The Morro Bay Bird Festival is underway, attracting tourists to the area and providing a welcome boost to local businesses during the winter season.
“Birding is a good way to get outside and meet other people and it’s a very nice group of people," said Muni Barash, a festival attendee.
Early Thursday morning, on the first day of the 29th annual Morro Bay Bird Festival, more than a dozen people gathered near the Fig Tree parking lot for a bird walk, one of 264 different events happening through Monday.
Barash was among them. He started birding five years ago during the COVID-19 pandemic and has come to the festival twice before.
“Was very curious about identifying them and finding out what I was looking at," Barash said. "So then I came to the bird festival and then I became interested in song birds, and raptors and other kind of birds and now I’m really into it."
Susie Reddy, community outreach chair for the festival, said that across the county, people can collectively see up to 200 different types of birds during the duration of the festival.
“We have 1,200 total participants, which is really exciting, and we have registered attendees coming from 30 different United States," Reddy said.
People in Thursday’s bird walk group came from as nearby as Los Osos to as far away as Massachusetts. Barsh is from Fremont, California and said that he was staying at a local hotel.
“I came in yesterday and will leave on Monday, so six days,” Barash said.
The tourism organization Visit Morro Bay reported that in previous years, the festival has consistently brought in about 900 people annually.
Morro Bay Mayor Carla Wixom said that this time of the year is known as the shoulder season, meaning fewer tourists are visiting the area, but the festival helps make up for the slowdown.
“Really is a boost for our hotels, our restaurants and our Embarcadero businesses," Wixom said. "We’re happy to have it, happy to host it, and [it's] just such a great natural event.”
Reddy added that the festival is meant to be fun, but the economic impact on the community is important and something they keep in mind.
“They’re traveling here, they’re renting cars, they’re using local lodging, they’re dining out, hopefully they’re shopping," Reddy said. "And we work closely with the City of Morro Bay, the Morro Bay Visitor Center and also the SLO County tourism board so there is a big economic boost.”
The Bird Festival will continue through Monday, January 19. People can register at the Morro Bay Community Center and find information on their Saturday 'Family Day' on its website.
