San Francisco early/mid July (2 Viewers)

[Pauhana]

Will be in San Fran area during this time. Was thinking about taking Bart into town for the day to look for Pygmy nuthatch and Allen hummingbirds. Looking in ebird seems golden gate park /botanical gardens would be a good location. Main question is can I get there easily not having a car to get around? Would prefer to take bus or walk vs cab. Any other locations I should try?

 

[gvca1]

BART won't be of much help, (although I'm not sure where you're staying). Assuming you are at a hotel downtown, you could take the N Judah streetcar, which will take you pretty close to Golden Gate Park. You can catch the N Judah at the same station as one of the downtown BART stations, like Powell or Civic Center. This would also allow you to transfer from anywhere in the BART system to the streetcar lines.

Yes, judging from Ebird, GGP or the Presidio look good for both the Pygmy Nuthatch and Allen's Hummingbird.

p.s. Don't call it 'San Fran' or 'Frisco'. The locals get all uppity. Stick to 'San Francisco', or for the locals, 'The City'.
<smiley of your choice here>

 

[trw]

I used the bus service.
We were staying at the Marriot near Fishermans Wharf.
They had a bus pass system where you could buy a pass on board and use it for multiple journeys.
The drivers put you right about which busses to use.
I visited Golden Gate Park and Golden Gate Bridge.There are a lot of green areas around the bridge which was good for Hummingbirds.
The Presido was great when I went because they had fenced off a lot of land for the birds.

Had a wonderful week!
Here is a copy of my short report.

San Francisco, 3rd April-10th April 2006,


Just returned from San Francisco and had great holiday combined with some bird watching.

A wonderful City to easily find a great variety of birds within walking distance or by taking short inexpensive bus rides. Early April is a great time to avoid the crowds and see a huge numbers of sea birds.

We stayed at the Marriot at Fisherman's Wharf which is a nice clean quiet hotel served by all major bus routes.The holiday was booked with Expedia on hotel/flight basis at very reasonable cost of £612 for 7 nights.

The Presidio and Chrisy Fields has fenced off areas of natural dunes and plants near a newly developed fenced scrape.
Great Northern Divers,Western Grebes,Red throated Divers and Surf Scoters 100 yards from shore.
Killdeer,Willets,Great Blue Heron,Black Crowned Night Heron,Annas Hummingbird,Snowy Egret,Western Gull,Comon scoter,Red breasted Merganser,American Kestrel,American Crow,White Crowned SparrowBuflehead,American Coot Mallard all on or near the scrape.
This area is walkable from hotel or one 10 minute bus ride away.

Near Golden Gate Bridge there were Red Tailed Hawk,Surf Scoter,Palaegic,Brandt and Double Crested Cormorant,Allens Humingbird,Willet,Dark Headed Junco,Gold Crested Sparrow,Black Bellied Magpie,Cowbird.

Golden Gate Park-Black Phoebe,Bushtit,Velvet Green Swallow,Scrub Jay,Ameerican Robin Red winged Blackbird,Pied Bill Grebe,Yellow rumped Warbler,Allen and Anna's Hummingbird.

The area not to be missed is Cliff House again a short bus ride away.Here the Pacfic meets the Bay.Loads of auks including Pigeon Guillimot,Grebes,and Divers.
Also saw Black Turnstone,Black Oysercatcher,Willet,Sanderling and the common gull species.There was a Ring Neck Duck,in Sutro Baths.Do not miss this area if you go. It is out of this world for scenery and birds.

Alcatraz doubles as a bird reserve and there were all above mentioned Cormorants as well as a Pigeon Guillimot and nesting Black Crowned Night Herons.

Saw Acorn Woodpecker,and Stellars Jay at Yosemite and Black Bellied Plover,Brown Pelican and Purple Martin in Monteray.
Highlights were the Hummingbirds which are 'ten a penny' and the close views and vast numbers of grebes and divers.

 

[wimvdam]

Pro-tip: learn the vocalization before you go looking for Pygmy Nuthatches. These are tiny buggers and they tend to stay high up in the trees. Fortunately they can't keep quiet.

If possible you want to use the N Judah line to Golden Gate Park instead of the bus, as the former is much faster and more comfortable. I've had Pygmy Nuthatch and Steller's Jay in the Presidio but you can only reach that park by bus.

Wim

 

[wings]

If possible you want to use the N Judah line to Golden Gate Park instead of the bus, as the former is much faster and more comfortable. I've had Pygmy Nuthatch and Steller's Jay in the Presidio but you can only reach that park by bus.

Wim

_______

Yes, the N-Judah line. I believe that is the #21 line. GG Park is a great birding destination (the park is 3 miles long, all the way to Ocean Beach).

The Arboretum is a great birding place ($7 admission) but I also like the area to the right of the Conservatory for hummers and warblers. Also, if the ducks are still there, try tiny Lloyd's lake for Hooded Mergansers and Ring-Necked ducks. The Presidio is also a good birding area, but this is all hill, so expect some steep slopes.

 

[Pauhana]

Thanks for all the info. Will be coming in from Livermore area on Bart. Only been to San Francisco once so shd be fun

 

[wimvdam]

Enjoy. And remember that that Northern Gannet might be around Alcatraz.

Wim

 

[Mysticete]

There are regular whale watchs out of San Fran, and Summer is one of the best times of year to see Blue Whale. I had Blue, Humpback, and Minke whale, as well as Steller's Sea Lion and Harbor Porpoise, on my last trip in July. You can also pick up a few of the more common alcids and shearwaters