For the true birding enthusiasts, take part in the Annual Okanagan Big Day Challenge, held each year on the Sunday of the Victoria Day weekend. Teams of birders have come from all over Canada and the Washington State to participate in this fun event. Big Day Challenge is one of the main events of the third annual Meadowlark Festival. Teams of birders regularly come from all over Canada and the Pacific Northwest to participate. Winning teams usually tally about 160 bird species.
Participants collect pledges for each species they record.
This year, the Challenge will be run as a Baillie Birdathon , a national event organized by Bird Studies Canada. One very important thing to remember is that you can name an environmental organization or naturalist club of your choice to receive a portion of the money you raise. We suggest that you list the Okanagan Similkameen Conservation Alliance, the group that organizes the Meadowlark Festival, but feel free to name the group of your choice. There are many fabulous prizes associated with the Baillie Birdathon, and every participant receives a free T-shirt just for registering. The Big Day Challenge has its many coveted annual awards for teams that manage to obtain the highest species total, the best bird of the day, the worst miss of the day, best total by a bicycle team, best total for a walking team, and for those who have traveled the farthest to participate, to name a few.