Grand Manan: We confess. This is our favorite island in the world. It's a Canadian island that hovers off the coast of Maine, playing host to the best of Canada and the U.S. Looking for night life? Avoid it. Looking for wild life? Embrace it. Just GETTING to the island is an outstanding pelagic birding experience. Once there, expect a migrant trap that also boasts some of the boreal species coveted much farther north. The largest concentration of endangered Right Whales in the world occurs just offshore. Oceanic bird life is prolific. Shorebirds are varied and numerous. Sit on the wharf and watch the seals cavort. 

Life on Grand Manan is uncomplicated. The sea sustains the island economy and visitors enhance it. We'll catch the tail end of the season when most tourists have left but the wildlife hasn't. This is the month when anything can happen. Rare pelagic species like Great Skuas and Long-tailed Jaegers pop up amongst the kittiwakes, shearwaters, fulmars, phalaropes, gannets, murres, and razorbills. The island is a migrant trap, boasting over 360 species identified in recent times. We know this island inside and out. It is honeycombed with secret trails and unusual harbors.

We did this tour exclusively for Maine Audubon last year. It rained. In fact, it poured down the remnants of Tropical Storm Hannah. And yet we still did 82 species in two days despite the cancellation of our pelagic trip. Warblers fell out in droves. Pelagics were blown ashore. Even BAD weather was good birding. This tour is scheduled for three days so that we can explore the entire island while leaving sufficient time to accommodate changeable weather. Expect cool temperatures, short hikes, and astounding scenery. The cliffs of Grand Manan are seldom rivaled along the eastern coast of North America.

The tour package is $600 per person, double occupancy, limited to 10 participants. ($200 single supplement.) Includes three nights at the Manan Island Inn, all meals, guided transportation by 15-passenger van with Bob & Sandi Duchesne - founders of the Maine Birding Trail, and a special pelagic boat trip for birds and whales. Tour meets in Black's Harbour, New Brunswick, on September 23rd at 12:30pm Atlantic Standard Time. (Late arrivals may catch one of the later ferries.) We'll return to the mainland on Saturday, September 26th, by 1pm AST.

This tour includes short hikes, sometimes on damp or uneven ground. Boat trips require warm clothing and may require precautions for motion sickness. Personal spotting scopes are handy but not necessary. We'll bring ours to share and a good assortment of field guides. Meals will consist of cereals and fruit for breakfast, picnic lunches in scenic places, and home-cooked dinners. For information and reservations, contact the Maine Birding Trail’s Bob Duchesne at duchesne@midmaine.com or 207-827-3782.