When we planned this itinerary we knew we wanted to show Neil and Nicola the birds around Portal, Az – arguably the most famous of all American birding sites. The trouble was that because of other considerations we were starting the day nearly 200 miles away and ending it with another 100 miles to our overnight stay at Tombstone – leaving us less time than we’d ideally like to do the birding. As it turned out the day worked out fine. We arrived in the village of Portal just after nine, took a stroll around the village before heading off to nearby Cave Creek Canyon. We had a late lunch at the general store in Portal before checking out the various open bird gardens around the village. We eventually arrived at The Sagebrush Inn, our overnight stop, at sunset. Highlights of the day included: a Black Hawk feeding on a dead rabbit with Turkey Vultures on the approach road to the village, Blue-throated Hummingbird (now Mountain-Gem) missed at Big Bend, Painted Redstart, Lucy’s and Grace’s Warbler and the top prize of Elegant Trogon. We’re now over 300 for the trip and it does feel like we are back on track again after our disappointing day at Big Bend.