Last week I had the privilege of guiding a store-sponsored bird walk to the Upper Verde River Wilderness Area. I hadn’t been there for a while and felt the need to scout the area prior to the field trip.

On Tuesday of last week I spent time on the Upper Verde River, at Sullivan Lake, in the Rimrock subdivision in Paulden, and I went a ways out Big Chino Road in Paulden. My scouting day was blazing hot and I probably heard more than I saw, but I still had a nice time hiking and birding in the area.

I had several target birds such as golden eagle, yellow-billed cuckoo, and burrowing owl that I was hoping to find. I struck out on the eagle and the cuckoo but I was successful in finding one burrowing owl which pleased me. I definitely was more prepared for my bird walk the next day.

We were very fortunate that Tuesday night into Wednesday a soft, gentle rain fell for an hour or two and dropped the temperatures significantly for our walk. We first hiked down to Granite Creek and followed the creek until it connected to the Verde River, and then we continued hiking downstream, paralleling the Verde.

This is a riparian area. The word riparian describes the habitat of the area, which is “related to or located on the bank of a natural watercourse”. Riparian areas in Arizona are characterized by large Fremont cottonwood trees, Gooding Willows, desert hackberry and other water-loving vegetation including cattails.

Picture in your mind Watson Woods Riparian Preserve, but with a river flowing through it. The Upper Verde Wilderness Area is a lovely, rugged area characterized by towering volcanic cliffs bordering the riparian area.

While it was a bird walk, it was also an opportunity to expose people to an area where they had never been before. Before dropping below the rim the view is simply striking with the most prominent feature being Little Thumb Butte which is smaller but similar is shape to Thumb Butter here in Prescott.

We saw a wonderful variety of interesting birds including five species of hawks; red-tailed hawk, common black hawk, zone-tailed hawk, Swainson’s hawk and Copper’s hawk. We also saw a good variety of song birds including vermilion flycatcher, summer tanager, yellow-breasted chat, canyon and rock wrens, and yes, we got to not only hear, but see a single yellow-billed cuckoo.

Because it had rained the previous evening other creatures were stirring too. On our walk we saw two Sonoran mud turtles, which I believe is the first time I have ever seen this species in the wild. Some in the group were also blessed with brief glimpses of river otters in the Verde River!

It is almost shocking to thing that there are river otters within thirty minutes of Prescott, but it is true. The diversity and richness of species observed in this threatened habitat underscores the value and importance of the Verde River.

This free-flowing river supports the riparian habitat and all of the mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and insects that rely on this precious river. Every effort should be exhausted to protect the Upper Verde.

After exploring the river, we spent time at Sullivan Lake where we added a number of new bird species to our trip list. We also made a quick foray out Big Chino Road to search for (successfully) burrowing owls, which was like icing on the cake. We had a wonderful day.

If you are interested in joining us on our free or fee-based bird walks I invite you to come to the store to sign up for our weekly walks.

Until next week, Happy Birding!

Eric Moore is the owner of The Lookout, in Prescott, where you will find a Hallmark department, wild bird products, and Swarovski and Vortex optics. Eric has been an avid birder for over 55 years. Eric can be contacted at eric@thelookoutaz.com.