Birding journal/notebook (1 Viewer)

[GeorgiaBirder]

Can anyone recommend a good birding journal or notebook that I can take out to the field to record my bird sightings? I was going to buy a moleskine but I read that they don't hold up in the field to well. I need something durable.

 

[nctexasbirder]

I use a Moleskine and I don't see why they wouldn't be durable in the field. They are pretty well made journals. They are probably the best there is.

There is a National Geographic Birder's Journal that has illustrations of each species with ruled pages opposite where you record when you first saw the bird species and other info. It serves as a companion to the Nat. Geo Field Guide. I do not like its format at all though.

 

[lulubelle]

I use only the Moleskine Cahiers - I prefer the squared version. They hold up very well! I shove them in my back pockets all the time, with a pen inside. They have been dropped in the dirt, walked on, hit with a bit of rain and sat on mutiple times - no problems! I average 2- 4 months worth of daily/trip lists per notebook, so they get lots of use. I tried a variety of notebooks and have long ago decided these fit my needs best.

I started with the Nat'l Geo Birders Journal, but it is not meant for daily birding listing or trip listing in any way, and the space per species is very unequal. In fact, the way the listing space is set up never made sense to me at all. I have looked at a number of other "pretty" journals which offer designation space for notes or drawings - but you can do that in any notebook. I get the cahiers at Barnes & Noble or Amazon - 3 in a pack for around $8 - well worth the money! They are perfect pocket size where the birding journals are, at least the ones that I have seen, aren't meant to be carried into the field and certainly not in a pocket!

 

[TwoDipsfromAmsterdam]

I'd agree - they are a bit small but used properly they do the business.

 

[jedigrant]

I started with a cheap, small, lined, spiral notebook. But several years ago I switched to a digital voice recorder, and will never go back. It adds a step when recording my sightings (I still write everything down), but the ease of use in the field more than makes up for it. Plus, it can even record bird songs.

 

[Mike Penfold]

We use a "Rite in the Rain" All-Weather Memo Book (No. 393-M), which has a side plastic spiral binding; plastic covers front and back; and waterproof, lined paper.

This is a nice size to fit in a shirt pocket, and the spiral binding allows you to fold the book back on itself for ease in writing; however, this company has many other products designed for field use in inclement weather.

Mike Penfold