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 Field Trips, Programs, and Special Events
Each trip is given one of three levels of
difficulty: Easy, Moderate, or Strenuous. Please discuss your level of mobility
with the registrar to ensure that the field trip is appropriate for you.
Except where noted, register with Jeanne Pollock at jeanne.basreg@gmail.com or by telephone at 914.519.7801
Our programs take place at
The Katonah Memorial House
71 Bedford Road, Katonah, NY 10536
Click for directions and a map to the Katonah
Memorial House
Many of our field
trips are held at BAS Headquarters at Bylane Farm.
To get to Bylane Farm >
Legal Liability Waiver
Thank you for coming on a Bedford Audubon Society field trip. Based on the recommendation of our counsel and insurance company, it is required that all participants carefully read and sign this release of liability. Participating in a field trip carries with it certain risks and this agreement is necessary for the well-being of Bedford Audubon and all participants. We appreciate your understanding.
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March
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Excursion to Wallkill NWR and Shawangunk Grasslands Preserve
with Tait Johansson, Saturday, March 17, 9 am – 2:30 pm. (Note: This trip was originally scheduled for March 10). Depart Bylane Farm at 7:30 am. Expect to arrive back at Bylane around 3:30 pm.
Wallkill NWR is an excellent place for spring migrant waterfowl, and both this refuge and the Shawangunk Grasslands are good locations for seeing winter raptors, including Rough-legged Hawks, and other grassland species. Bring lunch. (E)
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Amphibian Study at Vernal Pools at Hunt-Parker Sanctuary
with Paul Lewis and Tait Johansson,
Saturday, March 24, 1–3 pm. Meet at Bylane Farm at 12:45 pm wearing boots.
At this follow-up to the
February 8 lecture with Laura Heady on salamander migration, you will learn about the vital importance
of these seasonal wetlands as spawning areas for salamanders and other amphibians. Family-friendly
and suitable for children aged 10 and above accompanied by parents. (M)
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April
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Dance of the Woodcock at Ward Pound Ridge Reservation
with Tait Johansson, Thursday April 12,
7:15–8:30 pm.
Meet at the parking area just before the toll booth inside the Reservation. We hope to
see this astounding annual ritual, where the American Woodcock, in his energetic love antics, "peents," struts, and hurls himself into the evening sky and glides acrobatically down again, all to attract a mate.
The event is strictly limited to 20 people. (E-M)
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The Fifth Annual "Walk for Drew" Nature Hike at Franklin-Fels Sanctuary
with Tait Johansson,
Thursday, April 19, 9–11:30 am. Depart Bylane Farm at 8:30 am or meet at
Franklin Fels entrance on Lakeview at 9:30 am.
Join us for a walk in memory of Andrew Reynolds. Drew
was a long-time friend, member and supporter of Bedford Audubon, who surveyed and marked the trail system in the Franklin-Fels Sanctuary. (E-M)
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Bird Walk at Henry Morgenthau Preserve
Route 121, Pound Ridge, Saturday, April 21, 7:30-9 am.
Join Tait Johansson in celebrating the 41st anniversary of Earth Day. The varied habitat of the preserve is home to a variety of woodland birds, and we will likely see some mid-spring migrants on their way north as well. (E)
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Field Trip to the Clough Preserve, Putnam County
with Tait Johansson, Thursday, April 26, 7–11 am.
Depart from Bylane, 6:30 am. Celebrate John James Audubon’s 227th birthday with a walk along the trails through Patterson’s Clough Preserve and then along abandoned railroad tracks that abut Ice Pond and an adjacent shrub swamp. The Clough Preserve often holds a nice variety of migrant landbirds.
(Limit 10, carpool from Bylane due to limited parking). (E-M)
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Wildflower Excursion to American Legion State Forest, Pleasant Valley, CT
with Botanist Carol Gracie,
Friday April 27, 9:30 am–4 pm. Depart Bylane at 8 am. Return by 5:30 pm.
Please note: This trip is now full. Registration closed.
Delight in the sight of
blooming squirrel corn, wild ginger, and blue cohosh, in addition to two species of trillium at this superb wildflower location. Wear comfortable boots and bring lunch and water. A walking stick may be useful as parts of the trails are rocky and steep. Sign up early as the trip is restricted to 10 people. Real rain will cancel the trip. (M-S)
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May
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Spring Migration Bird Walk
with Naturalist Tait Johansson at Maple Avenue, Katonah, Tuesday May
1, 7:30–9:30 am.
Hone your birding skills and enjoy the sights and sounds of spring warblers and other
songbirds. This walk caters to novices and experienced birders alike. Bring binoculars. No registration necessary. Rain will cancel the walk. (E)
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Spring Migration Bird Walk
with Naturalist Tait Johansson at Bylane Farm, Thursday May 3, 7:30– 9:30
am.
Hone your birding skills and enjoy the sights and sounds of spring warblers and other songbirds. This walk caters to novices and experienced birders alike. Bring binoculars. No registration necessary. Rain will cancel the walk. (E)
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Field Trip to Garret Mountain Park, Paterson NJ
with Tait Johansson, Tuesday, May 8, 8 am– 1 pm.
