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Journey of the Sandhill Cranes

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Zapata Ranch

March 13 – 15, 2024

Spend 2 nights at Zapata Ranch exploring the San Luis Valley during the spectacular migration of Sandhill Cranes. Package includes a guided tour of the nearby wildlife refuge with birding experts, Ted and Hannah Floyd, and a bison tour of the Medano side of the ranch, where you may see cranes mingling amongst a conservation bison herd. The breathtaking sight of these two species together brings to mind a pre-human era when both of these animals would have roamed North America together.

Sandhill Cranes

One of the oldest species of birds still living, the Sandhill Crane undertakes an epic migration every spring and fall between their wintering grounds in Mexico and the American Southwest and breeding grounds throughout the Rocky Mountains, Canada, Alaska, and even across the sea to Siberia. With an unmistakable call that can be heard from miles away, the Rocky Mountain population of these beautiful birds converges every March in Colorado’s San Luis Valley for several weeks. Enormous groups of cranes, numbering in the tens of thousands, create one of the most remarkable wildlife spectacles in North America.

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About Hannah and Ted

Ted Floyd is the longtime Editor of Birding, the flagship publication of the American Birding Association. He is a frequent guest on the American Birding Podcast and a sought-after speaker at bird festivals and ornithological society meetings. Ted is also the author of several hundred articles and papers on birds and nature, and he has written five bird books—with three more on the way. He eBirds daily, iNats weekly, and teaches math occasionally. Follow Ted on Instagram @tedfloydbirds.

Hannah Floyd grew up in Colorado, where she spent much of her childhood discovering and photographing the birds and other wildlife in the region. Hannah has had articles and photos published in various print and online publications, and she has given presentations and led workshops for birding festivals and ornithological society meetings nationwide. Now she is an undergraduate at Princeton University, where she is studying molecular biology and Spanish. Follow Hannah on Instagram @hannahzfloyd.

Ted & Hannah love the Medano-Zapata Ranch and can’t wait to share their deep knowledge of this magical place with you. Ted has been leading trips here annually for more than 20 years, and Hannah has been a regular visitor here her whole life –and, more recently, a tour leader.

Photo ©Swarovski Optik

Rates

$1095 for a two-night stay for two people. Rates include lodging, meals, a guided tour of the nearby Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge, and a guided tour of the Medano side of the ranch.

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Wildness Incarnate

“The Crane is wildness incarnate. High horns, low horns, silence, and finally a pandemonium of trumpets, rattles, croaks… a new day has begun on the crane marsh. A sense of...

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Zapata Ranch

Set back in a shady cotton woodgrove beneath the majestic 14,000-foot peaks of the Sangre De Cristo Mountains lies the historic Zapata Ranch headquarters and lodge, which was established in the late 1800’s. Elk, mule deer, migratory birds, eagles, and black bear also call this area home. The rooms are beautifully furnished and have an elegant southwestern decor that gives them the feel of home. All rooms have individual tiled bathrooms and views that are private, peaceful, and beautiful in any season.

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