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

8:30 - 10:30 am: Mt. Harris History and Guided Bird Walk 
Led by Lisa and Paul Williams, Yampa Valley Birding Club, with history talk by Laurel Watson, curator of Hayden Museum.
Learn about this historic coal-mining town and bird along the Yampa River's unique cottonwood-dogwood-box elder maple plant community. 
-Advance registration and $26 fee required.

8:30 - 10:30 am: Fish Creek Falls Guided Bird Walk 
Led by Sue Riffe, birding guide and expert on bird song.
Bird at the scenic waterfall just outside of town in montane shrubland and aspen groves. CCCC, in partnership with Yampatika, offers this guided bird walk at Fish Creek Falls through a Special Use Authorization on the Routt National Forest for the purpose of providing interpretive and interactive education to participants on the walk.

Note: There is a $5-day vehicle day use fee. 
-Advance registration and $25 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. Click here for details.
-Advance registration and $7 fee required

9 - 10:30 am: Sketch-a-Bird Workshop 
Taught by local artist, Joanne Orce with Nature's Educators live birds and crane taxidermy - Library Hall at Bud Werner Memorial Library 
All ages welcome and supplies provided. Meet in Library Hall for this FREE workshop. No registration required.

10 - 11:30 am: Children and Family Activities
Library Lawn near the raptor booth and Children's Library 
Enjoy educational bird and nature activities presented by Colorado Parks and Wildlife and Yampatika. FREE and no registration required.

10 am: 12 noon - Guided Nature Walk 
Led by botanist and naturalist, Karen Vail - Steamboat Ski Resort 
Learn about the flora, the animals, and the forest habitat at the Ski Resort, complete with amazing views of the valley. The walk will involve a gondola ride to the top of Thunderhead and walking up to 1 mile on an uneven dirt road. Meet at the entrance to the gondola at Steamboat Ski Resort. CCCC, in partnership with Yampatika, offers this guided nature walk through a Special Use Authorization on the Routt National Forest for the purpose of providing interpretive and interactive education to participants on the walk. Passes to ride the gondola are included as part of registration. Click here for directions. 
-Advance registration and $35 fee required.

11 am: 4 pm: Nature's Educators Live Raptor Booth
Library Lawn near Children's Library
Visit with live raptors on the Library Lawn. Learn about raptors and the physical and behavioral adaptations they have that help them survive in their environment. Meet some real raptors and learn their personal stories and amazing features. All ages are welcome for this FREE event. Learn more about Nature's Educators.

11:30 am: 12:45 pm: "Moving Western Sandhill Crane Conservation and Management Forward: A Perspective Gained From a Decade-Plus of Research"
By Dan Collins, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Migratory Game Bird Biologist and Crane Expert.
In 2009, the Migratory Shore and Upland Game Bird Committee of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA) identified priority information needs for Sandhill Cranes in the West: (1) basic ecological and biological data about Sandhill Crane populations in the region; (2) effects of habitat changes on the Rocky Mountain population of Sandhill Cranes. A partner group began addressing these needs, along with other information gaps at local, regional, and flyway scales. Over the past decade, this group has sought answers to various questions, such as how much corn is needed to support cranes in the Middle Rio Grande Valley of New Mexico, identifying preferred habitats, movement ecology, fall survey assessments, staging and stopover ecology, among many others. Dan will highlight much of the work done over the last 10 years, primarily focused on the Rocky Mountain population of Sandhill Cranes, and offer suggestions on what is needed to continue advancing Sandhill Crane conservation in the West.

1 - 1:15 pm: Photo Contest and Poster Contest Awards
Library Hall at Bud Werner Memorial Library

1:30 - 2:45pm: KEYNOTE PRESENTATION: " Helping Cranes Worldwide, Especially in Mongolia"
By Dr. George Archibald, co-founder of the International Crane Foundation.
Mongolia, known as "Land of the Big Sky", is home to the planet's largest expanse of temperate grasslands where six of the world's 15 species of cranes find sanctuary from spring to autumn. Since 2012, Dr. George Archibald has worked with Mongolian colleagues to assure a safe future for this remarkably diverse ecosystem, which is now threatened by both overgrazing and industrialized agriculture. His presentation highlights this story along with other news from the International Crane Foundation.

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