This post covers the third, and last, day of our trip to SE Arizona. We went to Portal, Arizona, which is a popular Arizona birding spot. It appears to me that the town’s main business is birding. Portal is in the Chiricahua Mountains, and it is home to birds whose range overlaps with Mexico. One of the attractions is the different species of hummingbirds. Fifteen species have been reported, of which about 8 are commonly seen there (depending on the time of year).
It was about a 1.5 hour drive from our hotel to Portal. We stopped at the Portal Peak Lodge, and then went to the Cave Creek Canyon Visitor Center. The volunteer was pretty helpful, and provided a nice map. He recommended that, since we only had a few hours, the best spot would be the South Fork Trail.
The main attraction there was a couple of pairs of nesting Elegant Trogons. On the way out, we talked to a couple who were birding along the creek by the bridge, just before the trailhead. That would be a good spot to hit in the future.
Our next stop was Dave Jasper’s yard. There are three private residents in Portal that have feeders, and open their yards to the public. One of them is Dave Jasper’s. It’s kind of cheating to bait the birds, but it’s also a lot easier. You just sit and watch. There have been 170 species reported in Dave’s yard since it opened in 2015. In April and May of this year, 60 species have been reported.
At about 2:00 PM we headed for home. It was approximately a 4 hour drive, so we got home in time for dinner.
We had a great trip. As usual, Aravaipa Canyon was awesome, but our side stops along the way were also fun and well worth the time.
3 Comments
Such pretty birds!
Love your work. Sound like a great trip.
MJ
Joe, how is it that these birds pose just right for you ? Like always, I like the idea that when I turn on your site, it always helps to calm me down. (Nursing isn’t easy)