Birds and Blues Festival on Oregon Coast

Published 03/27/2010

(Pacific City, Oregon) - The seventh annual Birding and Blues Festival returns to Pacific City, the Nestucca Bay National Refuge, and numerous top birding locales in the area on April 9 to 11.

The event features three days of presentations at Kiawanda Community Center by renowned birding experts including noted photographer and featured speaker Paul Bannick, and oystercatcher biologist Peter Moore, as well as two Birds of Prey exhibits. Bannick’s book, The Owl and the Woodpecker, released in 2008, was selected as one of the five finalists for the 2009 Washington State Book Awards in the General Non-Fiction category. Moore comes to Pacific City after spending 27 years working for the Department of Conservation in New Zealand where he specialized in projects helping threatened species, particularly oystercatchers and the albatross.

Other great opportunities include a chance to test your birding knowledge with artist/biologist Ram Papish as he presents “The Great American Bird Quiz,” learn about shorebirds with Oregon Birding author John Rakestraw, and find out the challenges facing the Swainson’s Hawk during a talk by bird rehab specialist Liz Diver.

There’s even chances for the children to get involved with art projects planned on Friday and Saturday for kids 6-12.

For birders who just can’t wait to see what birds roam the skies above Pacific City and the Nestucca Valley, there are a multitude of chances to get in the outdoors. Field trips to the Nestucca Bay National Wildlife Refuge include morning, afternoon and evening hikes, some of which will be geared for the shutterbug and led by local professional photographer Karen White. Additional hikes will include kid-friendly hikes to Whalen Island for trips that will be attractive to the older set as well. There will also be trips to see shorebirds along the coast - all led by seasoned professionals from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, as well as regional and local birders.

There are kids hikes at Whalen Island State Park.

For those interested in a vantage point from the water, there are numerous trips on Nestucca Bay and Tillamook Bay led by professional guides. Ron Kaser will lead boat trips on both bodies of water while NW Eco Excursions will offer kayak trips on the Nestucca River and Nestucca Bay.

In the evening, birders can exchange their binoculars for their dancing shoes as two popular bands hit the stage at Kiawanda Community Center. Local favorite Donna Jose and the Side Effects play their brand of the blues while Portland-based Kolvane will bring their “rollicking style” of blues/rock to Birding and Blues on Saturday night.
Registration for the festival runs from $5 for an individual event to a $100 pass that gets a family of four entry into events on all three days including the two blues concerts.

Cost is $5 to $100, depending on activities. Events take place all over Pacific City, but many happen at Kiawanda Community Center, 34600 Cape Kiwanda Drive, Pacific City, Oregon.

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