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Explore underbirded Stanly County with us as we focus on Morrow Mountain State Park and other local hotspots. The state park is home to the tallest mountain in the ancient Uwharrie mountain chain, Morrow Mountain. We’ll focus mostly on birding the state park, exploring a few trails and looking for woodland and lowland species such as Prothonotary Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, Wood Thrush, and Yellow-throated Warblers. Red-headed Woodpeckers are abundant and we can hopefully expect a good variety of migrants.

Stanly County &amp; Morrow Mountain

Stanly County Explorer &amp; Morrow Mountain State Park

Ventures Birding Tours

1 birding guide

lunch

Small travel company based in Asheville, NC, specializing in birding &amp; nature tours both locally &amp; worldwide.

<p>Explore underbirded Stanly County with us as we focus on Morrow Mountain State Park and other local hotspots. The state park is home to the tallest mountain in the ancient Uwharrie mountain chain, Morrow Mountain. We’ll focus mostly on birding the state park, exploring a few trails and looking for woodland and lowland species such as Prothonotary Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, Wood Thrush, and Yellow-throated Warblers. Red-headed Woodpeckers are abundant and we can hopefully expect a good variety of migrants.</p>

About this trip

A Virtual Tour of England

Great trip! Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and organized. He had a plan for each day and stuck to it. He kept us informed of where we were going, what to expect and what to look for. I certainly appreciated that he was a safe driver. Accommodations were very nice and very clean, big points there. Wonderful group of interesting travel mates and I hope to see them again on other trips!

Kansas - Open Country Specialties

Another great trip with Ventures. Simon is so knowledgeable and friendly, he brings out the best in the guests and is a genius at finding the birds. Looking forward to my next trip. 

St. Augustine: Birds & History

I would highly recommend to any beginning birder. Vicky did great job covering so many aspects of the hobby utilizing books and charts and printed materials. We had a great morning learning how to spot, identify and record birds. Vicky's knowledge and experience was extensive and extremely helpful. I tried to take good notes, but there was a lot of information. I came away very enthused, with concrete ideas of how to progress in the hobby.

Beginning Birding Workshop 2021

So much fun to see how beautiful Kansas can be in the fall.  We drove on secondary roads through small towns and spectacular scenery. We learned that Kansas is not flat. Nothing like seeing thousands of sandhill cranes circling around the water at sunset! Well planned trip; good food and great birds.

This was an outstanding trip. We have always been amazed at the birds we see and the excellent tour guides when we go with Ventures, but this one stood out to us as one of the best. We saw a multitude of birds and many new ones to us. 
Not only were Craig and Pam knowledgeable of the area and keen at sighting birds, they were also a treasure trove of information. We feel that we learned an amazing amount from these very patient instructors who also followed up quickly after the tour with additional helpful information. We cannot say enough about our experience. It was definitely a 5* +++ trip

Private Half Day Tours (2021)

We had a lot of fun.  The guides were excellent and helped you get on the bird fast.  We loved learning about the beautiful locations we visited.  We saw a great variety of birds including many sea birds.  There was a lot of care and thought put into restaurant choices and the food was great.  Picnic lunches were also well done.   We would definitely travel with Ventures again.

Cape Cod and Rhode Island

I had a great time. Michael Plauche is an excellent birder and guide, and is very pleasant to spend time with. Communication with him and with Ventures Birding was excellent. 

Enjoyed two outings with Aaron Steed at Ridge Junction this Fall - one in early September and one in late September to catch different migrants coming through. Both were spectacular. It is really cool to see mass quantities of warblers and hummingbirds flying over the ridge, many graciously stopping for the viewing pleasure of our groups. Aaron has a fabulous ear for the different types of birds, and can pick one special species out of a large flock.  They were exciting and beautiful mornings as the sun came up over the ridge.  Was so thankful for Aaron’s help in spotting and identifying a large variety of birds. 

Spectacular Fall Migration 4

Kevin goes above and beyond to make sure everyones needs are met. He is flexible and low keyed. He does advances for the each trip. We tried many local (non-chain) restaurants and the food was superb.  Maneuvering between wildfires and unexpected covid closures there was no disappointments. Could not have asked for a better group of fellow passengers. There was plenty of room within the vehicle which is important especially when you are dealing with your various pieces of equipment.
Thank You again for a great trip.
CSSR

Washington - Pacific Northwest Birding 2021

This trip included 6+ days of birding from morning to late afternoon visiting many birding hotspots in Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey.  The pace was comfortable and the terrain very manageable, even Hawk Mountain.  Simon Thompson, owner and guide, has experience world-wide, can spot and hear the most obscure bird, can ID birds by sight and/or sound and makes sure everyone is "on the bird" even when it is not a "lifer"!  He is quick with the scope and binocular.  In addition, he methodically submits a checklist for each birding area - 25 in all for this trip!  The van was very comfortable and with large windows.  Chris Jaquette was an excellent driver and also a master at providing delicious picnic lunches.  Restaurant dinners were outside in comfortable temperatures.  Cuisine each night was delicious and varied.  We can hardly wait for our next trip with Ventures!

