Remember the stories last summer and early fall about the TV show "Antiques Roadshow" visiting Dauphin Island?
TV film crew visits Dauphin Island
Antiques Roadshow visits Dauphin Island
Film crews from the show visited Mobile and Dauphin Island, and captured a wealth of material from the floor of Mobile's convention center, where about 5000 people brought in heirlooms to be appraised by the show's experts. During their visit to Mobile, the "Antiques Roadshow" crews visited Dauphin Island's Audubon Bird Sanctuary to capture some of Dauphin Island's unique beauty.
The producers of the "Antiques Roadshow" series have turned that visit into three episodes which will be shown on local TV beginning in March. Look for them to air on PBS over three consecutive Monday nights beginning March 26.
If you haven't already done so, mark your calendar for the weekend of October 19-22. That's the weekend of this year's Alabama Coastal BirdFest, which promises to be the biggest and best ever.
This year’s Alabama Coastal BirdFest will include nearly 20 great tours on the 240-mile long Alabama Coastal Birding Trail. It's an outstanding opportunity to get a guided visit to the Alabama Gulf Coast's best birding spots at the perfect time of the year for birding.
The 2006 Alabama Coastal BirdFest will also play host to two evening events sure to please, and a free day-long Bird & Conservation Expo.
At BirdFest’s opening night reception on Thursday, Oct. 19th, a panel of three distinguished ornithologists will discuss Hurricanes & Habitat: How Wildlife Survives. The panel includes
This year we are repeating some of our most popular tours from past festivals, and adding something new. We have three new tours to Dauphin Island that include an excursion on Mobile Bay on the Dauphin Island Sea Lab research vessel, the A.E. Verrill, a 65-foot ocean-going craft. Not only will we see the birds of Mobile Bay, but marine biologists from the Dauphin Island Sea Lab will be with us to examine specimens caught in a trawl.
- John Borom, president of Mobile Bay Audubon Society
Registration for the 2006 Alabama Coastal BirdFest is now open.
Bird-watchers will descend on Fort Morgan and Dauphin Island next week for the 2006 annual BirdFest.
A self-guided tour through Shell Mound Park is a "must do" during any Dauphin Island vacation.
Shell Mound park is probably the single most visited spot for birds returning to the Alabama Gulf Coast after their long spring migration north over the Gulf of Mexico. For this reason Shell Mound Park is a hot spot for birders through the migration seasons.
But don't take our word for it. Read what the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has to say about Dauphin Island's Shell Mound Park:
The Shell Mounds and Dauphin Island in general are renowned "hot-spots" for observing neotropical migrant birds, and attract birders from around the U.S. each spring and fall. Dauphin Island is the first point of land encountered by migrants during their spring migration across the Gulf of Mexico. The entire Island is a bird sanctuary.
Indian Shell Mound Park is located on the northern shore of Dauphin Island. The park is maintained and administered by Alabama Marine Resources Division.
Shell Mound Park consists of eleven acres of subtropical natural beauty. The park is a botanical treasure-trove unlike that found on any other Gulf barrier island.
Many plant species which can be found at Shell Mound Park are representatives of families found as far inland as the Appalachian Mountains and from as far south as Yucatan state, Mexico. Many of them were likely transported here hundreds of years ago by Indian groups for medicinal and culinary purposes.
The park is full of giant moss-draped live oaks. Some are estimated to be in excess of 800 years old. You'll see trees which were mature specimens when the Spaniards first visited the shores of Dauphin Island in 1519.
Dauphin Island's Shell Mound Park is popular with vacationers, student groups, elder-hostels and birding groups. An estimated 25,000 people visit the Mounds each year.
Call Alabama Marine Resources Division (251) 861-2882 for more info.
A nice bit of outbound marketing going on here by the local tourism bureau. This little snippet has been popping up in the travel sections of newspapers all around the US since yesterday morning. Just in case you missed it, we thought we'd oblige the Alabama Department of Tourism and publish it here as well.
Ferry Service Expands for Dauphin Island
Alabama's Dauphin Island, recovering from damage by Hurricane Katrina, is open, and ferry service to the eight-mile-long barrier island on Mobile Bay has expanded.
An important birding site, Dauphin has counted 345 species, resident or migrating. The largest public observation area is Audubon Bird Sanctuary. Fall migration begins as early as this month.
The island also offers an aquarium at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, historic Fort Gaines, fishing, hotels, camping and beaches.
The Mobile Bay Ferry now operates from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., linking the island and Fort Morgan, near Gulf Shores. Cost is $14 per auto, truck or van with one passenger (plus $4 for additional passengers). Contact: 251-861-3000; www.mobilebayferry.com.
Dauphin Island is listed in the "100 Outdoor Adventures in Alabama" brochure. For a free copy and an Alabama Vacation Guide, call 1-800-252-2262 or access www.800alabama.com.