Explore The Great Unknown
DAY ONE: SoCal Weekend Deep-Water Trips from San Diego depart at dawn. We bird our way out to sea, over the birdy Nine-mile Bank, "The Ridge" at the Thirty-mile Bank (Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrel 2 Oct 2010) and over the San Clemente Basin south of San Clemente Island where we often find Red-Billed Tropicbirds. We enjoy a delicious restaurant-style dinner just west of San Clemente Island on the evening of the first day. After desert or a beer and socializing, we doze off in our individual bunks and wake the morning of Day 2 more than one hundred miles off the mainland at or near the edge of the Continental Shelf - about as far west as you can go in the ABA area.
DAY TWO: The primary focus of the second day of these trips is to explore life zones in deep waters where southern hemisphere birds are usually found only by research ships. No day trips venture this far. We will hunt for pterodromas and mega-rarities, birds with fewer than 10 accepted records in all of California - the birds that people whisper about. Deep water birding on the continental shelf is a different experience than the bird-rich life zones closer to shore. Read more about the experience of deep water birding.
48 or 56 Hours: The 48-hour trip will spend - from sunrise to sunset - birding. On the 48 trips, we begin the day at or near the shelf edge (130 - 175 n miles off the mainland in the most southwestern region of the ABA) and begin moving up onto the shelf by noonlish or so. On the 56-hour trips, we are able to spend from sunrise until sunset at or beyond the shelf edte in 1500 - 2000 fathom waters, not beginning our return until after sunset. See the individual trip pages for more details.
RARITIES & MEGA-RARITIES seen on chartered pelagic seabirding trips in southern California since 2000 include a Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrel (at the Thirty Mile Bank 2 Oct 2010), Hawaiian Petrel, Cook's Petrel, Murphy's Petrel, Bulwer's Petrel, Streaked Shearwater, Tristram's Storm-Petrel, Ringed Storm-Petrel, Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel, Red-billed Tropicbird, Red-TAILED Tropicbird and Craveri's Murrelet. If we see one of the rarities, it's a good day. If we see a mega-rarity, we'll be very lucky because none are probable - that's why they're called mega-rarities.
SLEEPING QUARTERS: Sleeping quarters on Grande overnight trips are "bunkhouse style" in a big co-ed bunk room with 50 bunks. Your personal bunk is 6' 3" long and 2 feet wide with a mattress, pillow, fresh pillowcase, and a wool blanket. Each bunk has a cloth screen for privacy. The rest is up to you. Some folks bring sleeping bags, most kick off their shoes and sleep in their clothes under the blanket. For couples only: Grande has several double beds in the 6-bed Captain's bunkhouse. Please request by email if you would like to share a bunk with a significant other. These bunks are reserved for couples only on a first-reserved basis.
PERSONAL HYGIENE: There are 2 restrooms (heads): one male, one female. The female head is on the port side, male head on the starboard side. You may wish to bring a small towel, although it is not necessary as each head has a small wash basin with paper towel and a liquid soap dispenser. Boat heads are small - when brushing your teeth, please do so outside at the rail to allow others access into the heads - there is nothing like brushing your teeth at the back rail with the sun rising and two albatrosses following Grande in the wake!
SEATING - Grande has a spacious dining cabin with comfortable "restaurant-booth" with large windows and seating for 24 people for meals, reading, resting socializing or napping. The Audubon Society will bring sturdy nylon outdoor folding chairs aboard to set up around the bait tanks. If you are local, you may wish to bring your own chair for use if the 10 Audubon chairs are in use. If you enjoy being where the action is (outside on deck the entire day) 12 - 16 hours is a long time to be on your feet -- you'll appreciate a chair. Out of town guests are not expected to bring a chair.
MEALS & BEVERAGES - Grande has a full service galley and large dining cabing with restaurant-style booths. Full breakfasts (eggs, bacon, pancakes, etc) breakfast sandwiches (delicous), cheese burgers, chicken sandwiches and a full 3-course evening dinner including desert and beverages (water, soft drinks and beer) are available on board for purchase. You may bring your own non-perishable snacks (pretzels, saltines, bagels, Wheat Thins, Sun Chips, candy bars, gingersnaps or Tiscuits) on board.
A PEEK INTO GRANDE (and evening dinner being prepared on Grande): About half way into this video you see the cook making dinner and what the evening dinners look like: http://www.grandesportfishing.com/video.htm While the video is about fishing, it gives you a peek into Grande. Just mentally take out the fishermen/women and insert birders with binoculars in place of fishing poles! Enjoy!
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