Join Brooks Hart on a tour of Picture Canyon and Walnut Canyon Lakes. Picture Canyon is a natural and cultural amenity through which Flagstaff’s only river, the Rio de Flag, flows. The Rio de Flag provides important habitat for the 207 species of birds that have been recorded in Picture Canyon since 2007. Participants should expect 2.5-3.5 miles of hiking on primitive trails with loose soil and uneven terrain. Long pants will protect birders against temperature extremes as well as course shrubs and dense ground-cover commonly encountered in these areas. Weather in the high country can be variable and unpredictable during this time of the year. The average high for April is 58° Fahrenheit and the average low is 25°. Participants should be prepared with layered clothing and rain shells to protect against precipitation and allow for comfortable hiking throughout this temperature range.

Ebird hotspot Rio de Flag

Ebird Walnut Canyon

Rating: 3

Transportation: Self-drive

Meal: Bring your own lunch

Cost: $55

Trip Guide: Brooks Hart

Brooks Hart is an outdoor enthusiast and nature lover who lives in Flagstaff, Arizona. After graduating from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a Bachelor of Science in Ecology and Systematic Biology, Brooks spent 13 years working as a field biologist before starting his own consulting firm, Corvus Ecological Consulting LLC. Work related projects include studying the impacts of utility-scale renewable energy development on avian populations and studying Common Raven population dynamics and this specie’s impacts on desert tortoises in the Mojave Desert of southeastern California. When Brooks isn’t working he is usually spending time with his two kids, riding his bike, or in pursuit of birds. On a good day all of these things are happening simultaneously.

Part of the Verde Valley Birding and Nature Festival