The 14th annual Yampa Valley Crane Festival will be held on August in Steamboat Springs, Hayden, and Craig, Colorado.

Join us for guided crane viewings, bird walks, expert speakers, live raptors, films, family activities, and more. Speakers include:

- Keynote speaker Dr. George Archibald, International Crane Foundation Co-Founder and Senior Conservationist
- Dr. Dan Collins, USFWS Rocky Mountain Sandhill Crane Expert
- Sue Riffe, Owner-Guide for She Flew Birding Tours and Bird Song Expert
- Paul Tebbel, Crane Expert
- Rebecca Weiss, author of Birds of Aspen and the Roaring Fork Valley, Aspen-based birding guide and naturalist
- Ted Floyd, editor of Birding magazine 
- Meg Karschner, CCCC Executive Director 
- Nature's Educators showcases live raptors up close during a special presentation

Schedule of Events:

5:45 - 8:45 am: Guided Sunrise Crane Viewing
Stockbridge Transit Center 
Shuttles will transport you to two locations where you can get off the shuttles to view the cranes flying overhead and feeding in agricultural fields. Paul Tebbel will address your questions and provide pertinent information about Sandhill Cranes and their behavior to enhance your crane viewing experience. The shuttles depart and return to Stockbridge Transit Center. Please bring binoculars and dress for weather. Click here for directions. 
-Advance registration and fee required.  $27-adult; $17-kids, 17 and under

8 - 10:30 am: Rehder Ranch Guided Bird Walk
Led by Sue Riffe, birding guide and expert on bird song.
Bird at this historic sheep ranch along Harrison Creek that is surrounded by willows, aspens, and open fields. Click here for details.
-Advance registration and $26 fee required.

8:30 - 10:30 am: Yampa Preserve Guided Bird Walk
Led by Lisa and Paul Williams - Yampa Valley Birding Club.
This property is owned by The Nature Conservancy and harbors one of the largest remaining examples of a rare riparian forest type dominated by narrowleaf cottonwood, box elder maple, and red-osier dogwood.

-Advance registration and $26 fee required.

9 - 10 am: Birding the Steamboat Springs Core Trail
Led by by Rebecca Weiss, naturalist and author of Birds of Aspen and the Roaring Fork Valley.
Join Rebecca for a casual stroll along the core trail outside the Bud Werner Library. As you walk along the trail that parallels the Yampa River, Rebecca will help you identify the birds and other fauna of the area. Bring binoculars, water, and wear comfortable shoes. Meet on the core trail next to the Bud Werner Library parking lot. This walk will be easy and on a paved surface.

- If you do not have a Colorado State Parks Pass or a Keep Colorado Wild Pass you will need to purchase one at the Steamboat Lake Visitors Center ahead of time. Steamboat Lake Visitors Center hours: Sunday through Saturday 8 am: to 6 pm: For more information contact Steamboat Lake Visitors Center: 970-879-3922, steamboat.lake@state.co.us 

- The meeting place for the pontoon boat excursion is in front of the Steamboat Lake Marina store. Please plan to arrive 30 minutes early to ensure that you find the correct location, get required passes and find the correct parking area prior to the boat leaving.

10 am: 12noon - Nature-Journaling Workshop
Led by Cindy Wither and Stevi Quate - Bud Werner Memorial Library
Artist Cindy Wither and writing instructor Stevi Quate share techniques to enhance your nature journaling experience. This workshop introduces the basics of nature journaling including materials, approaches and styles, and references. Using art to enhance the journal adds visual elements and color to your journal. Participants will have the opportunity to start their own journal. Meet at Bud Werner Memorial Library's Project Room (1st floor), then move outdoors. Fee includes a journaling notebook.

10:30 am: 11:30 am - Optics 101: Choosing the Best Binocs For You
By Chip Clouse - Library Hall at Bud Werner Memorial Library
Learn from an expert about how binoculars work and how to choose the best binoculars for your needs and budget. FREE event, no registration required.

12 - 12:45 am: "Celebrating Cranes in Northwest Colorado"
By Meg Karschner - CCCC Executive Director - Library Hall at Bud Werner Memorial Library
Learn what Colorado Crane Conservation Coalition is all about; what we do and why we do it. Meg will also highlight CCCC's live streaming crane nest camera project.

1 - 2:15 pm: Learning Bird Song With a Focus on Birds of Routt County
By Sue Riffe- Birding Guide and Expert on Bird Song - Library Hall at Bud Werner Memorial Library
Do you have a hard time learning and remembering bird songs? Sue will offer fun and specific techniques to demystify bird songs and help you to become a better birder. Everyone can be successful as we focus on birds found in Routt County.

3 - 3:45 pm:; 4 - 4:45 pm: Pollinators: Hummingbirds and Hummingbird Moths
Led by Ted Floyd, editor of Birding Magazine, Yampa River Botanic Park
Short introduction followed by a pollinator walk at a relaxed-pace. Meet at the Trillium House within the Botanic Park. Choose from 2 separate walks. Click here for details.

4 - 6 pm: Crane Festival Happy Hour
Co-hosted by Crane Trust and the International Crane Foundation - The Press, 1009 Lincoln Ave., Steamboat Springs
Join fellow "craniacs" and festival goers for a relaxed gathering with drinks and conversation at the The Press.

6:30 - 7:30 pm: Film - Dances With Cranes
Library Hall at Bud Werner Memorial Library
Dances With Cranes follows the remarkable recovery story of Whooping Cranes, and the extraordinary lengths passionate scientists will go to save them - from performing a mating dance with a human-imprinted crane in captivity, to jumping out of a helicopter to study juvenile cranes in the wild.

Over the course of a year in the life of three Whooping Crane chicks, host Sarika-Cullis Suzuki finds out what it takes to bring a species back from the brink of extinction - from the early days when they seemed doomed to disappear, to the new challenges Whooping Cranes face thanks to climate change.

George Archibald, our festival keynote speaker, is featured in this film and will be present to answer questions.

All Day - Educational Crane Displays
Outside Library Hall at the Bud Werner Memorial Library