Tanana Valley Sandhill Crane Festival 2013
     

     Friday, August 23rd through
     Sunday, August 25th at
     Creamer's Field Migratory
     Waterfowl Refuge     in
     Fairbanks, Alaska

    Our featured guest is-

       MICHAEL FORSBERG

Mike received a degree in geography with an emphasis in environmental studies from the University of Nebraska, and worked briefly as a seasonal ranger in the National Park Service before accepting a job as a staff photographer and writer producing natural history stories for NEBRASKAland Magazine, the state’s conservation publication. He worked at the magazine for six years before starting his own photography business and gallery. Forsberg’s work has appeared in publications including Audubon, National Geographic, National Wildlife, and Natural History, and recognized in the Pictures of the Year and Wildlife Photographer of the Year competitions. In 2001, his image of a Nebraska tallgrass prairie was selected for an International Postage Stamp. In 2004, he was awarded a Conservation Education Award from The Wildlife Society. In 2007, Mike was featured in the PBS documentary Crane Song, and was the 2009 recipient of the North American Nature Photographer’s Association Mission Award. Mike is a charter member of the North American Nature Photographer's Association and a fellow with the International League of Conservation Photographers. Mike’s first book project, “On Ancient Wings – The Sandhill Cranes of North America”, self-published in 2004, was the result of a five-year personal journey connecting the lives of the cranes and their habitats across the continent from western Alaska to Cuba, made possible with a grant from the International Crane Foundation. His second book, “Great Plains – America’s Lingering Wild”, came together traveling 100,000 miles in the last three years crisscrossing the Plains from Canada to Mexico..

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Wedgewood Resorts is a supporting sponsor of the Tanana Valley Sandhill Crane Festival.
Special overnight rates are available for Wedgewood guests during Tanana Valley Crane Festival 2012.

        CraneFest 2013 - August 23-25, 2013
               Our featured speaker will be Michael Forsberg,
              a nature photographer based in Lincoln Nebraska.
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      CraneFest 2013 - Schedule soon.
      CraneFest 2012 - Schedule of Events

        Unless otherwise indicated, all events start at the Farmhouse.
 

Friday, August 24

    7 pm - 9:30 pm Reception for George Archibald, poster signing event (Iris Sutton, poster artist), and continuation of Crane Art Show at Alaska Bird Observatory
    10:00 pm Outdoor Slide Show entitled "Crane Experiences" presented by George Archibald on the BroadSide Theater of the Creamer's Field Barns

Saturday, August 25

    8:00 am Bird banding featuring live songbirds at ABO's bird banding station, starting from the Farmhouse
    10:00 am Nature walk with George Archibald
    11:00 am- 1:30 pm Brunch with the Cranes at the Farmhouse. Enjoy healthy food and live music. ($10 donation per person).
    Includes a book signing event with local authors.
    11:30 am Crane Calling Contest for kids and adults. Coloring contest awards
    12:00 pm Kids Crane Walk. Join a naturalist for a leisurely walk with kids of all ages.
    1:00 pm Beginning Nature Photography Workshop. Joyce Kelso will offer advice for capturing great photos of cranes. Bring your camera.
    3:00 pm eBird Workshop. Alaska Audubon's Beth Peluso will teach you how to use eBird and then you will take a walk to try it out.
    5:00 - 7:00 pm Tex-Mex Dinner, fund-raiser for Camp Habitat. ($10 per person donation suggested.)

    7:30 pm George Archibald talks about "Cranes in the Arctic" in Wedgewood Resort's Taiga Center, 212 Wedgewood Drive, located next to Antique Car Museum. ($5 donation suggested).
    Raffle drawing for Alaska Air tickets.

Sunday, August 26

    7:00 am Local Birding tour with Jim DeWitt. Meet at ABO to car pool and visit local birding hotspots.
    10:00am - 11:30am Cranes, Coffee, and Croissants. Join George Archibald for a cuppa and nature walk starting from the Alaska Bird Observatory. ($5 donation suggested)
    12:00 noon to 2:00 pm Drawing Cranes Workshop with Mark Ross. Bring pencils and sketchbook.
    2:00 pm Live Birds of Prey - Local falconer Randall Compton will bring his trained birds and share his knowledge.
    3:30 - 5:30 pm Crane Research Talks - inside the Alaska Fish and Game Building

    3:30 pm Nina Faust (Homer) will show her brand new video "Raising Kid Colt" and talk about the nesting pair on her property near Kachemak Bay, Alaska.

    4:30 pm George Happ will present " Crane Dancing takes Brains" with Christy Yuncker Happ's photos of a crane couple that has nested near Fairbanks for over a decade.

    4:00 pm Kids Hopper Hunt - Searching for insects with kids of all ages.
    5:00 pm Wildlife Photography Workshop with Joyce Kelso.
    6:00 - 7:30 pm Ice Cream Social - Enjoy ice cream with Craneberry toppings and music you can dance to.
    6:30 pm Silent Auction Closes - You need not be present to win.
    6:45 pm Membership Meeting for Friends of Creamer's Field. Everyone is welcome.

Related Event - Thursday, August 30, 4:00 pm

    George Archibald presents his talk on "Cranes of the World" in Room 501 of UAF's Akasofu Building (IARC) on West Ridge.
Friends of Creamer's Field P. O. Box 81065 (907) 452-5162 Contact us Tax ID# 92-0137107