2008 Festival Schedule
| 7 a.m. | Birdwalk to Perkin's Peninsula of Fern Ridge Reservoir and Zumwalt Park to look for marsh birds, migrant songbirds and any other birds we can find. Length: 3.5 hours Led by: Dennis Arendt Meet at: Secret House Winery Cost: $10.00 Limited to 20 people |
| 8:30 a.m. | Bird and ecology walk Length: 2.5 hours Led by: Dave Bontrager Meet at: Secret House Winery Cost: $10.00 Limited to 20 people |
| 8:30 a.m. | Bird walk and tour at the Oregon Country Fair Led by: Bruce Newhouse and Rick Ahrens Meet at: Meet at Oregon Country Fair site entrance at 24450 Suttle Road and the corner of Aero Road and follow the signage for parking and our starting point. Cost: Free Limited to 40 people |
| 9 a.m. | Bird/Wildlife Photography Workshop by Jerry Gowins. Workshop will start in the wine cellar with slides and instruction, and then participants can spend the day around the grounds practicing their photography with Jerry's guidance. Check out his website at www.carpe-lumen.net. Length: Through the day Led by: Jerry Gowins Meet at: Secret House Wine Cellar Limited to 20 people |
| 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. | Scopes at Royal Avenue Platform The large Royal Avenue platform has a 360 degree view of wetland habitats. At this site one can see numerous species of waterfowl, shorebirds, raptors, terns, and other birds. Bring your spotting scopes, binoculars, and field guides, or borrow the ones provided. Led by: Dan Farrar Cost: Free |
| 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. | Secret House Festival Grounds Open
Gardens open all day for bird watching! Lunch from Veneta's Our Daily Bread Restaurant! Hourly bird walks on the beautiful Secret House Grounds Booths sponsered by Lane County Audubon Society, Cascades Raptor Center, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Willamette Resources Education Network, Barnes & Noble, Veneta Parks, Fern Ridge Trails, and Wine Tasting will have tons of cool information and ongoing activities! |
| 10 a.m. | Fern Ridge Bird Walk with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) biologist Dan Farrar Led by: Dan Farrar Meet at: Royal Avenue Gate Cost: Free |
| 10 a.m. to 12 noon | Paddle for Predators to find Raptors on Fern Ridge Lake and to Coyote Creek for other bird species. Paddle the marshy side of Fern Ridge and get close to wetland raptors and other water-loving birds. Local environmental educator for Nearby Nature and lover of birds, Wendy McKenzie, will guide the trip. Oregon River Sports will provide the canoes, personal floatation device and canoe paddles.
Led By: Guy Santiago and Jim Maloney Meet at: 9:45 at Perkins Peninsula Park Cost: $25 per person or $40.00 per canoe Limited to 10 canoes |
| 10 a.m.to 3 p.m. | Hourly Bird Walks on grounds of Secret House Winery led by various Lane County Audubon leaders Length: 1 hour Led By: Dan and Barbara Gleason, Dael Parsons, Rick Ahrens, Eddie Thompson and other Audubon leaders. Meet at: Audubon booth Cost: Free Pre-registration Required Limited to 25 people |
| 11 a.m. | Turtle Talk at Kirk Pond Led By: Kat Beal She will discuss turtle biology and management and participants will perhaps have an opportunity to observe western pond turtles basking at Kirk Pond, one of the best places in Lane County to observe these native turtles. Meet at: Secret House Wine Cellar Cost: Free Pre-registration Required Limited to 25 people |
| 11 a.m. | Raptor ID talk “Raptors: Who they are and how to know them.” Led by: Dan Gleason, Louise Shimmel and an all-winged cast from CRC. Meet at: Cascades Raptor Center Booth |
| 12 noon | Hedgerow talk Led By: Patti Chappel Meet at: Wine Tasting Booth Cost: Free |
| 12 p.m. - 4 p.m. | Open House at ODFW Office at Fern Ridge Wildlife Area 26969 Cantrell Road. Visit and see the displays of mounted birds, bird checklists, maps to trails of woodlands and wetlands. A great opportunity to become better acquainted with your local wildlife area. Directions to ODFW Office Free Guided walks at 12:30 and 3:30 pm led by Wayne Morrow and Kevin Roth. |
| 1 p.m.to 5 p.m. | Tour 4 Wineries and bird at each site! Van tour will begin at Secret House, go to Sweet Cheeks, Silvan Ridge and King Estate Wineries. Visit the tasting rooms, hear about each winery, check for birds at each location with the guidance of our experts and enjoy the afternoon tour! Led by: Peg Boulay and Bruce Newhouse Meet at: Secret House wine cellar Limited to: 20 People Cost: $25.00 per person |
| 1 p.m. | Plants and Wildflower Walk at Fisher Butte led by Wes Messinger, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers botanist. Willamette Valley wet prairie is fascinatingly diverse. But it's wet: wear waterproof boots. Led by: Wes Messinger Meet at: Fisher Butte parking lot, N side of Hwy 126 half a mile west of Fisher Road, 4.8 miles E of Territorial Hwy in Veneta Length: 2 hours Limited to 20 people Cost: Free
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| 1 p.m. | Wings Over the Wetlands: Migration Activities for Kids: |
| 2 p.m. | Backyard Habitat talk with Dick Lamster. He will discuss Bird Feeders, Bird Boxes, and attracting wildlife with landscape ideas. Led by: Dick Lamster Meet at: Secret House
Cost: Free |
| 3 p.m. | Raptor ID talk: “Raptors: Who they are and how to know them.” Led by: Dan Gleason, Louise Shimmel and an all-winged cast from CRC. Meet at: Cascades Raptor Center Booth |
| 6 p.m. |
Cascades Raptor Center Owl Introduction on patio with hors d’oeuvres "A Fascination with Owls" by Louise Shimmel Dinner at Secret House Enjoy a gourmet meal in the wine cellar featuring spring delicacies and hear about the day’s birding adventures from the field trip leaders. Gourmet Dinner catered by Our Daily Bread Restaurant. View Menu Cost: $75.00 includes wine with each course. Keynote Speaker: Dave Bontrager “What I Did Last Summer: Tall Tales from 35 Years of Bird Studies” |