Trip Registration



As part of your registration, in order to participate in a Denver Field Ornithologists, Inc. (“DFO”) trip or other activities designated by the Board of Directors, each adult participant and the parent of a minor participant (those under 18 yrs. of age) are required to review and sign (either electronically or manually) a DFO Acknowledgment and Assumption of Risks & Release and Indemnity Agreement (sometimes “Agreement”) Completing this document involves your acceptance of binding contract terms. This online registration system allows you to review and electronically sign the Agreement if you do not have one on file. If you would prefer to manually sign a printable version of the Agreement, you may access it here, and present it to the leader before trip start. If you choose this option, please contact your leader to assure you are signed up for the trip.

Please note: Each person, including each family member choosing to sign the Agreement electronically must login and have a separate account so that the agreement is tied to the individual. If you are having difficulty with multiple logins, please contact us for assistance. *Minors: If participant is a minor, the minor’s parent or legal guardian must print out, review and sign a paper copy of the Agreement and present it to the leader before the trip start. Any minor attending must be accompanied by their parent or legal guardian.

Logged in users who have a signed Agreement on file will have the opportunity to print or save it at any time. Click on the link to the printable copy and use your browser functions to save or print.

Jason Bidgood
Meet Your Trip Leader
Aiken Audubon Co-sponsored  Trip Aiken Audubon Co-sponsored Trip

Birds Plus+ Trip Birds Plus+ Trip - Birds Plus+ field trips combine birding and another field focus, sometimes with a guest leader. The second focus of the day, be it butterflies or other insects, or art and journaling, will be described in more detail on the trip detail page.

Paint Mines Interpretive ParkBirds+Geology - Colorado 55 million years ago
3/15/2026      7:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Leader: Jason Bidgood   jbidgood@hotmail.com or 303-919-4591
Trip Difficulty: Strenuous
Directions
Meet at Lowe's in Castle Rock near the outlet stores. I-25 south, exit at Founders/Meadows Pkwy (exit 184), turn right (west), then right on Santa Fe Dr (Hwy 85), then right on New Beale St. Exact address 1360 New Beale St, Castle Rock, CO 80108
 View Meeting Place on Google Maps

This trip is limited to the first 10 registrations.

Habitats to bird: Grassland, Riparian, Scrub

This is a Birds+ field trip for birders of all experience levels who want to learn more about Colorado geology and how the landscape was formed. For this trip we'll be exploring the Paint Mines Interpretive Park in El Paso County. The habitat within the park includes native short- and mixed-grass prairie and stream bottoms with shrubby vegetation such as mountain mahogany, low sagebrush, and choke cherry. We'll hope to find some of the early spring migrants. This trip will involve hiking up to 3 miles with some hills and steps. We'll walk among the hoodoo formations and on the trail through the prairie. Restrooms are available at the trailhead. Bring water, snacks and lunch. We’ll plan on a picnic lunch after the hike. 

For people traveling from the Denver area we will meet in Castle Rock and carpool to the destination. For anyone traveling from the Colorado Springs area, meet the group at the Paint Mines parking lot at 8:15 am.

The Paint Mines were named for the layers of red, purple, yellow and orange clay deposits that are present between layers of hard white sandstone deposited by rivers originating in the present-day Rocky Mountains. Native Americans used these colorful clays to make paint. The colorful clays are fossil soils (paleosol) within the Dawson Formation that formed about 55 million years ago. The clays are the remains of a soil that formed under a tropical forest, during one of the warmest times Colorado has experienced.


This trip is filled and you will be placed on the waiting list when you register
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