Canada - Grand Manan
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The price is per person and includes scheduled return flights London - Halifax*, airport taxes, ground transportation, ferries, accommodation on a full-board basis, local taxes, tips, and the services of the leaders.
The price excludes holiday insurance, optional tips to local guides and driver, drinks and other items of a personal nature. *For an ex-international flight cost (starting and finishing in Halifax) please deduct £ 595 from the tour cost. This trip will be operated in conjunction with Limosa Holidays. Principal Leader: Tim Earl |
Join us for an early autumn bird and whale spectacular on Canada's eastern seaboard - shorebirds and warblers on migration, excellent seabird possibilities, and probably the best time for whale watching. |
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New Brunswick's Bay of Fundy is one of the marine wonders of the world, an amazing eco-system powered by the highest tides in the world... if you walk across the tidal zone at low tide, just six hours later your footprints will be covered by a wall of water over ten metres deep. Charging through submarine canyons, Fundy's mighty currents create cold-water upwellings resulting in an abundance of food for marine life and producing one of the greatest - and most accessible - concentrations of whales and seabirds in the North Atlantic. Fin, Minke, Humpback and the extremely rare Northern Right Whale congregate here in August to feed their young, play and mate.
During our stay, we'll enjoy two special boat trips out into the bay in search of whales and seabirds. Harbour Porpoises may be seen as we head out to sea and the likes of Grey and Red-necked Phalaropes, Puffins, Arctic and Pomarine Skuas are all regularly observed. We should be rewarded with close views of the various whales feeding and sometimes even breaching, and we'll look for seabirds such as Great and Sooty Shearwaters and tiny, pattering Wilson's Storm-petrels. Our encounters with these sprites of the sea were breathtaking on our last trip. The intertidal zone is equally rich in life, attracting thousands of shorebirds on migration. The main migration of Semipalmated Sandpipers takes place in August, when these tiny waders can sometimes be present in vast congregations. Least and White-rumped Sandpipers, Semipalmated Plovers, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs should also be seen. The forests, reminiscent of the Canadian North, can be full of warblers and other songbirds fattening up on insect food before beginning their arduous trek southwards. The geology is also very varied. Rock cliffs reveal evidence of life from Precambrian times to the last ice age. Fossils are constantly being exposed by the bay's relentless tides. Just a few short miles from the bay is the Northumberland Strait, a shallow body of much warmer water. This is the Acadian Coast, where miles of sandy beaches and warm shallow lagoons replace the wild Bay of Fundy, and English is replaced by French as the first language. With direct flights to Halifax available, this can be seen as a long-haul trip with a short-haul flight time of less than five hours. Itinerary Day 1 We take a direct flight from London to Halifax, Nova Scotia, arriving in the evening. A two-hour drive through the Canadian forests takes us to Sackville, New Brunswick, a delightful university town, for dinner and our first overnight stay. Overnight Sackville Day 2 Early morning will find us strolling through the waterfowl park in Sackville. Despite being in the middle of town this reed-fringed lake is a haven for waterfowl and waders - often 'spooked' by patrolling Northern Harriers. Here we could see our first Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Short-billed Dowitchers and Pectoral Sandpipers. Wildfowl include Ring-necked Duck, Green-winged Teal and American Wigeon plus the more familiar Gadwall. Pied-billed Grebes are often present in numbers, and American Coot is possible. American Bitterns skulk in the reeds and we have seen them feeding in the past. The lake is frequented by Muskrats, and is also an excellent location for dragon- and damselflies. We will visit the National Historic Site of Fort Beausejour, strategically situated on a hill with great views all round, and explore its underground rooms. The French were defeated by the British here and the fort then became Fort Cumberland. Given fine weather we may get our first views of migrating raptors from here. Then it's off to the shores of Johnston Mills where sand and mud create a home for billions of mud shrimps. From mid-July to the end of August, as many as two million Semipalmated Sandpipers (95% of the world's population) pass through the Bay of Fundy on their autumn migration. They feed on the tiny shrimps, doubling their weight in ten to fourteen days, before continuing on their southward journey. Flocks also include Semipalmated Plovers, Least, Western and White-rumped Sandpipers. Birds are dispersed over the vast flats feeding when the tide is low but flocks can reach over 100,000 individuals at high tide, roosting on the beach allowing close observation. In the afternoon we continue on to Bouctouche on New Brunswick's eastern shore. The English flavour experienced just a few miles before gives way to French joie de vivre: the contrast is fascinating. The area was first settled by the Acadians in the early 1600's, and here we will see the remains of an extensive system of dykes and dams, known as aboiteaux. We stay at a former nunnery, now a comfortable inn specializing in French cuisine and fine wines. Overnight Bouctouche Day 3 The eastern shore of New Brunswick is lined with beaches, barrier sand dunes and shallow lagoons, boasting the warmest water north of the Carolinas. Today we will explore the Dunes of Bouctouche, an ecosystem of international significance, and home to rare plants and fragile marshes. Songbirds Ð especially North American warblers and vireos