We offer Natural History Eco-tours & Photography Trips to several State and National Parks and other areas for Bighorn Sheep, Elk, Mule Deer, Mountain Goat, Moose, Wild Turkey, White-tailed Deer & Birds; $200 per person per day; maximum of 4 persons. See the schedule below.

We offer numerous tours and photography trips to natural areas in Minnesota and Wisconsin. See the schedule below.

Cost: $60.00 per hour for 4 persons or less, $70.00 per hour for 5 or 6 people. Tours last 2 hours - or longer. Se the schedule below.

Wolf Howling & Viewing Tours: Listen to the mournful howling of captive Buffalo Wolves, and see Gray and Red Fox, Lynx and Owls, Falcons and Hawks at the Carlos Avery Game Refuge, or visit Crex Meadows, Wisconsin to listen to wild wolves howl during the mating season.

February - March

Bald Eagle Tours: You can watch and photograph dozens of wintering Bald Eagles and diving ducks on the Mississippi River in southeast Minnesota. See live eagles at the National Bald Eagle Center.

Trumpeter Swan Tours: You can see and photograph dozens of the once endangered Trumpeter Swans as they winter on the Mississippi River in east central Minnesota.

Late March - Early June

Wild Turkey & Ruffed Grouse Tours: During the spring you will be able to locate turkeys by calling to them on their roosts in the morning, and hear them gobble in return to your calls. You will also be able to locate ruffed grouse by listening to them drum from their "drumming log". If you get up before sunrise you may be able to watch the turkeys fly down from their roosts, and watch and listen to them as the toms display for the hens by spreading their tails, turning their heads red, white and blue, and hearing them "gobble", "spit" and "drum" while they are on the feeding and strutting areas. Peak daily gobbling is from an hour before to an hour after sunrise; peak yearly gobbling occurs from late March through early June, with peaks during the first and second weeks of April and May.

April - May

Spring Sharp-tailed Grouse, Greater Prairie Chicken & Wildflower Tours: Watch and listen to the booming and dancing of the prairie chicken, and the dancing and purring of the sharp-tailed grouse as they establish dominance and vie for the attention of the females on the spring mating grounds, or "leks" as they are called. Northwestern and northeastern, MN, and western Wisconsin.

Spring Sandhill Crane, Trumpeter Swan, Sharp-Tailed Grouse, Prairie Chicken, Shorebirds, Wading Birds, Waterfowl & Wildflower Tours: Visit Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge, Carlos Avery Game Refuge or world famous Crex Meadows in western Wisconsin to see mating sandhill cranes, sharp-tailed grouse, and prairie chickens; nesting trumpeter swans, bald eagles and ospreys; Canada geese, several species of ducks, wading birds and shorebirds. Crane, Swan, Grouse, Chicken, April - May. Shorebirds, spring and fall migration.

Sandhill crane

Nesting Bald Eagles, Wildflowers, Waterfowl & Spring Migration Songbird Tours: View nesting bald eagles with their downy chicks, spring wildflowers, and migrating waterfowl and songbirds in southern and eastern Minnesota. Peak songbird migration May 10-20. Wildflowers throughout the spring and summer.

1 year old Bald Eagle

Indigo Bunting

Second to third weekend of April: Southwest MN Birding Tours - Rock Co., Luverne
The far southwest corner of the state is considerably different from the rest of the state with places like Blue Mounds SP. Spring migration always has a good possibility of producing western vagrants and strays, such as Spotted Towhee, Mountain Bluebird, Rock Wren and Prairie Falcon. We have a good chance of seeing Great-tailed Grackle and Black-headed Gull. There may still be waterfowl and raptors present, and some shorebirds and passerines songbirds) will also be arriving.

Second weekend of May (May 12, 2007): International Bird Migration Day

Second weekend of May: West Central MN Birding Tours - Lac Qui Parle Co., Montevideo
This county is a variable "hot spot" this weekend in May. Possibility for Curlew Sandpiper, Burrowing Owl, Say's Phoebe, and Black-headed Grosbeak were all found here at this time of year. Warblers and shorebirds should be at their peak.

Scarlet Tanager

Third weekend of May: Southeast MN Birding Tours - Winona Co., Winona
The southeast corner of the state has been known to harbor numerous species which make restricted appearances in the state, such as: Acadian Flycatcher, Bell's Vireo, Blue-winged Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, Prothonotary Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, and Hooded Warbler. We'll work the bottomlands for these and other species, hoping to run into an "overshoot" migrant from the south.

May - September

American Avocet

MN Summer Songbirds, Waterfowl, Shorebirds & Wildflower Tours: Visit one of over 30 important birding and wildflower areas on a 3-10 day tour anywhere in Minnesota, and see Indigo Buntings, Scarlet Tanagers, Upland Sandpipers, Avocets, Phalaropes, Gulls, Terns, shorebirds and several species of warblers, vireos and sparrows that would be hard to find in any one state other than Minnesota.

Black Bear

Wolf & Bear Tours: International Wolf Center northeast Minnesota - or Wildlife Science Center, southeast Minnesota. Year Round. Peak daily wolf howling occurs from about 8-10 AM and 5-7 PM, peak yearly howling from late January through early March.

Bear Refuge, Northern MN. Memorial Day - Labor Day, 5 PM to dusk.

Late May - Late July

Elk Calf Tours: We have access to the largest privately owned elk herd in Minnesota, with over 700 elk (including 150 bulls scoring 300-400 Boone & Crockett points), where you will be able to learn about elk behavior by watching and listening to the elk - as close as five yards away. Late May -Early June is elk calving season, dozens of newborn elk calves. From May to October you will be able to see 500+ young calves and their mothers.

