The Morro Bay Bird Festival will be celebrating our 28th year in January, 2025. We have enjoyed a long and successful history, attracting birding enthusiasts from around the country (and a smattering of internationals) who come to see the more than 200 bird species spotted during the festival. We are considered one of the top five bird festivals in the nation.

The 2025 Festival schedule is the most extensive ever - over 250 events led by 141 expert leaders, appealing to all birders, nature lovers, photographers and artists. Hard Core birders as well as Beginners will find activities suited for their skill levels. Intense Big Days, walks geared to a relaxed pace, in-depth master classes, Nature Journaling, and Habitat walks and a variety of presentations round out the program.

With over 250 events to pick from, setting up your 2025 schedule can seem overwhelming. The page tabs above provide information to assist you with this task, as discussed below. The left-hand panel provides event categories that highlight the compliment of events on each topic. 

Schedule

FRIDAY

6:15am - 5:00pm F Birding the Carrizo Plain $130 Morro Bay Community Center Bus

6:30am - 9:00am F Birding with a Camera  Morro Bay State Park Marina Self-Drive

7:00am - 4:00pm F Big Day $105 Morro Bay Community Center Bus

7:00am - 4:00pm F Big Pelagic: Birds & Whales $160 Morro Bay Landing Boat

7:30am - 12:00pm F Birding & Wine at Halter Ranch Morro Bay Community Center Self-Drive

8:00am - 10:00am P A Splash of Color: Expressive Bird Art in Watercolor  Sea Pines Golf Resort Self-Drive

8:00am - 10:30am F Women's Morro Bay Marina Excursion  Morro Bay State Park Marina Self-Drive

8:00am - 11:00am F Birding by Kayak $55 MB State Park Kayak Launch Kayak

8:00am - 11:00am F Shark Inlet Sea Pines Golf Resort Self-Drive

8:00am - 12:00pm F Bird Montana de Oro State Park Montana de Oro Self-Drive

8:00am - 12:00pm F Birding Along the Bay Bayshore Bluffs Park Self-Drive

8:00am - 12:00pm F Birding by Careful Observation  El Chorro Park Self-Drive

8:00am - 12:00pm F Birding Laguna Lake with Kenn Kaufman $95 Morro Bay Community Center Bus

8:00am - 12:00pm F Birds of the North Coast Elephant Seal Rookery Self-Drive

8:00am - 12:00pm F Los Osos Hot Spots with Jon Dunn & David Lindo $40 Sea Pines Golf Resort Self-Drive

8:00am - 12:00pm MC Master Class - The Magic of Bird Sounds - Part 2A  El Chorro Park Self-Drive

8:00am - 12:00pm F Oceano Lagoon Bird Walk Oceano Lagoon Self-Drive

8:00am - 12:00pm F Santa Margarita Lake Birding Santa Margarita Lake Ranger Station Self-Drive

8:00am - 3:00pm F Bird & Bike the Bob Jones Trail Bob Jones Trailhead Bicycle

8:00am - 4:30pm MC Master Class - Feathers in Focus: Ethical Bird Photography Master Class $130  Sea Pines Golf Resort None

8:30am - 10:00am P Condor Recovery  St Timothys None

8:30am - 11:30am P Birding for Beginners Workshop  Hampton Inn None

8:30am - 12:00pm F Back Bay Birding Sweet Springs Self-Drive

8:30am - 12:00pm F Birding Estero Bluffs Morro Bay Community Center Self-Drive

8:30am - 12:00pm F Condors, Eagles and Hawks of San Simeon Creek Road Washburn Creek Self-Drive

8:30am - 12:00pm P Feathers-a wondrously complex and versatile structure - Part 1  Baywood Inn None

8:30am - 12:30pm F Santa Rita Ranch Diverse Habitats Santa Rita Ranch Self-Drive

8:30am - 1:30pm F Casual Little Big Day $75 Morro Bay Community Center Bus

9:00am - 10:30am P Optics Demystified  Morro Bay Community Center None

9:00am - 10:45am F Bay Birding Photo Cruise $40 Sub Sea Tours Boat

9:00am - 11:00am F Heron Rookery and Windy Cove Inn at Morro Bay Self-Drive

9:00am - 11:30am F Shoreline Birding for Beginners Baywood Park Pier Self-Drive

9:00am - 12:00pm F Birding Azure Street & Morro Strand Cloisters, Azure Street Self-Drive

