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Pelee Island, Canada Tours
Tucked away in the western part of Lake Erie is Canada’s southernmost point of inhabited land—Pelee Island. This hidden gem is roughly 4 by 8 miles in size. The island has an area of about 11,000 acres and is home to only 200 permanent residents. Pelee Island is located southeast of Detroit, Michigan and is just north of the U.S.-Canada border. This tour begins in Detroit, and from there we travel about 50 miles by van. We enter Canada at Windsor, and continue on to Leamington. From there, we take a large commercial ferry for 1 ˝ hours (about 15 miles) to Pelee Island.
Pelee Island is a significant haven for migrant birds, and is designated as a globally Important Bird Area. The warm, shallow waters of Lake Erie foster a unique microclimate on this island. This factor results in a tremendous diversity of habitats on Pelee Island: deciduous forests, wetlands, sand dunes, and alvars. The vascular plant variety here is stunning. It is easy to understand why considerable numbers of warblers, vireos, orioles, flycatchers, grosbeaks, and other birds utilize the island for a stop-off point as they head north on their spring migration.
We also spend 2 days on this tour birding near Toledo, in northwest Ohio. We’ll bird the Crane Creek area at Black Swamp Bird Observatory and Ottawa NWR. We spend considerable time on the remarkable boardwalk at Magee Marsh Wildlife Area. Warblers there are frequently very confiding and approachable as they forage for food, before continuing their northward migration over Lake Erie. These destinations will be more crowded with birders, than the locations on Pelee Island. However, we expect to find at least a few additional species of warblers here, that we might have missed on the island.
These tours focus on getting quality views of 25-30 different warbler species. We will see hundreds of these tiny jewels as they stop to “refuel”. We expect to find such beauties as: Blackburnian, Cerulean, Cape May, Kentucky, Blackpoll, Golden-winged, Palm, Black-throated Green, Canada, Nashville, Bay-breasted, Prothonotary, Blue-winged, Mourning, Chestnut-sided, Black-throated Blue, and Northern Parula. There is also a good possibility of finding a rarity such as Connecticut or Kirtland’s Warbler. We should see about 125 bird species on this tour. In addition to the many warblers, we should also find Great Black-backed Gull, Bald Eagle, Black-billed Cuckoo, Red-headed Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Least Flycatcher, Great Crested Flycatcher, Yellow-throated Vireo, Blue-headed Vireo, Carolina Wren, Wood Thrush, Veery, Scarlet Tanager, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Indigo Bunting, Baltimore Oriole, and Orchard Oriole.
Additionally, during our visit to vibrant Pelee Island we will participate in two cultural activities which have proven to be very popular on our previous tours. First, is a narrated hour-long tour of the Pelee Island Museum. Second, is a visit to the Pelee Island Winery, where participants can enjoy tastings of fine wines produced from grapes grown on the island. Our tour accommodations on Pelee Island are at The Gathering Place B&B. This delightful facility features three bedrooms, with each having a private bathroom. We’ll spend four consecutive nights here. Our meals are at quaint restaurants and bakeries. This tour spends a minimum amount of time in driving, which allows us a maximum amount of time in the field. Our days will offer non-stop birding along many beautiful walking trails, as we visit nature reserves at Lighthouse Point, Fish Point, and Red Cedar Savannah. Join us this spring on Pelee Island and luxuriate in the simple natural beauty and non-commercial lifestyle that is found here! Day 1: Plan to arrive in Detroit by 1:00 this afternoon. Night on Pelee Island at The Gathering Place B&B.
Days 2-4: Destinations—Several locations on Pelee Island. Nights on Pelee Island at The Gathering Place B&B. Day 5-7: Destinations—Several locations in the Crane Creek area of northwest Ohio. Nights in Toledo at Hilton Hotel. Day 8: The tour concludes at 9:00 this morning in Detroit.
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