In all the talk of the birds we see and places we go it seems that one essential aspect of birding is often left out, to the detriment of those who might be trying to picture us birders out in the field. That aspect is what it is we carry on our walks and strolls, excursions and expeditions. Of course, what we carry varies from trip to trip, and season to season, but the core equipment remain the same.
What I wear does not vary too much, except seasonally. A sturdy pair of sneakers take care of my feet most of the year with a switchover to boots for bad weather or winter. Likewise, my socks get thicker and longer the colder the weather gets. If it is hot out and I am going to be on well-maintained trails without lots of bugs I wear a pair of cargo shorts with lots of pockets but if it is cold, or the grass is high, or the bugs are bad I switch over to many-pocketed cargo pants. If it is very cold I will have long underwear underneath, and maybe an extra pair of socks.
Typically to cover my torso I will have an undershirt and a Hawaiian-style shirt, but in earth tones. I prefer the ones with a pocket on each breast. Again, in colder weather I switch off to the long-sleeve, heavy-duty, L.L. Bean-made, lumberjack-looking shirts that are so comfortable I feel like I could sleep in them. On my head is one of my faded St. Louis Cardinals baseball caps or a winter hat, again, depending on how cold it is.
That covers the clothes but what am I carrying in all of those pockets? Well, since I learned my lesson the hard way I have pen and paper for taking notes, usually in the lower right front pocket on my shorts/pants. If I am on an extended birding outing a checklist joins the pen and paper so I don’t forget what I saw. In the pocket above that sits my wallet and keys. In the lower-left pocket a field guide sometimes sits, especially if it is autumn and I am looking at confusing fall warblers or if I am chasing after shorebirds. My other left-side pocket will contain gum and granola bars or some other snack. A water bottle is stuffed into one of my back pockets, which is a pain when I want to sit down, but hey, you gotta stay hydrated, right? The two pockets on my shirt contain a lighter and cigarettes (I know, I know) and my cell phone which is set to vibrate mode. The cigarettes that I smoke in the field are field-stripped and the butts placed in my empty back pocket to be properly disposed of, unless I forget, in which case they end up in the wash.
I wear my binoculars around my neck and my camera over my right shoulder. The binoculars are 10X40 Nikon Monarchs and the camera is a Canon EOS 20D with a 100mm Macro lens affixed. Sometimes my lens cap is in my pocket and sometimes it is on the lens.
Since I moved to New York I am much more likely to carry a backpack which contains all of the aforementioned birding gear plus a few items of clothing, more food, more water, and whatever else I think I might need. Now that I don’t have the advantage of a car to leave my gear in and go back to if I forget something in the field I have to plan more carefully to make sure that everything I might need for a full day’s excursion is in my bag. Trust me, you don’t want to be over an hour by public transport away from home and realize you have no way to clean off your camera lens other than the T-shirt you are wearing!
What do you carry when birding?
During the beautiful days of old, when I was still a student and had a quite liberal approach towards attending my classes at University, I thoroughly enjoyed birding on foot for the whole day, leaving my apartment at 4 in the morning and getting back around 10 at night.
During these “birding hikes” I carried:
– Binocs around my neck
– Scope and tripod over my shoulder
– Camera (sometimes, not each time I went out: it was old and the tele lens was HUGE and heavy) in large backpack
– water, food and raincoat in backpack as well + several plastic bags to wrap my optics in, in case I got into a heavy thunderstorm
– note book in the pocket of my jacket
The Baltic Coast is a rather chilly place, so I usually wore an old army coat even in summer, long pants (essential for walking through reeds and shrubbery “off-road”) and rubber boots as there is always a more than sufficient supply of water on the ground anywhere up here.
I don’t like wearing a hat at all as I feel it interferes with my scanning the sky for raptors and migrants, so I usually didn’t. That was a bad idea on some days but I was mostly happy with it.
Nowadays, I mostly bird by car during the course of my work doing EIAs, not out of choice but lack of opportunity to do otherwise, so I usually hop into the car in my ordinary office clothes (thankfully, that’s not a suit and tie but just ordinary stuff), throw my camera + binocs on the empty passenger seat and the scope with extended tripod on the back seat, stop at a nearby gas station to grab something to drink and some chocolate and off I go.
