Yampa Valley Crane Festival Logo

2014 Yampa Valley Crane Festival: Friday

Friday, September 12, 2014 - 12:00am
  • Community-wide

The third annual Yampa Valley Crane Festival takes place September 12-15, 2014 in Steamboat Springs and Hayden. It includes four days of free events and the Bud Werner Memorial Library is festival headquarters.

The detailed 2014 Yampa Valley Crane Festival schedule is available here. Below is a quick guide to festival events for Friday. Note that all events are free but a few events require advance registration due to limited space.

Friday at the Yampa Valley Crane Festival:
3 – 4 p.m.
“Introduction to the Birds of Steamboat” : A guided bird walk on Walton Creek Trail with Birding magazine editor and birder extraordinaire Ted Floyd. Bring binoculars if you have them. Open to anyone interested in learning about birds.Meet at the River Creek Park parking lot on the corner of Walton Creek Road and S. Lincoln Avenue (Highway 40). Turn west on Walton Creek Road and look for the River Creek Park sign on right.

4 – 8 p.m.
Crane yard art display and silent auction on the Library Lawn.

5 – 8 p.m.
Wine and cheese reception for the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum's  “Birds in Art 2013” traveling exhibit at the Steamboat Art Museum, located at 801 Lincoln Ave. Registration required.

About the Yampa Valley Crane Festival
The Greater Sandhill Crane is an iconic species of the Yampa Valley. Returning in the spring, cranes nest and raise their young in wetland areas throughout the valley. In late summer and early fall, hundreds of cranes from the Rocky Mountain flock join the local birds to rest and feed before continuing their journey south. The festival includes daily crane viewings, expert speakers, films, art exhibits, workshops, family activities and more. All community activities and events are free unless otherwise indicated in the program, and the Bud Werner Memorial Library will be home base for many of these talks, films and events.

Learn more about the festival at www.coloradocranes.org.