Birding on the Yellowhead Highway

Well, it looks as if I will be picking up a new car in Winnipeg at the end of April this year, and am starting to plan a road trip from Winnipeg to Victoria (my home), taking the Yellowhead Highway.

Are there any birders (and/or others too!) out there who have done this trip, or any portions of this highway, and have interesting ideas to share, to include great places to stay (funky and off the beaten path is good, and could include hostels), restaurants (cheap and cheerful works well), "must-see" natural areas (especially those known locally only), and whatever else you think would be interesting.

Many thanks for any information you are able to provide.

X-posted on the Canada and Watching Wildlife branches

I presume you will be turning south along route 5 from Tete Jaune Cache to Kamloops (also, I believe, known as the Yellowhead Highway, although the route 16 YH continues to Prince Rupert). Anyway, that is the route we took and although we did no birding along that route, we did a detour (turning north at Clearwater) into the Wells Gray Provincial Park and camped there for a night, getting to see a black bear crossing the road right in front of us. It is a lovely natural area and well worth a short visit. Shortly before entering the park there is a Buffalo Ranch that offers accommodation (http://www.buffaloranch.ca/). We just looked in out of curiosity - never having seen a buffalo - and did not stay there.
The only other suggestion that I have is that you take the Sea to Sky Highway from Cache Creek via Lilllooet to Pemberton and on to Horseshoe Bay. The section leading to Pemberton is spectacular and there is a loop road off the main road (which we heard about afterwards) that is said to be even more beautiful. But... the drive down toward the sea should be done in the morning. During the afternoon one has the sun directly ahead and one loses a lot of the beauty because of that. It also makes driving somewhat less enjoyable. Of course, the roadworks from Whistler onward, in respect of next years Winter Olympics, may be a problem. I wonder what stage that project has reached.

I have traveled the Yellowhead and have NO recollection of birds. There must have been some but they were not particularly obvious. HOWEVER, Saturday I was driving from Surrey to Ladner (in metro Vancouver area) and first I saw 2 blue herons. Then a tree with about 7 bald eagles. A few miles downt the road I pulled over to a most amazing sight - some 100+ bald eagles all circling over an open field. It was bright sunny day - one of the first of the spring season so I guess it was bringing out the small rodents so the eagles were busy hunting. Quite a few people had pulled over to watch. There are always at least 3 or 4 eagles on this road but today's sight was extraordinary. Also saw 5 or 6 hawks nearby. Coming home that same route a few hours later the birds were now roosting in 3 big trees - looked like something out of an Alfred Hitchock movie. A few miles further I came on what I swear were 3 turkey vultures. I've never seen them in Vancouver area before and I am no birder so I don't know, but they sure looked like it.

If you are ever in the Vancouver area, go to the George C Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary. (google it). It is in Ladner just a few miles from downtown Vancouver. There are always TONS of birds there and this spring I saw a lot of Sandhill Cranes there for the first time in my experience. That area is also home to the snow geese - spring and fall. I live on a cliff overlooking the area and saw dozens of them flying in formation just last week.

I did much of this route 3 yrs ago this summer. We camped and cooked, so can't give you any recommendations. We were on a mission to get to Whitehorse Yukon, so our one stop was to visit Margaret Laurence's childhood house in Neepawa, Manitoba (about 2 hours out of Winnipeg). As a person who has derived great enjoyment out of Laurence's novels, this was almost a pilgrimage for me. Total diversion time was a well spent 3/4 of an hour.

Otherwise, our only other highlight was the spectacular prairie wind, thunder and lightening storm, but can't guarantee you one of those.

Thanks everyone. It has all been helpful (even tho I can't mark it as such)!

I had forgotten about Margaret Laurence's house - and I'm a major fan of hers too. I make it a point to read The Diviners every decade, and it is a different book each time! Too cold to camp, altho I had forgotten about that, living in Victoria. A Winnipeger who might be joining me reminded me that it is still winter in the rest of Canada.

I have read The Diviners 3 times, and like you, I find it a different novel each time. She was a very gifted author, and seeing her house, I could hear echos of Morag and Hester etc. in most rooms. They also had books for sale, and so I reread the Diviners on this trip. But, if you are doing all the driving, that is a little difficult. However, as somebody raised on the East Coast, it was a good scenery reinforcer while the prairie slipped by the window. Have a good trip.

Just an update on the trip, I am starting to compile all the info, and I hope the trip us as much fun doing as is the researching. I will probably be taking the Yellowhead til east of Edmonton, head south at Jasper, and west through Ossoyos, possibly to join some friends for the Meadowlark Festival if the timing works out.

Saskatchewan has sent a terrific package for birding in their province, and my dining room table is spread with maps, books, and printed info gleaned from the net!! I will probably stop at Quill Lakes, Last/Lost Mountain, St Walburg District, Beaverhill Lake, Lloydminster, Edmonton, Banff and Jasper, and whatever catches my fancy as I continue to research in the next while.