Hawk Mountain and Cape May 2021

Fall Warbler Workshop 2

Great walk on our Greenway. 
Clifton is a great guide!

Morganton Greenway

This was a birding tour in Jackson Park, Hendersonville, NC.  It was focused on migrating fall warblers.  The guide did a great job finding and showing the birds to us.  He was very knowledgeable about the birds and the park.  I learned a lot and saw lots of great birds!

Fall Warbler Workshop

Warblers by the hundreds, and Aaron knew them all! Fantastic!


I always enjoy  Ventures trips  and always learn something, whether there are lots of  birds found or not so many.  The hawk watch was one of the GOOD BIRD days as well as having good weather and good company.  Kevin, like all the Ventures guides, is  EXCELLENT.

Hawk Watching

Great improv due to weather. Turned out to be the usual great ventures experience

Spectacular Fall Migration 3

Excellent experience. Well planned and very enjoyable.

What a great trip. Two new life birds for me. We learned so much about birds from Kevin Burke, the trip leader. Jackson Park is a beautiful location, and Hendersonville is a great place to spend time when we aren't birding.

What a beautiful day we had birding with Keith!  Always enjoy his outings.  Was well organized with several pre-planned stops along the way to see several varieties of warblers migrating through. The lake was a bit high to see mass quantities of shorebirds, but Keith still made it fun pointing out several   cool birds and taking us on a beautiful hike to the end of the road. 

Shorebirds at Rankin Bottoms

After a bit of a wait for the fog to lift we saw a lot of birds.  Most common warbler was Tennessee, estimated at over 100.  Great guide in Aaron and Simon.

Spectacular Fall Migration 2

Very productive trip. Great guide, warblers are his passion. Kevin is considerate, pays attention to details, makes sure you see the bird , identifies calls and works to obtain your target birds. Well organized, considering dealing with Covid and restaurants etc. never in an uncomfortable situation.
Have booked additional trips with Kevin

Warbler Weekend - Asheville, NC

The birding and guide were outstanding.  We would have appreciated more thought/planning on meals.


August Shorebirding

Good birds and good people.  A lovely trip all around.  Thanks to Craig and Pam for an informative, relaxing trip.

Participants saw up to 202 species on this Washington State trip.  Kevin Burke knows Washington State and knows where to find the birds.  Kevin has "eagle eyes" and fantastic hearing.  Kevin is a very attentive, focuses on participants needs and promotes a pleasant atmosphere.  Kevin is excellent at finding rare birds and fulfilling your target specie requests.  This was our 3rd domestic trip with Kevin.  I look forward to traveling with him again.,

Excellent, well planned and well conducted trip.

Kevin and Keith are fantastic birders and worked together very effectively.  

Southeastern Arizona Specialties 2021

Fortunate to have two talented guides on this trip, Kevin Burke and Keith Watson.  Of course, heading to Tucson during a period of daunting heat mixed with heavy rain and unusual flooding caused Kevin to work extra to rearrange a schedule as some areas were not accessible.  He did an exceptional job and guided us to some marvelous destinations where we all saw certain species for the first time.  Keith meanwhile was kept busy researching what we might see and logging what we did.  Both were adept at knowing the habitat and quick to point out new targets.  Kevin also was creative in finding place to eat for our group and we all were appreciative of his selections.  Great trip and yes I had the good fortune to see so many birds I hadn't seen previously and some views were spectacular!

We saw lots of Arizona specialities, enjoyed varied habitats from desert to mountain tops.  Great place to stay in the desert.

This was a great day. Clifton navigated some unexpected logistics (unposted road closure) and made a full day with tons of stops he was familiar with. I am only a year into birding and added 13 species to my list. He was the most experienced person I have ever birded with, able to ID tons of birds by ear then spot them. 

Avery County, NC - County Birding

This was a great trip. Kevin Burke is a wonderful trip leader. He makes every effort for everyone to see the birds. He works hard to make sure everything runs smoothly.

Maine - Puffins, Boreal Birds, & Spectacular Scenery 2

The tour and tour guide were excellent in every way. Kevin our guide did everything in his power to to assist all participants throughout the trip to make the most enjoyable and fun trip possible.  

You should be aware that this trip was cancelled by Ventures Birding, and I have a credit with them for the full amount paid.

Michigan - Kirtland's Warblers & The Upper Peninsula

The scenery alone made me want to go there, plus the unusual plants.  And the birds1  Enjoyed the presentation.

