2024 Yampa Valley Crane Festival

The 13th annual Yampa Valley Crane Festival takes place August 29 ­– September 1, 2024, in Steamboat Springs, Hayden, and Craig, Colorado. Speakers include:

  • Keynote speaker Dr. Liz Smith, International Crane Foundation Senior Research Associate and Whooping Crane expert.
  • Michael Forsberg, conservation photographer and filmmaker.
  • Noah Strycker, author of Birding Without Borders: An Obsession, a Quest and the Biggest Year in the World.
  • Crane expert Paul Tebbel leads guided crane viewings and presents a “Cranes 101” talk.
  • Rebecca Weiss, author of Birds of Aspen and the Roaring Fork Valley.
  • Ted Floyd, editor of Birding magazine (with assistance from Andrew Floyd) leads guided bird walks.
  • Nature’s Educators showcases live raptors up close during a special presentation.

The complete schedule is available here.

Please direct questions to  info@coloradocranes.org.

Additional Festival Information

Festival Information Desk

Outside Library Hall
Thursday, Aug 29: noon – 8 p.m.
Friday, Aug 30: 9 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Saturday, Aug 31: 10:30 a.m. –3:30 p.m.
Sunday, Sept 1: 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Festival Store

Crane-themed merchandise will be for sale in the Library Conference Room next to Library Hall during the following hours:
Thursday, Aug 29: 3 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Friday, Aug 30: 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, Aug 31: 10:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Sunday, Sept 1: 10 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Optics Store

Front Range Birding Company/Opticron will have optics and other merchandise for sale in the Library Conference Room next to Library Hall during the following hours:
Thursday, Aug 29: 3 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Friday, Aug 30: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Saturday, Aug 31: 10:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Sunday, Sept 1: 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Crane Yard Art & Online Auction

Yard cranes decorated by local artists will be on display on the Library Lawn from 4:30 – 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Aug 30. The auction for the yard art cranes will take place online at 32Auctions.com starting on Thursday, Aug 29 at 4:00 pm and concluding on Sunday, Sept 1 at noon. View complete online bidding instructions here. 

Yampa Valley Crane Festival

Colorado Crane Conservation Coalition, Inc. presents the annual Yampa Valley Crane Festival every fall. The festival occurs during fall staging – when cranes gather in large numbers in the fall to feed and gain energy for their migration south. The festival is held in beautiful Northwest Colorado with events in Steamboat Springs, Hayden, and Craig. The festival features guided crane-viewings, bird and nature walks, expert speakers, films, crane and bird art, children and family activities, and more.

Behind the Scenes of the Yampa Valley Crane Festival

Join along and experience the dedicated effort that goes into producing the crane festival each fall with this video produced by Jo Smith.