Illinois & MIdwest Weekends

These trips are designed as two- or three-night weekend birding getaways to some of the best birding destinations in Illinois and around the Midwest. These trips start on Thursday or Friday evening and conclude after a morning of birding on Sunday; the price includes the cost of lodging, meals, an expert guide, and, one some trips, transportation. Unless otherwise specified, trips are limited to 8 participants.

Most of our trips are limited to weekends within Illinois, but we have started expanding to wonderful birding locations across the Midwest. Have a Midwest trip in mind? We are happy to take suggestions.

The Mississippi River in Central Illinois

September 19-22, 2024 (Thu-Sun) with Steve Huggins Price: $1080 per person sharing. Single supplement: $230 Price includes three nights’ accommodation in Nauvoo, meals from dinner on Thursday night through breakfast on Sunday morning, and an expert guide. This will be a self-driving tour, though we may be able to accommodate some people riding with the guide.

This three-night weekend tour offers a chance for exploration in a beautiful and seldom-birded part of the state. The entire county, Hancock, has only twelve eBird hotspots, and its neighbor to the north, Henderson, has only six, but those small numbers do a disservice to the excellent birding in the area. Based out of Nauvoo, a fascinating historic town, where that history lives today through its many Mormon cultural sites, you will explore the Mississippi River Valley, far from any interstate, during the peak of fall migration. There will be a good chance to find a variety of warblers and other migrants, and shorebirds, too, if conditions allow. Birds that are more common in the southern half of the state—Pileated Woodpecker, Carolina Wren, and the like, should be easily found, along with American White Pelican, Bald Eagle, and other river birds. And given how little birding goes on in this area, there’s always the chance for a nice surprise or two!