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More Pelagic Opportunities



Dear seabirders,

With all the recent buzz about the Yellow-nosed Albatross (it was a
wonderful bird), I though this a good time to again remind folks of my
upcoming 3-day trip set off NC in May (27, 28, 29). I'm hoping to
persuade Captain Foreman to extend the offshore coverage by up to 2
hours per day. Not only does this increase the offshore birding time by
a third, it does more. One of the lessons learned over the years is how
different two consecutive, otherwise seemingly identical
(conditions-wise) days can be. It does not work to go offshore one day,
get a "feel" for where the good birds are, then go back the next day. To
get a feel for the day, then make adjustments to capitalize on it,
requires that those changes (stay in one place longer; zig-zag wider,
shallower, deeper, etc.) be made the same day. With only 6 birding hours
daily, there is not enough time. My belief is that we would have a
better chance at finding something like Bermuda Petrel with 24 hours of
birding time in 3 days (8 hours per day) than 4 days (6 hours per day).
It is also less expensive to "add" an extra day by staying out longer
than by generating those 6 extra hours with a fourth trip.

Anyway, I'm trying to give ourselves an edge and more time offshore. The
rates for an extended trip will be higher than otherwise. However, as an
incentive, I offered a discount (regular rates)  for early registration.
If you have an interest, please let me know by March and I will extend
to you the discounted rate even if you sign up after March 1.

Cheers,

Mike Tove
Cary, NC
(919) 460-0338
mtove@nissan.net