Typically I carry binoculars around my neck and notebook in my pocket. Sometimes I bring a small camera (depending on whether my pockets are big enough). If I am going to be out for more than a few hours, I will bring a backpack with a field guide and snack. Not having a big camera and scope has its disadvantages, but it does lighten the load considerably.
I’m sure most readers try NOT to picture us out in the field!
I love birding without a lot of gear, though it doesn’t happen often. Once in awhile, we do a “birding for no reason” day…no recording (sorry eBird!), no photos, no scope and it is so fun. That is what birding is all about! But, having the right gear is everything. Any birder who has forgotten a bottle of water or worn less then adequate clothing in the winter knows this is true!
Good birding to you!
When walking I tend to go light, just bins, a small notepad, and lately a camera in a small bag strapped across my shoulder. I’ll occasionally drag my scope out if I’m sure I’ll need it. I wrapped some bicycle handlebar tape around a couple of the legs on the tripod to make it easier on my shoulder and rigged a strap to it if I’m walking a very long distance so both my arms are free. I don’t typically bring a field guide on my person, if I run into something I don’t know I try to sketch or photo. Though when I was in Costa Rica I always had a book on me in a pocket of my shorts.
I have a pair of waterproof shoes I got from LL Bean a couple years back that are awesome yearround. I also have a “birding cap”, a beat-up StL Cardinals (I’m with ya, Corey!) number that has been with me on nearly every trip I’ve been on the last few years, unless it’s cold enough for a wool cap, when I use one my mom-in-law made me.
I have a specific pair of jeans I’ve designated as “birding pants” because I don’t mind if they get wrecked, but shorts are de rigueur in the summer. I tend to layer under my coat in winter with fleece and long-underwear, but I doubt I’d be properly prepared if I lived further north.
Cool topic, I’m sure everyone does something different for their own reasons, but those are mine
I usually carry binoculars (round my neck), notebook/sketchbook, pen and pencils, DSLR camera and large zoom lens, scope and tripod. With the exception of the tripod, the rest gets carried in a small photo-recksack.
If I am purely birding the camera will stay at home but it’s not too bad carrying it.
As for clothes, I usually wear jeans, walking boots or trainers and, a camouflage-style coat with large pockets for the sketchbook and pencils.
Your post made me realise something, we birders carry way too much stuff. From now on I’m only bring a pair of binoculars and birding in the nude…
Will’s solution would fit in at some portions of Sandy Hook. Elsewhere it might pose a problem.
The only thing I have 100% of the time is binoculars (of course). I usually also carry a voice recorder to record what I see (and also of limited use to record bird calls if needed).
I will carry a scope if I think I will need it. I use a Tri-pak (I think it’s called) to carry it like a back-pack. One of the best pieces of birding gear I’ve purchased – it keeps my hands free for using binoculars.
Other stuff I carry at times: video camera (30x optical zoom works pretty well since we don’t have a fancy camera yet); mp3 player and speaker; belt pack with water bottle; field guide if I’m in an unfamiliar location.
Clothes-wise I’m very fond of shirts made with the water wicking fabric (called various things by different brands). And for pants, I’ve got several pairs of breathable, convertible pants that are very comfortable. I wear either my everyday sneakers, or some water-proof ankle-high hiking boots.
Great topic!
I never go anywhere without toilet paper (yes, even on our day together in New York!) You never know when a jet-lag induced ‘tummy problem’ might strike 🙂
I don’t carry much in the field with me: my binoculars, a small Rite in the Rain notebook, pen, and small digital camera. But I have thrown the idea out there to some of my firends to become bird caddies for me. They could carry the tripod/scope/bag of refreshments/bird guides/etc. Until that day comes along, I’ll be traveling light.
A bird caddie, hmmm never thought of that…
Corey, what are you doing this weekend?
@everyone: Thanks for sharing your birding gear info.
@ Jochen: I do tend to carry a big plastic bag in my backpack now, not to carry stuff in but to put on the wet ground/log/bench if I want to sit down for awhile and just observe.
@Mike: Are you kidding? We should do a 10,000 Birds pin-up calendar!
@John, Veery and Nate: Packing light is definitely a plus.
@Will: But you go too far…what is it with you and birding naked?
@Vectis and Nate: Sounds like you guys need Grant’s tri-pak.
@Charlie: TMI! But I can see the need…
@Eva: It’s a good way to get your friends in the field…
@Will: Forget it!