9:00am - 12:00pm F Birding by Kayak $55 MB State Park Kayak Launch Kayak

9:00am - 12:00pm F Birds of the Elfin Forest Elfin Forest Self-Drive

9:00am - 12:00pm J/S Elfin Forest Explorations: Nature Journaling in Coastal Chaparral Elfin Forest Self-Drive

9:00am - 12:00pm J/S Nature Journaling at a Native Plant Nursery w/a Garden Designer Las Pilitas Nursery Self-Drive

9:00am - 12:00pm F Sweet Springs Preserve Sweet Springs Self-Drive

9:00am - 12:00pm F Technology On The Trail Cloisters Park Self-Drive

9:00am - 2:00pm F Morro Rock Owls & Falcons - Stop & Scope  Morro Rock Self-Drive

9:30am - 12:00pm F Land and Sea Birds at Morro Rock  Morro Rock Self-Drive

10:00am - 11:30am F The Western Snowy Plover Cloisters, Azure Street Self-Drive

10:00am - 11:45am F Morro Bay Nature Cruise $40 Morro Bay Landing Boat

10:00am - 12:00pm F Easy Birding  Cloisters Park Self-Drive

10:00am - 12:00pm F Lazy Birding 101  Morro Rock Self-Drive

10:30am - 11:30am P Critter Cams for Monitoring Wildlife  St Timothys None

11:00am - 12:00pm P Digiscoping with a Smartphone  Morro Bay Community Center None

1:00pm - 2:30pm F Exploring Otter Space  T Pier at Great American Fish Company Self-Drive

1:00pm - 2:45pm F Bay Birding Cruise $40 Sub Sea Tours Boat

1:00pm - 3:00pm F Basics of Bird ID in the Field  Morro Bay State Park Marina Self-Drive

1:00pm - 3:00pm P Bats - California's amazing flying mammals  Sea Pines Golf Resort None

1:00pm - 3:00pm P The Long-billed Curlew: Tracking a Species of Conservation Need  St Timothys Self-Drive

1:00pm - 4:00pm J/S Better Birding with Nature Journaling Sweet Springs Self-Drive

1:00pm - 4:00pm J/S Nature Journaling for Newbies: Intro to Nature Journaling  SLO Botanical Garden Self-Drive

1:00pm - 4:30pm P Feathers-a wondrously complex and versatile structure - Part 2  Baywood Inn None

1:30pm - 3:00pm F Elephant Seal Rookery at Piedras Blancas  Elephant Seal Rookery Self-Drive

1:30pm - 4:00pm F Shoreline Birding for Beginners Baywood Park Pier Self-Drive

1:30pm - 4:30pm F Morro Bay Hot Spots with Jon Dunn $50 Morro Bay Community Center Self-Drive

2:00pm - 3:45pm F Bay Birding Cruise $40 Morro Bay Landing Boat

1:00pm - 3:00pm P An Identification Study of Birds of Prey  Hampton Inn None

2:00pm - 4:00pm F Birding Morro Rock  Morro Rock Self-Drive

2:00pm - 4:00pm F Estero Bluffs State Park Habitat Walk Morro Bay Community Center Self-Drive

3:00pm - 4:15pm P Rookery Wonders in Windy Cove  St Timothys None

3:00pm - 4:45pm F Bay Birding Cruise $40 Sub Sea Tours Boat

3:00pm - 5:00pm P Ducks & Geese of the Morro Bay Region  Sea Pines Golf Resort Self-Drive

3:30pm - 9:30pm F Owling Field Trip $90 Morro Bay Community Center Bus

4:00pm - 5:30pm SE Friday Welcome Reception  Morro Bay Community Center None

5:00pm - 8:00pm F Bats - A field study of California's amazing flying mammals Sweet Springs Self-Drive

5:30pm - 7:00pm P Movie Night - Condor Canyon $10  Morro Bay Theater None

Click Here for Registration

Date: January 16 - 20, 2025