[Mnbird] Compact Binocular Advice Please

[Miller Johnson]

Dear birders,

I'm doing a bus tour in Italy next month that will not be for birding, but I will have some free time most days. I normally carry my Swarovski 8.5x42 bins when I travel, but I think they'll just be too heavy for the amount of use I expect to get out of them on this trip.

Do you have recommendations for smaller and lighter-weighted binoculars for travel? I use my "big" binoculars most days but, as I age, I'll probably have more use for a lighter pair long-term anyway. Budget is in the $1000 range, but willing to go up if it'll make a big difference.

Thanks for any guidance you can provide. Emailing me directly will help keep the clutter off these list-serves, especially as we're going to be getting a lot of traffic as spring seems to have sprung!

Molly Jo Miller
Dakota Co