In June 2024, I went on my first official Birding Tour! It took some thought to decide where my first bird tour would be. I knew that I wanted to go somewhere in the US, and New England has been on the top of my bucket travel list for a while. When I googled “New England bird tour,” the first result was New England Birding Tours.

The itinerary was very appealing. What really “sold” me was that the tour began in Burlington, Vermont, where my company is headquartered. The tour itinerary listed many of the places I wanted to visit including Acadia National Park. I e-mailed the owner and guide, Dr. David Hof. After receiving a kind and thoughtful email from “Dave” that answered my questions and concerns, I signed up!

There were six participants on this trip: two photographers, Amy from Texas, and Jan, a Dutchman living in Washington, D.C. There was also a couple from Oregon, Helen and Stuart. Last was a birder who was even more “green” than I was, Mary Jo. We all got along swimmingly and had an amazing time! Seeing all the warblers in the glorious breeding plummages and hearing them sing was the highlight of the trip.

Here is the eBird list of the species we saw.

And here is a trip video that I made mostly for the participants. Enjoy!