April 2010 Outings

Saturday April 3 - Yellow Creek State Park

Meet Margaret Higbee (724-354-3493) at the park office at 8:00 AM for this joint outing of the 3RBC and the Todd Bird Club. The park office is located on Route 259 just off Route 422 east of Indiana. Allow an hour and 30 minutes to drive from Pittsburgh. Yellow Creek State Park has been the prime outing location for the Todd Bird Club since the club was created. The park contains a wide variety of habitats and a large lake that attracts a wide variety of species. Some of the waterfowl numbers have been spectacular in the past with real rarities showing up on a fairly regular basis. Meet Margaret Higbee (724-354-3493) at the park office at 8:00 AM for this joint outing of the 3RBC and the Todd Bird Club. The park office is located on Route 259 just off Route 422 east of Indiana. Allow an hour and 30 minutes to drive from Pittsburgh. Yellow Creek State Park has been the prime outing location for the Todd Bird Club since the club was created. The park contains a wide variety of habitats and a large lake that attracts a wide variety of species. Some of the waterfowl numbers have been spectacular in the past with real rarities showing up on a fairly regular basis.

Wednesday April 14 - Woodcock Walk

Meet leader Tom Byrnes (724-715-7184) at the Ladbrokes (now The Meadows) parking lot behind the Primanti Brothers restaurant off the Harmar exit 11 of Route 28. We will carpool and drive a short distance to a field in Harmar Township that has produced lots of American Woodcock in the past several years. Be prepared for a muddy walk and bring a flashlight. Before going to the field, we will again check the Great Blue Heron nest. Meeting time will be 7:00 PM.

Friday April 16 - Sewickley Park

In collaboration with the Fern Hollow Nature Center at Sewickley Heights Borough Park, this bird walk will be lead by Bob VanNewkirk (412-366-1694 or email at van126@comcast.net). The walks begin at 7:30 AM starting from the upper parking lot. Directions to the park can be found on the 3RBC's website (http://www.3rbc.org). Birders should be prepared for muddy trails. It is also advisable to bring water and a lunch. Besides birding in the park we will drive and make stops along Little Sewickley Creek. Louisiana Waterthrush, Yellow-throated Warbler, and Warbling Vireo nest in the area.

Saturday April 17 - Frick Park

This joint outing of 3RBC and Pitt Student Bird Club is part of the Frick Environmental Center's Earth Day activities http://www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/parks-earth_day.htm. The primary objective is to assist beginning birders in finding and identifying common birds in the park, and we'll keep our eyes open for returning migrants, too.

We will meet Lukas Musher and Jack Solomon at 12:30 pm at the Frick Environmental Center, 2005 Beechwood Blvd Pittsburgh, PA 15217 in the Squirrel Hill. http://www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/parks/frick_environmental_center.htm Phone 412-422-6538 for information.

Saturday April 24 - Knob Hill Park Warrendale

Meet Karyn Delaney at the Disc Golf Parking Lot on Knob Road at 8:00 AM for this spring trip to Knob Hill Park. Target Species include Baltimore Oriole, Scarlet Tanager, Northern Mockingbird, Wood Thrush, Hooded Warbler, and other migrants are possible. Directions from Pittsburgh: Take I-79 North to Warrendale Exit. Turn left onto Warrendale-Bayne Rd. At the first traffic signal, turn right onto Brush Creek Rd. At the second traffic signal, turn left onto Knob Rd. The main entrance to the park is about one mile on the left side of the road. Go past the playground and continue until the road ends at the parking lot.

Directions from north of Allegheny County: Take I-79 South to Cranberry Exit. Turn right onto Rt. 228. Get into far left lane. Turn left onto Rt. 19 South. At the fourth traffic signal, turn right onto Thorn Hill Rd. Get in left lane. Turn left onto Brush Creek Rd. At the next traffic signal, turn right onto Knob Rd. The main entrance to the park is about one mile on the left side of the road. Go past the playground and continue until the road ends at the parking lot.

For more information, contact Karyn Delaney at 724-869-9474 or e-mail her at kdelaney17@comcast.net.

Sunday April 25 - Boyce-Mayview Park

Join Patti Kaminski (412-831-8041) for an outing to Boyce-Mayview Park. In addition to a beautiful wetland area, there are woods and open fields, with recently developed trails throughout. We'll begin our walk at 8:00 AM in a small parking area off of Boyce Road. Travel South 19 past South Hills Village (on your left). Continue on 19 a few miles past Upper St. Clair High School (on right) until you reach Boyce Road; turn right onto Boyce, going past Boyce Middle School and then about 1 mile downhill, going past Friendship Village (on your left). At the bottom of the hill on your right is the entrance to the parking area, adjacent to a small pizza shop.