Depart Bylane at 6:45 am. The 568-acre park is situated more than 500 feet above sea level and provides sweeping views of northern New Jersey and the New York City skyline. It features two trails and a beautiful pond, and is an excellent site for migrating songbirds, especially warblers. Bring lunch. (M-S)
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Wildflower Trip to Bartholomew’s Cobble, Sheffield, MA
with Botanist Carol Gracie, Friday, May 11,
9:30 am–3:30 pm. Depart Bylane at 8 am. Return by 5 pm.
This National Natural Landmark along the
scenic Housatonic River in Berkshire County, MA is known for its profusion of wildflowers and ferns, among them rarities like maidenhair spleenwort, walking fern, hepatica, and columbine. The trip is restricted to 10 people. Bring lunch and sturdy hiking boots. Real rain will cancel the trip. (M)
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Canoe Trip on the Great Swamp
with Dr. Jim Utter, Saturday, May 12, 8:00 am–12 pm. Depart Bylane at 7:15 am or meet at the Patterson Environmental Park at 8:00 am. BAS member Jane Smalley will be at hand to lead the group.
During spring migration a large number of birds, including rare migrants, visit the wetlands of this unique Important Bird Area, only accessible by canoe. Our expert guide will point out the birds and other wildlife of the swamp. The trip is limited to 16 people. Cost is $39; all proceeds go to Bedford Audubon's partner, Friends of the Great Swamp (FrOGS). Jim Utter is President of FrOGS, retired Professor of Environmental Sciences at SUNY Purchase, and former BAS Board Member. Deadline for registration is May 2. (M).
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Bird Walk in Central Park
with Tait Johansson and NYC Birder, Doug Kurz, Tuesday May 15, 8 am–3:30
pm. Meet at 72nd St. and Central Park West at 8 am or carpool from Bylane Farm at 6:45 am.
More than 200 species of birds pass through this amazing metropolitan oasis on their migratory routes each spring and fall, and we hope to see and hear many of them. Bring lunch. (E)
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Spring Migration Bird Walk
on the North County Trailway
with Tait Johansson, Thursday, May 17,
7:30–9:30 am. Meet at Jilco Window Corp. parking lot, 135 Mahopac Ave. in Somers.
Hone your birding skills and enjoy the sights and sounds of the spring warblers and other songbirds. This walk caters to novices and experienced birders alike. Bring binoculars. No registration necessary. Rain will cancel the walk. (E)
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Spring Migration Bird Walk on the North County Trailway
with Tait Johansson, Tuesday May 22, 7:30–
9:30 am. Meet at the parking lot at the intersection of the Trailway and Route 129 in Yorktown.
Hone your birding skills and enjoy the sights and sounds of spring warblers and other songbirds. This walk caters to novices and experienced birders alike. Bring binoculars. No registration necessary. Rain will cancel the walk. (E)
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Field Trip to Doodletown Road, Bear Mountain Park
with Tait Johansson, Thursday, May 24, 7:30–
11:30 am. Depart Bylane Farm at 6:45 am. Doodletown Road is part of the Bear Mountain State Park and is known as one of the best places in our area to find Hooded and Cerulean Warblers as well as many other songbirds. Enjoy the walk up the rugged trail past the ruins of a "lost civilization." (M-S)
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June
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Science in Action: Call List.
Put your name on a call list to come and watch Tait Johansson and his
team band birds for the nationwide Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship (MAPS) study,
now in its fourth year. Bird banding takes place approx. every ten days from June 1 until early
August in the Hunt-Parker Sanctuary. To register please call Tait at (914) 232-1999 or email him at tjohansson@bedfordaudubon.org. The walk to the banding site is muddy. (S)
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Babes in the Woods at Westmoreland Sanctuary, Bedford Corners
Saturday, June 2, 2 pm.
Join Westmoreland Director Steve Ricker for a family-friendly exploration of the forest in search of spring's babies. Plants, insects, birds, mammals and other organisms are all producing offspring at this time of year. Free. Please register by June 1st at 914-666-8448. (E-M)
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Field Trip to the Bashakill Marsh and the Shawangunk Grassland NWR, Sullivan and Ulster Counties
with Tait Johansson, Tuesday June 5, 7:30 am–4:30 pm. Depart Bylane at 6 am. Return around 6 pm.
Bashakill Marsh is a unique birding area which supports breeding wetland-dependent species (such as Virginia Rail, Sora, and Common Moorhen), bitterns, cuckoos, and a large array of songbirds. The nearby Shawangunk Grassland NWR has breeding Bobolink, Grasshopper Sparrow, and Upland Sandpiper. (M)
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Field Trip to Old Field Preserve, Waccabuc
with Tait Johansson, Saturday June 16, 7:30–9:30 am. Depart Bylane at 7am. (originally scheduled for June 9)
This is a follow-up trip to the June 13 lecture by Dr. Robert Askins on shrubland birds. A
variety of shrubland bird species breed in this 100-acre preserve, including Blue-winged Warbler, Field Sparrow, and Indigo Bunting. (E-M)
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Father's Day Bird-Feeder Building Workshop
with Steve Robbins, June 17, 9-11 am.
For children and
their parents or grandparents. $15 fee to cover materials. To register, call (914) 232-1999 by June 8. (E)
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Photo Montage Courtesy of and Copyright © by
Rick Paris
rick@rickparis.com
www.rickparis.com
Copyright © 2001–2012 Bedford Audubon
Society, Inc.
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