NH Audubon Jeffrey's Ledge Pelagic Birding Trip
Trip Details
- Departure
- Rye Harbor, NH
- Schedule
- Selected dates in spring (May) and fall (September); trips sell out quickly — see nhaudubon.org/events for current schedule and registration
- Price
- $75 NH Audubon members / $95 non-members
About This Trip
New Hampshire Audubon's Massabesic Audubon Center runs dedicated offshore pelagic birding trips twice a year aboard the MV Granite State, departing from Rye Harbor and heading approximately 20 miles into the Gulf of Maine to Jeffrey's Ledge — an undersea ridge that runs northeast from near Rockport, Massachusetts to near Cape Elizabeth, Maine. The steep sides of the ledge produce powerful upwellings of nutrient-rich cold water that concentrate seabirds in remarkable numbers throughout the warmer months.
Each trip is an all-day expedition of 8–10 hours at sea, with the vessel working the productive edge of Jeffrey's Ledge through NH and Massachusetts waters on a counter-clockwise loop before returning. The route typically passes the Isles of Shoals outbound and dips into the deeper Scantums area and Jeffrey's Ledge proper during the offshore portion, drifting at stops over productive water to attract seabirds alongside the vessel.
The fall trips have produced outstanding results: the fall 2024 departure recorded two South Polar Skuas photographed from close range, a Long-tailed Jaeger (only the second NH state record since 2011), and a dark morph Pomarine Jaeger with spoon-shaped tail feathers — among the most exceptional pelagic birding ever documented from a single NH Audubon trip. Regular fall species include four shearwater species (Great, Sooty, Cory's, and Manx), Wilson's Storm-Petrel, Red Phalarope and Red-necked Phalarope, Pomarine and Parasitic Jaegers, Northern Gannet, and Black-legged Kittiwake. Spring trips focus on the arrival of Great and Cory's Shearwaters alongside Northern Fulmar, Razorbill, Atlantic Puffin, Dovekie, and lingering cold-water alcids.
Maximum capacity is limited to 50 participants to ensure comfortable viewing conditions, and the trips consistently sell out. The MV Granite State is a sturdy vessel suited to open Gulf of Maine conditions. Final go/no-go decisions are weather-dependent, with notification the day before departure. Trips are open to all birders at member and non-member rates.