John James Audubon spent his most formative years as an artist in Kentucky which, in 1807, he described as “a spot designed by nature to become a place of great importance.”  On this natural and cultural history tour we will follow in his footsteps during the region’s peak spring birding and wildflower season. The tour begins and ends in Louisville. Naturally, the primary focus is birding, with a Kentucky twang.

Tour Highlights:

• Spring migration: this tour is timed for peak spring bird migration with visits to specialized habitats, hoping for uncommon birds like Bobolink, Cerulean Warbler, Swainson’s Warbler and Henslow’s Sparrow
• Audubon State Park: superb birding in Ohio River Valley wildlife preserves and home to the largest collection of JJ Audubon’s works
• Mammoth Cave National Park: spring birding in a unique ecological setting, optional
• Appalachia: birdy days in one of the oldest mountain ranges on earth
• Camp Nelson: great grassland birding at a unique Civil War monument
• Bourbon and fast horses: taste and experience what KY is famous for
• The Shakers: a stay at the historic Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill within 3,000 acres of beautifully conserved wildlife habitat

Your guides for this trip, Eddie Bartley and Noreen Weeden, have been leading Nature Trip tours since 2004.  Eddie is a native of Kentucky and has been birding there since childhood.

Before signing up, please read What To Expect on this trip in terms of pace, activity level, and other logistics.

For questions, contact Dawn Lemoine at travelprogram@goldengatebirdalliance.org.