Ð abound in the late growth forest, with Yellow-rumped Warbler the commonest of the former, and the latter including Blue-headed, Red-eyed and Philadelphia Vireos. Downy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker can be found along with the splendid Pileated Woodpecker. Boardwalks provide access to the open dunes where we look for rare Piping Plovers among the shorebirds. Bouctouche Rotary Park is a picnic area adjacent to a salt marsh and open water, which holds Willet and Least Sandpiper among the waders and wildfowl including Goldeneye and Scaup. Overnight Bouctouche Day 4 We take most of the morning to drive to Black's Harbour, where the ferry leaves for Grand Manan. On the way we'll watch for raptors with Red-tailed Hawk, Turkey Vulture and American Kestrels possible. Eastern Bluebirds can also be seen along the roadside and we could see our first Groundhogs. Just waiting for the ferry can be quite entertaining with Bald Eagles and Ospreys soaring past and perhaps a procession of Monarch butterflies beginning to migrate south. John James Audubon frequented Grand Manan Island. These days birdwatchers from all over North America come here and for good reason: the seabird possibilities are some of the best on the east coast. But perhaps the most spectacular visitors are the whales. Grand Manan has become well-known as one of the best whale-watching sites in North America. This is a welcome resting and feeding spot for those birds migrating south. We may get our first glimpse of pelagic birds from the ferry to the island on the 90-minute crossing. Great, Sooty and Manx Shearwaters, together with Wilson's Storm-petrels, are possible along with Gannets, Arctic Terns and Kittiwakes. It is not unusual to spot Harbour Porpoise, Minke, Fin and Humpback Whales from the ferry, accompanied by huge flocks of wheeling gulls. This evening Laurie Murchison will meet us for a lecture. Laurie, who has been studying whales and seabirds off Grand Manan for 20 years, is the director of the Whale and Seabird Research Station on the island. Overnight Grand Manan Island Day 5 We take a boat trip out for our first whale-watch. Cetacean species common in the bay include Harbour Porpoises and the rare North Atlantic Right Whale - arguably the most endangered large animal on earth. These wonderful mammals come to feed their young in this part of the bay and this is probably the best time of year for a sighting. Huge 10m. Basking Sharks are also sometimes seen. Where there are whales we often watch seabirds since they are attracted by the same food. Flocks of Great and Sooty Shearwaters, Wilson's and Leach's Petrels can be impressive. Other seabirds include Arctic and Pomarine Skuas, Great Northern Divers, Black Guillemots, Puffins and Razorbills. We spend the morning on the boat, in the afternoon driving to the island's south-west head with its attractive cliffs of columnar basalt and a good range of flowers and butterflies. With Sharp-shinned Hawk and Merlin on the move, the possibility of migrant raptors is good. We will also visit a salt-marsh on which we've seen American Golden Plover, Hudsonian Godwit, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Baird's and Least Sandpipers. Overnight Grand Manan Island Day 6 We take a second morning boat trip in search of whales and seabirds. In addition to the pelagic birds mentioned above we could see Leach's Petrels, Grey and Red-necked Phalaropes and, occasionally, Sabine's Gull. Sea-duck can include both White-winged and Surf Scoters, Eider and Red-breasted Mergansers. In the afternoon we will investigate other wildlife sites on the island Ð perhaps a bog with its pitcher plants and sundews, dragonflies and Garter Snakes, and surrounding scrub which can attract flycatchers and Blue-grey Gnatcatcher. Overnight Grand Manan Island Day 7 We'll spend the day exploring the island. Anchorage Provincial Park offers lovely trails beside the ocean. Migrants here can be abundant, and we've seen ten species of warbler, including Pine and Prairie Warblers together with American Redstarts in just one flock. Other migrant passerines can include Grey Catbird, Dark-eyed Junco, Red-breasted Nuthatch and Bobolink. Besides wonderful scenery and quaint wooden houses, the island is an excellent area to observe the dynamics of the famous Fundy tides. Sunsets can be spectacular from The Whistle, on the west side of the island. The road here cuts through thick red spruce forests which are ideal for migrating warblers and hawks. We have often seen whales playing in the ocean from this headland which also offers a view overlooking Passamaquoddy Bay to mainland USA. A clear sky at night will see us doing a spot of star-gazing. Overnight Grand Manan Island Day 8 We take an early ferry off the island to drive to Fundy National Park which boasts the world's highest tides. Here we find a variety of habitats including salt marsh, tidal mudflats, and Acadian and red spruce forest. The forest could provide us with views of Northern Goshawks, Pine Siskins, White-winged Crossbills and a good range of migrants. If time allows we'll visit Mary's Point which, like Johnston Mills, is famous for roosting sandpipers. We stay in an elegantly-furnished inn near Mary's Point. Overnight Mary's Point Day 9 After breakfast we will visit Hopewell Rocks, one of the Bay of Fundy's most famous attractions, which nearly disappear twice a day beneath the incoming waters. These rocks, each a towering 'flowerpot' of sea-carved stone, stand as a striking legacy to the force of the bay's tidal motion. We then drive back to Halifax for our return flight to London, arriving on Day 10. Accommodation: Good hotels with all rooms en suite. Transport: Land transport will be by minibus or mini-coach. The whale-watching trips will be on 42ft and/or 56ft vessels which take up to 25 or 50 passengers respectively. Both have cabins if we need to shelter from the weather. Numbers: Max. 14 clients |
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