The Grand Marais CBC counts within a 15-mile-diameter circle (approximately 177 square miles). The center point of the Grand Marais circle is situated three miles south of the middle of Devil Track Lake. The area encompassed by this count covers Highway 61 to Lindskog Road and north, portions of County Road 60, the Gunflint Trail up to the landfill road, Pine Mountain Road to the backside of Elbow Lake, Devil Track Road to Bally Creek Road, Ball Club Road to The Grade, Pike Lake Road, and Highway 61 west to the Cascade River, along with all of the lakeshore between Lindskog Road and the Cascade River.

The Grand Marais Audubon chapter is looking for volunteers of all skill levels, from novices to professionals, to watch feeders or walk/drive/ski a section within the count circle. Walking/driving/skiing birders cover a specified section of the count circle (as much or as little area as they like), and feeder watchers count the highest number of each species at their bird feeders within the circle on the count day. Feeder watchers are advised to keep their feeders full with a variety of foods leading up to and including the count day to attract the maximum number of birds. 

Additionally, observations are collected during a "count week," which includes the three days before and the three days after the main count day (December 14). Volunteers are asked to report any bird species seen within the count circle during this period. 

The official results compilation will take place at Voyageur Brewing Company at 4:15 p.m. on December 14 for anyone able to attend. Participants can also contact Ridlbauer after 5:00 p.m. on that day to report their observations and numbers.

Interested volunteers should contact Jeremy Ridlbauer, the Grand Marais Audubon Christmas Bird Count Compiler, to indicate the area they can cover or the feeder/area they will be watching, and to obtain additional information. He told Boreal Community Media on December 10 that more volunteers are always needed and welcome. Contact him at [email protected] or 218-370-0733. 

The Christmas Bird Count is a long-running North American community science bird project, operating for over a century and providing data vital to the Audubon Society and other conservation efforts. The event was initiated in 1900 by ornithologist Frank M. Chapman as a "Christmas Bird Census" to count, rather than hunt, birds on Christmas Day. Today, over 83,000 volunteers participate globally. The tradition began in Minneapolis and Red Wing on Christmas Day 1905 and has since expanded to nearly 70 census circles across the state. As of 2024, Minnesota has involved over 1,000 participants annually who have logged millions of miles and hours, collectively tallying over 8.5 million birds of 201 species in the state's history.