Getting Out » The Word from the Bird

Word: Remember what they say about early birds …

Ann Walker — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 22:03:46 +0000

Since this is The Word From the Bird, here’s a word to the wise: If you are interested in jumping aboard for field trips during the Yuma Birding & Nature Festival , jump now! Some popular trips are sold out but there’s still lots of fun to be had! Check out the schedule online at the link above, then call Kate at 928-376-0101 or 1-800-293-0071. ext. 15. Get a spot while the gettin’s good!

Word from the Bird goes multi-media

Ann Walker — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 23:46:50 +0000

Hey, I was on the AZ3Sixty Magazine internet radio show the other day — I feel so high-tech! Check it out as I convince them there is more to Our Fair City than just gas stations and McDonald’s — and why it’s not a good idea to try to ride a bighorn sheep!

Word: Owls elusive, but it was a hoot

Ann Walker — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 19:18:55 +0000

I went on an owl-spotting excursion the other night with local birding expert Henry Detwiler .

The occasion was a sort of media preview for the Yuma Birding & Nature Festival — we were attempting to round up “photo opportunities” for an Arizona Star photographer and “natural sound” for Angelina Bonta of local public radio station KAWC.

As it turned out, it was Angelina — a birding newbie like me — who spotted our find of the evening: cute little burrowing owls conveniently hanging out around the Burrowing Owl Habitat at West Wetlands Park. They really couldn’t have made it easier unless they wore signs around their necks and passed out 8×10 glossy head shots like auditioning actors (photo here by Henry, compliments of his Southwest Birders Web site).

Since I am famous within my family for wondering “why can’t they put nature closer to the parking lot?” I’m all for watchable wildlife that appears on cue in its designated area. (more…)

Word: Get outdoor adventure deal at Fair

Ann Walker — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 20:32:12 +0000

Have you always wanted to search out bighorn sheep on the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge? Explore the Colorado Delta south of the border? See the wild side of the Imperial Sand Dunes with a desert expert?

But maybe you’ve worried about knowing where to go, getting lost, or not having four-wheel drive … and it’s kept you from discovering the adventures in your own back yard.

Then the 2008 Yuma Birding & Nature Festival, April 16-20, is just your ticket – and you can register this week at the Yuma County Fair at a special two-for-one rate! With 32 different field trips on the agenda, birds are just the beginning of the exciting outdoor fun available. (more…)

Word: You gotta dig Castle Dome

Ann Walker — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 21:22:40 +0000

One of the cool things about my job is that some days, I actually get paid to go out and have fun!

OK, not all the time, but one of the things I do for Yuma Visitors Bureau is to write an “attraction of the month” feature for The Sun’s 33.10 supplement. That means I jump in my trusty P.T. Cruiser and head out to check out something to do in Yuma, talk to people and take a bunch of photos.

Then comes the hard part — I have to boil it all down to about 300 words.

This last week, I wrote a story about Castle Dome Mines Museum, which is up in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge off Highway 95 north of Yuma. (more…)