Sandhill Cranes along the Platte River, Nebraska

For thousands of years, central Nebraska has been center stage for the largest gathering of Sandhill Cranes in North America and the largest gathering of any species of crane worldwide. Every spring, as much as 80 % of the continent’s cranes will bottleneck their migration along a 45 mile stretch of the Platte River.

Mid-March will typically see 500,000 or more cranes refueling before continuing their migration north to nesting grounds. In 2025 numbers peaked at over 750,000 cranes during the second half of March. These birds will typically spend 2 weeks or so, roosting overnight in the shallow waters of the river, then flying out each morning to the surrounding fields to feed, increasing their body weight by 20% before continuing north.

You will spend 4 days guided by nature photographer and instructor Sean Quintilian, photographing the cranes at first light as they leave the river, searching for cranes in nearby fields as they feed and as they return to the river at nightfall. 2026 will mark Sean’s 20th year of leading trips for Washington Photo Safari! We will be using a combination of private blinds and public lands to photograph the cranes. A lot of emphasis and instruction will be on birds in flight photography, and trying to capture that perfect sunrise silhouette.

Besides Sandhill Cranes, we will spend a morning in a private blind photographing Greater Prairie Chickens, and should be able to find some prairie dogs.

We will spend 5 nights at the Comfort Inn, Kearney, Nebraska, at approximately $145 a night, which participants will pay at check in. No need to make reservations, Sean will book for the group. All your ground transportation from Omaha International Airport is also provided.

In addition to the workshop fee paid to Washington Photo Safari, a direct payment to Sean for $350, will be required by December 15, 2025 to ensure reservations for the private blinds we will be using. Registration for this trip after 12/15/25, will depend on availability of space in the rented blinds.

Safarians should plan on arriving on March 16, 2026 flying into Omaha, Nebraska, before 2:00 pm, and departing from Omaha, Nebraska, after 12:00 pm on March 21, 2026.

Reservations are limited for this safari, so don’t wait to book your space!