Welcome!

Hi there! Welcome to my blog! 

The back story here is long - you can scroll back and read about the beginnings if you'd like, but the TL; DR version is this: 

I took a road trip to Florida with a friend in January to see all the awesome rarities that have been in the Florida Keys this winter - Cuban Pewee, Black-faced Grassquit, American Flamingo, and Red-legged Thrush. Our trip was incredibly successful. We birded the whole state and racked up 186 species in 8 days. 

I returned back to the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, where I work as a professional bird guide. I guided a few novice birder clients, and then guided big year birder Charlie for two days. We managed to round up almost all the rarities being seen in the area in January, as well as almost all of the specialty birds found here. By the end of January, I was at 289 species, and friends were reaching out to ask whether I was doing a big year. 

Nonsense, that's silly. I'm not a lister. I hate listing. 

Early February, after doing some more bird guiding, and making solid progress on my yoga teacher training, I decided it would be fun to do a one week solo camping and birding trip to Arizona, to see five life birds (birds I've never seen before). I arranged pet care for my pup, packed my car, and off I went. 

Two days into the trip, I flushed some Scaled Quail in West Texas, and suddenly found myself asking myself why I wasn't doing a Big Year. I already had an amazing start, and it would certainly be an adventure. I mulled it over while driving to Arizona. I hate listing. But I love adventuring. 

Scaled Quail habitat in Franklin Mountains State Park, Texas 

My trip to Arizona became a trip to South California, then North California, then Minnesota, and North Dakota, back to California, New Mexico, and then Texas. Upon returning to Texas, I was at 451 species on March 1. 

While driving the three hours from Surfbirds in Los Angles to Streak-backed Oriole in San Luis Obispo, the messages started rolling in. "Did you hear the news?" "Are you doing okay?" "Just checking in - I wanted to let you know I've been thinking about you." I was confused. What? News that a prominent figure in the birding community had raped a young woman in the woods while birding circulated throughout the US birding community quickly. 

People were reaching out to me, personally, because I had publicly shared my own sexual assault story, not even three years ago. I, too, was assaulted in a nature setting. Sadly, unlike the birding community, not one single person in the archery community I was a part of had reached out in support, or even to see whether I was doing okay. 

For more than a week, I'd been solo camping, birding and hiking miles down remote trails alone. I had felt nervous at times, but it was manageable. With this news, it suddenly felt less manageable. Even driving down remote highways and roads, I wondered what might happen to me if I had car trouble and an ill-intentioned person stopped to help. Trails? I ran into a man heading the other direction who stopped to chat with me, and I nearly panicked and ran away. It changed the freedom I felt on my trip. I wanted to go home, where I could lock my front door and sleep in the safety of my own home and bed. 

Soon after, I realized, to abandon travel would be akin to defeat. I do not want to live in fear. So many, if not all women, live with some level of such fear, on a most-daily basis. You can read about lists of things women have said they do daily without thinking about. Carry your keys in your hands on the way to your car in case you need to use them as a weapon. Check the backseat. Don't walk alone at night. The list goes on forever. Many times it's not even conscious. It's programmed into our brains. 

All of this needs to change. Women cannot be seen as equals to men in the field of birding until women feel safe while birding. Throughout 2021, I will be gifting Birdie personal safety alarms to women I meet on the trails, and talking with them and others throughout my travels, and sharing those conversations here. The alarm is a band-aid for the safety problem, which is why the blog will be the real place where change is made. I don't have all the answers, but I do believe I can help by being the vector through which these tough conversations can be had and shared. It is a responsibility of us all - men and women alike - to change the narrative here, to create a safe, welcoming place for all in this community. 

*For every $50 raised, I will be gifting an additional personal safety alarm (retail $30) to another woman that I meet on the trails throughout my travels. The remainder of the funds will be used to defer travel costs. For the most part I will be driving, camping, and cooking over my camp stove, and only using hotels and flights when it is necessitated. If you are inclined to donate, you may do so here: gf.me/u/zk4n6t

**If you'd like to purchase a Birdie personal safety alarm for yourself or a loved one, you can use code TIFFANYKERSTEN10 to get 10% off of your purchase:                                    https://www.shesbirdie.com/?rfsn=5441921.62b3728