Lions, Penguins and Proteas, A Virtual Tour of South Africa

I've already signed up for the actual tour whenever that might happen.  Loved it and am looking forward to a great adventure.

I really enjoy the virtual tours and Simon’s travelogue. I especially loved South Africa because I did a safari in Kenya and fell in love with Africa.  

Vermont is beautiful and I enjoyed my first trip there. We saw most of our target birds, plus some surprise species.  The trip was well planed and we got to many different habitats.  There are some great restaurants i Vermont; who knew?!  Accomadations were comfortable and quiet.

Verdant Vermont - Bicknell's Thrushes, Boreal Forests, & More

West Virginia was beautiful and the trip was fantastic. Simon is astounding with his skills locating and bringing out birds. The trip was well planned and executed, even with the obstacles of pandemic.

Wild and Wonderful West Virginia -2021

Great time.   Simon and Chris are awesome hosts.   Took us to many beautiful spots,  found a lot of bird species.  Equally accommodating to experienced birders and relative novices (us). Keep up the good work, chaps!

Great virtual tour - loved learning about the birds, history of the area and plants! 

Rails, Sparrows & Carnivorous Plants, A Virtual Tour of Southeast NC

An absolutely fantastic weekend!  Kevin Burke is a superb guide. He had done his homework, so he knew where we could find the unusual birds we had hoped to see, like Blue-winged, Golden-winged, and Cerulean Warblers.  He makes sure everyone catches sight of every bird and answers questions eagerly about field marks and identifiers. His ability to hear bird calls is uncanny, and it increases the odds of success in finding exotic birds.  He has a real sense of fun in his birding - it's not a relentless slog to see-see-see.  The group we were with had some very dedicated birders, and Kevin was able to talk to all levels - advanced birders to beginners.  On the 3.5  day weekend, the count for my wife and I was 109 species, 25 warblers, and 12 "lifers". We had nice dinners where we could compare notes on the day and learn about our fellow birders. In short, this was a memorable and delightfully fun weekend.  We're looking forward to our next Ventures Birding expedition.   

Despite threatening weather, we warbler lovers all decided to take the risk and proceed. We got in about two hours of biding, and had great views of our primary target, the golden winged warbler (one even posed on a bare snag for us!).  Beside the usual suspects, there were several other sightings,  including Orchard Orioles, red eyed and blue headed vireos, barn swallows, my first chimney swifts of the year, rose breasted grosbeaks, and an American redstart. We also heard hooded, black and white, and yellow warblers, yellow breasted chat and meadowlarks. We traveled on up Max Patch Road, but were done in by the steady stream of DOT gravel-filled dump trucks and a road grader disturbing the peace and eventually the arrival of heavy rain. However, our gung-ho crowd still enjoyed ourselves. The Max Patch Road area was so beautiful, with all the blooming spring flowers and rushing streams, it was great to just get out. Kevin Burke, our expert leader, also offered us another local day trip as recompense, and I chose the Mt. Mitchell trip with Simon Thompson in June, one of my very favorite trips. You can’t do better than bird with Ventures Birding!

Spring Warbler Workshop, Max Patch 21

Very nice trip, got 9 lifers.  Aaron went out of his way to meet the needs of all participants.  I was able to ride down and return with  Aaron, in addition to the daily trips with him.  Outstanding service.

Alan 

Southeastern NC Hotspots - Spring

This Green River Game Lands 2 offered a variety of habitats, elevations and therefore wonderful opportunities to see a variety of birds. Walks were short, yet very rewarding to hear and see birds in their natural settings. Highly recommend!

Green River Game Lands 2

Henderson County, NC - County Birding

We had a great time!  Kevin knows his birds and always made sure that we saw them.  His enthusiasm, knowledge and patience will bring us back!!

I saw lots of first of the year birds.  Lots of stops in various habitats.  Guide really knew his birds.

Good trip.  Good variety of birds, including 3 species not yet seen by me in NC.  I like Kevin's laid back style and I always learn something new when I go out with him.

Whip-poor-wills and Woodcocks (2)

Good refresher - especially the hints that can be used for some of the warbler songs.

Warbler Warm-up Online

We went to a variety of habitats and saw a terrific variety of birds. The leader was flexible and even pulled the group over safely on the road when he noticed a good bird for the season and location. The trip was good for both novice birders and serious birders. The trip leader accommodated target birds while sticking with the agenda. The trip leader followed all Covid-19 recommended precautions. The trip leader had an excellent sense of humor and made it a fun day with lots of species of birds in pretty places. A very pleasant experience with Ventures Birding Tours, at a surprisingly low rate. Highly recommend this group for affordable fun birding - for all birding levels from beginner to experienced lister.

Stanly County Explorer & Morrow Mountain State Park

Stanly County Explorer & Morrow Mountain State Park

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