Bering Sea Expedition Jun 21—Jul 05, 2006
Posted by Dion Hobcroft
Dion Hobcroft
Dion Hobcroft has been working for VENT since 2001. He has led tours to Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Bhutan, India, Southwest Pacific, Cambodia, Thailand, China, Jap...Related Trips
Our 2006 Bering Sea Cruise was an exceptionally successful voyage, as we delighted in one of the greatest wilderness adventures possible in the world today?all from the first-class comfort of the Clipper Odyssey. First I must thank all of the Clipper staff who truly went well above the call of duty to ensure we had such a great time, in particular Captain Mike, Expedition Leader Cheli, Cruise Director Noreen, and the ever flexible Hotel Manager Carlene. I also need to thank my outstanding co-leader, Bob Sundstrom, for his great efforts, and also for bringing so much botanical knowledge with him.
We enjoyed the smoothest transfer to Kamchatka ever aboard our Air Miami charter, and by the first afternoon we were settled onboard the ship. Our first landings at Kamenistya Bay and Little Chazma turned up a giant brown bear walking along the beach, stunning Siberian Rubythroats and Eastern Yellow Wagtails, Long-billed Murrelets in the scope, and a bunch of interesting passerines including displaying Sky Larks, Middendorff’s Grasshopper-Warbler, and the stunning Yellow-breasted Bunting.
Our full day on the Zhupanova River was fantastic; we all had mega-views?including at the nest?of the giant Steller’s Sea-Eagle. What a bird! For many it was the highlight of the trip. Amongst the many other great birds were Willow Ptarmigan at our feet, Long-toed Stint, displaying Eastern Curlews, Pechora and Red-throated pipits, Brambling, and Reed Bunting.
The next morning was dedicated to exploring Stone Birch forests west of the capital city, Petropavlovsk. Birding here can be likened to trying to squeeze ketchup from an empty bottle, but our persistence paid off. We had views of Eyebrowed Thrush, Olive-backed Pipit, Arctic Warbler, Rustic Bunting, and Eurasian Bullfinch. We even squeezed in some time to check out the statue of Lenin and Bering monument.
Our first full day at sea off the coast of Kamchatka was great, as we cruised east towards Attu and ABA territory. We had over 80 Mottled Petrels, an outstanding encounter with a blue whale for which the captain skillfully maneuvered the ship so we could enjoy (it was a lifer for the Captain!), and, for a few who put in the extra yards, an amazing Murphy’s Petrel that gave several close views and may have been a first for Russia.
The next morning we were approaching Attu and we still had Mottled Petrels on the ABA side of the fence. Attu was great. In our limited time we found a pair of Tufted Ducks, a Wood Sandpiper, and as we were walking back a superb pair of Falcated Teal flew around us?an absolute mega-bird in ABA territory. We also enjoyed Rock Sandpiper, Aleutian Tern, and great views of the striking Beringian endemic, Red-faced Cormorant. News filtered through of a Snowy Owl; a few made the long walk and, luckily, relocated the male who made for a decent scope view. Those who chose to buy souvenirs had a Black-backed Wagtail for company.
Kiska was also outstanding. Perhaps the greatest highlight was to be in Zodiacs amongst hundreds of thousands of Crested and Least auklets off Sirius Point while the Kiska volcano was in full view?an unbelievable experience. In Kiska Harbour we located the best rarity of the voyage in the form of an immature White-tailed Eagle that allowed extended scope studies and photographs?another mega-rarity.
Little Tanaga rip channels turned on the hoped-for Whiskered Auklets that gave us excellent views, as the front deck of the ship was opened up and we slowly cruised through flocks of these delightful alcids. A birding bonus at Adak turned up large numbers of Kittlitz’s Murrelets to compare with Marbled Murrelets, sea otters, and a crowd-pleasing Rock Ptarmigan that flew around the bus.
Chagulak was spectacular; the biomass of birds here is almost unbelievable until you experience it. Cruising north we encountered good numbers of Laysan and Black-footed albatross before we made it to a foggy St. Paul Island. Undeterred we went to the cliffs and had marvelous views of Crested, Parakeet, and Least auklets, and Tufted and Horned puffins, while the beaches hummed to the pulse of hundreds of northern fur seals. In the harbor we found a small flock of Steller’s Eiders and several Red-legged Kittiwakes.
On St. Mathew, and with McKay’s Buntings under our belts, we went on an extended tundra walk to a lagoon on the far side of the island. Good birds kept coming past including Long-billed Dowitcher, several Pomarine Jaegers, Red and Red-necked phalaropes, Tundra Swan, a vagrant Bufflehead, a superb Sabine’s Gull, and several Long-tailed Ducks. Hall Island, like Chagulak, is frequented by enormous numbers of birds and made for an exhilarating Zodiac cruise.
While our landing at Gambell was impossible due to dangerously rough seas, we made it to Savoonga. This turned out to be quite good with huge numbers of gulls attracted to a bowhead whale carcass including numerous Slaty-backed and Siberian Herring gulls. Offshore we had a few small flocks of King Eiders. We walked to the cliffs and sat amongst thousands of auklets while other people encountered Long-tailed Jaegers, Hoary Redpolls, nesting Western Sandpipers, and Dunlins.
Our last morning was in Nome. As we checked in on our charter flight, I wandered across the carpark and my eyes nearly popped out when I realized I was watching a family of Northern Shrikes?a longtime personal jinx bird. All aboard the bus we did a rapid tour of Safety Lagoon resulting in over 20 birds being added to the list, from Semipalmated Sandpiper to Hermit Thrush and American Tree Sparrow. Those who had previously missed out caught up with Aleutian Tern, Long-tailed Duck, and Sabine’s Gull. All too soon it was time to board our plane, which gave us great views of Mount McKinley. Our whole trip was sensational and I cannot wait to lead it again next year.