excellent place to compare breeding Nelson’s & Saltmarsh Sparrows.

While the birding will be excellent, we will be sure to take time and appreciate Maine’s numerous other attractions, from its rugged coastline dotted with historic lighthouses, to its charming New England villages and old-fashioned fishing towns, not to mention the delicious (and ample) lobster dinners!

Some of the Birds We Hope to See

Spruce Grouse, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Black-backed Woodpecker, Bicknell’s Thrush, Boreal Chickadee, Canada Jay, Atlantic Puffin, Black Guillemot, Razorbill, Arctic & Roseate Terns, Piping Plover, Wilson’s Storm-Petrel, Manx Shearwater, Black-legged Kittiwake, Common Loon, Common Eider, 20+ species of warbler including Magnolia, Bay-breasted & Blackpoll Warblers, Saltmarsh & Nelson’s Sparrows and much more!!!