Late May - Mid October

Custer State Park, Badlands, Glacier, Rocky Mountain, Wind Cave, Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Park Tours: Visit one to two of these parks on a 5-10 day tour to see Bighorn Sheep, Elk, Moose, White-tailed and Mule Deer, Pronghorn Antelope and Mountain Goat; in addition see western birds and wildflowers.

June - August 

Burrowing Owl

Bluestem Prairie / Buffalo River State Park Tour: northwestern Minnesota, Greater Prairie Chicken, Upland Sandpiper, Marbled Godwit, Short-eared Owl, Bobolink, Northern Harrier, Savannah, Clay-colored, LeConte's, Grasshopper, Field and Lark Sparrows, and Loggerhead Shrikes.

Bighorn Sheep

Custer State Park & Badlands, Glacier, Rocky Mountain, Wind Cave, Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Park Tours: Visit one of these parks on a 5-10 day tour to see Elk and Moose, White-tailed and Mule Deer, Pronghorn Antelope and Mountain Goat, Eagles and Swans, and western small game animals, in addition to western birds and wildflowers.

Sharp-shinned Hawk

August - October

Second through fourth weekend of September: Duluth / Lake Superior Songbird, Shorebird and Raptor Migration Tours
As many as 22 species of Warbler have been seen. If the weather cooperates (cloudy and foggy), a good fallout could occur. All types and species of bird are fair game at this point in fall migration in Duluth. As well, we'll spend some time looking for Jaegers and vagrant gulls, such as Little or Sabine's, on Lake Superior.

Second and third weekend of October: Lake Superior North Shore Bird Migration Tours - Duluth and Grand Marais
There's no place most birders in Minnesota would rather be in the peak of fall migration than on the North Shore of Lake Superior. Start in Duluth and work north to Grand Marais, hitting all the best spots for migrants on the way up. Saturday night stay in Grand Marais and hopefully make a stop to Bill Lane's owl banding station that night, to see some Saw-whet Owl migration in action; and Frank Taylor's Hawk banding operation near Duluth. On Sunday, we'll bird around Grand Marais, then head back to Duluth.

Fall / Winter Songbird Migration & Fall Colors Tours: Experience the fall songbird migration along the north and west shore of Lake Superior and east central Minnesota. View fantastic displays as the leaves change to their fall colors along the St. Louis River Valley.

Late August - Early November

Glaucous-winged Gull

Third weekend of November: Gull Tours - Duluth
Late November is the best time of the year for migrant and vagrant gulls on the Great Lakes and the Duluth/Superior area is no exception. If you're looking to hone your gull identification, then this is the trip for you. Up to 8 species of Gulls can be expected and hopefully well studied. The Knife River, Canal Park, Superior Entry, and (hopefully (fingers-crossed)) the Superior Landfill will all be locations where we will spend time.

Elk bugling

Elk Bugling Tours: Visit on of the largest privately owned elk herd in North America, with over 700 elk (including 150 bulls scoring 300-400 Boone & Crockett points), where you will be able to learn about elk behavior by watching and listening to the elk as close as five yards away. Beginning in late August you will be able to watch the bull elk scrape, wallow, spar and fight; hear the cows and calves chirp and mew to each other, and hear over 100 elk bugles an hour. You can even learn to use an elk call. Peak daily bugling is within an hour of sunrise and sunset; the best time of the year to hear bugling is from late August to late October, with peaks during the second week of September and first week of October. Elk bugling & breeding Season, lots of antlered bull elk to photograph.

Mid September - Late October

Black Hills

Custer State Park and Rocky Mountain, Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Park Tours: Visit one to two of these parks on a 5-10 day tour to see bugling Elk and mating Moose; plus White-tailed and Mule Deer, Pronghorn Antelope and Mountain Goat, Eagles and Swans, Black or Grizzly Bear, western small game animals, in addition to western birds and wildflowers.

Wood Duck

Sandhill Crane, Trumpeter & Trumpeter Swan, Waterfowl, Shorebird, Wading Bird & Wildflowers tours: Visit Sherburne National Wildlife Area, Carlos Avery Game Refuge in Minnesota, or Crex Meadows in western Wisconsin, to see mating Sandhill Canes; nesting Trumpeter and Trumpeter Swans, Bald and Golden Eagles, Ospreys, Canada Geese, several species of ducks, wading birds and shorebirds.

Hawk Ridge Migrating Raptor Tours: Visit world famous Hawk Ridge in Duluth, MN to view Gyrfalcon, Peregrine Falcon, Broad-winged Hawk, Northern Goshawk and Northern Saw-whet Owls as they migrate over Hawk Ridge in their efforts to avoid flying across Lake Superior.

Harlequin Duck

Last Weekend September first weekend October: Lake Superior Waterfowl & Seabird Migration Tours: Take a charter boat ride on Lake Superior to see migrating and wintering waterfowl and pelagic seabirds such as Jaegers, Red-throated Loons, Gulls, Terns, Harelquin and Sharp-tailed Ducks.

Tundra Swan Tours: Depending on the weather and the fall migration we may see over 100 tundra swans in southeast Minnesota.

Tundra Swan

Mid-November - late February / Mid March

Bald Eagle and Trumpeter Swan Tours: See hundreds of once endangered wintering Bald Eagles and diving ducks; and wintering Trumpeter Swans on the Mississippi River in southeast Minnesota.

December - March

Evening Grosbeak

Wintering Songbirds, Woodpeckers, Spruce Grouse & Northern Owls: Visit the Sax-Zim Bog and the Gunflint Trail to view wintering birds such as the Boreal Chickadee, Evening Grosbeak, Black-backed and Three-toed Woodpeckers, Spruce Grouse, and Great Gray, Saw-whet and Boreal Owls.