Welcome home, Greater Sandhill Cranes!

The return migration of the Greater Sandhill Cranes has begun. Cranes are leaving their wintering homes in New Mexico and Arizona and heading north. We can expect the first arrivals here in the Yampa Valley during the first or second week of March, and the Colorado Crane Conservation Coalition is sponsoring a 2017 First Crane Sighting of the Season contest.

Be the first to spot a Greater Sandhill Crane in your area of the Yampa Valley!
Simply take a photo, document your sighting and send it in. Don't forget to include your name, date, and location of sighting. Email submissions to coloradocranes@gmail.com. Snail mail submissions to: CCCC Headquarters, 40625 CR 69A, Hayden, CO 81639.
 
Win prizes!
A prize will be awarded to each individual with the photo of the earliest sighting in the West, North and South Routt County areas, plus Steamboat Springs and Craig. A special grand prize will be given for the overall earliest sighting in the entire Yampa Valley!

At the end of March the winners' names and photos will be posted on the Yampa Valley Crane Festival's official web site.

The sixth annual Yampa Valley Crane Festival takes place Aug. 31-Sept. 3, 2017 in Steamboat Springs and Hayden. Bud Werner Memorial Library is festival headquarters.
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 annual festival includes daily crane viewings, expert speakers, films, crane art, workshops, family activities, a live raptors at the library and more. Daily schedules will be announced mid-summer 2017.