Distance offshore: 80-100 nautical miles.
Trip length: 36 hours; 9 PM Sunday-9 AM Tuesday (can disembark by ~5 am Tues. if desired). Boarding the boat will begin at 9pm on June 20 and September 12.
Cost: $190.
Payment: To reserve a spot, please send two checks, one for $175 and one for $15 (total=$190) made payable to Houston Audubon Society. Please note: the $15 is a non-refundable donation to HAS. The two check system will facilitate getting out refunds if the trip is canceled or one's plans change.
Send payment to Houston Audubon Society at Houston Audubon Society, Pelagic trip, 440 Wilchester Blvd., Houston, TX 77079-7329 (telephone 713-932-1639).
Dates of 1999 trips: June 20-22 and September 12-14.
Expectations: Cory's and Audubon's Shearwaters, Leach's and Band-rumped Storm-Petrels, Masked Booby, Magnificent Frigatebird, Pomarine Jaeger, and Sooty and Bridled Terns. Nearly half of all trips have produced exceptional state rarities, including Black-capped Petrel, Greater Shearwater, Sooty Shearwater, Red-billed Tropicbird, Sabine's Gull, and Arctic Tern. Other Marine Fauna: Atlantic spotted and Pantropical spotted dolphins, Spinner dolphins, both onshore and offshore varieties of Bottle-nosed dolphins, Clymene dolphin, Short-finned pilot whale, Sperm whale, Pygmy sperm whale, Cuvier's beaked whale, Whale shark, leatherbacked sea turtle, and others.
Comments: Travel to and from the birding areas will occur overnight. The 100 foot boat has sleeping berths for all, air conditioning, a full service galley with comfortable seating for all passengers, and an upper deck observation area and a shaded main deck observing area. The boat has been rated the "best overnight boat" by a national scuba diving magazine. Trip price includes two nights lodging onboard, four meals, crew tip, and a $15.00 non-refundable donation to the Houston Audubon Society.
For more information, contact: Dwight Peake, 30 Lebrun Court, Galveston, TX 77551, 409/740-4621, email dpeake@phoenix.net.