My Favorite Places I’ve Been Birding

Phew — just typing that title sounds daunting; there are so many! I don’t know how I’m going to break this list up but I figured I’d at least start it and chip away as I go. Please comment regionally with your favorite places too! My current home city is Duluth, MN so my favorite places in the state…

Minnesota

  • North Shore Scenic Drive: as the name implies, this goes along the north shore of Lake Superior, with lots of pull-offs
    • Brighton Beach
    • French River
    • Two Harbors
      • Lakeview Park
      • Agate Bay (scan for waterbirds)
  • St. Louis Co.
    • Canal Park
    • Minnesota (Park) Point
  • Sax-Zim Bog
  • McGregor Marsh State Natural Area (SNA)
  • Cook Co. water treatment ponds
  • Carver Co.: a rural area birded by Twin Cities birders in search of farm fields
  • Grand Rapids: the closest “bigger town” to NRRI’s other facility
  • Richfield Lake Park

Wisconsin

  • Wisconsin Point
  • Crex Meadows Wildlife Area
  • Buena Vista Grasslands
  • Lake Maria
  • Horicon National Wildlife Refuge (NWR)
  • Wyalusing State Park
  • Schurch-Thomson Prairie
  • Rose Lake SNA
  • Door Co.
  • Crow Wing Co.: rural area, houses with feeders worth checking
  • Trempeleau Co.: including the NWR, it’s a fun area to explore
  • Sauk Co.: this was a frequent birding destination for us because of all the unique natural areas in the county, including…
    • Spring Green Preserve SNA
  • Iowa Co.: rural area that has been a rarity host
  • Dane Co.: this is where I lived for 4.5 years during my Ph.D., so I spent a lot of time on campus. I used to do the Big Green Birding Year (BIGBY) which meant finding as many species as I could on foot/by bike, so I walked and biked much of Madison, WI.
    • Pheasant Branch Conservancy
    • 9 Springs
    • Lerner Conservation Park

Illinois

  • Chicago: there are lots of small city parks, and lots of birders, so it’s likely something interesting will be found
  • Sugar Grove Nature Center

South Dakota

  • Roughlock Falls
  • Haakon Co.: farm fields for days!
  • Custer State Park
  • Badlands National Park

Oklahoma

  • campus: there was an AOU meeting here in 2015!
  • Wichita Mountains NWR
  • Great Salt Plains State Park

Tennessee

  • Hampton Creek Cove

Maryland

  • Western Regional Park
  • Centennial Lake
  • Patapsco Valley State Park
  • Ocean City inlet
  • Assateague State Park
  • Truitt’s Landing

Delaware

  • Assawoman Wildlife Area
  • Bombay Hook NWR

Virginia

  • Great Dismal Swamp NWR
  • Huckleberry Trail
  • Heritage Community Park & Natural Area
  • Pandapas Pond
  • Cascades
  • the Blue Ridge: broadly…
    • Appalachian Trail
    • Blue Ridge Parkway
    • New River
  • Mountain Lake
  • Claytor Lake State Park
  • Sky Meadows State Park

North Carolina

  • Outer Banks: this area likely needs no introduction as a tourist destination
  • Pickens Nose
  • Jackson Park
  • Dupont State Forest

South Carolina

  • Clemson Experimental Forest
  • South Carolina Botanical Garden
  • Lake Conestee
  • Huntington Beach State Park
  • Tom Yawkey Wildlife Center
  • Pitt St. Causeway
  • Bear Island Wildlife Management Area (WMA)
  • Edisto Beach
  • Savannah NWR
  • Anderson Co.: home of Townville, the bird mecca of the upstate.
  • Beaufort Co.: this is where I did my M.S. field work on golf courses, so I went on a number of private properties as well as natural areas in the county.

Georgia

  • Georgia Botanical Garden

Florida

  • Storm Water Treatment Area 5/6
  • Everglades National Park
  • Lee Co.
  • Collier Co.: my parents used to have a beach house there, so I birded a lot of places (mostly wherever I could walk)
    • Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

Washington

  • Alki beach
  • Discovery park
  • Luther Burbank park

Wyoming

Thunder Basin National Grassland

Canada

We took the clipper from Seattle to Victoria and saw some great birds along the way! Highly recommended!

  • Holland Point Park
  • Gonzales Bay
  • Trafalgar Park
  • Kitty Islet
  • Queen’s Park
  • East Sooke Park
  • George C. Reifel Park
  • Queen Elizabeth Park

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