Fall (September, October, November) 2008

Half-Day Field Trip for Wildlife Watching at Bobolink Dairy and Bakeyard, Vernon, Sussex County
September 20
8:00 a.m. to noon.
Led by John Parke.
This 200-plus-acre farm located in scenic Sussex County has some of the best grassland bird habitat in this section of the N.J. Highlands, and offers opportunities to view numerous fall migrants, including Bobolink! The farm’s mix of woodland, pasture, fields, and streams also offers opportunities to view Black Bear, Eastern Coyote, Red and Gray Foxes, as well as raptors, warblers, and waterfowl. Bobolink Dairy and Bakeyard will have for sale their hand-made breads baked in an outdoor, wood-fired brick oven; farm-fresh eggs from free-range chickens; and their famous artisanal cheeses made from the raw milk of their grass-fed dairy herd. For more information about the Bobolink Dairy and Bakeyard see http://www.cowsoutside.com/   Parking is limited, so please pre-register with NJAS to receive directions to the farm. Limit: 15.
Cost: free.
Directions: Call John Parke at 908.766.5787 x 18 to pre-register for this trip to Bobolink Dairy and Bakeyard; directions will be sent to registrants.

 
Half-Day Field Trip for Farmland and Ridgeline Wildlife at DanaRay Farm, Frankford, Sussex County
September 27
8:00 a.m. to noon.
Led by John Parke.
Located at the base of the Kittatinny Ridge in Sussex County, the biodynamic DanaRay Farm will be our meeting point for a leisurely half-mile hike on the Appalachain Trail to the Sunrise Mountain overlook. No strollers, please. The area offers excellent woodland bird habitat and opportunities to view resident Wild Turkey, Ruffed Grouse, and Pileated Woodpecker, as well as numerous Neotropical migrants and raptors on their way south. This area provides panoramic views of rural New Jersey and is also home to Black Bear, Bobcat, and Porcupine as well as various reptiles and amphibians. Bring your camera! The farm will have for sale farm-fresh eggs and their locally famous soaps, handcrafted onsite from the milk of their Alpine dairy goats. (You can also purchase DanaRay Goat’s Milk Soap at the Sherman-Hoffman Bookstore.) See http://www.danarayfarm.com  for additional information. Parking is limited to seven cars, so please pre-register with NJAS to receive directions to the farm. Note: There are no public restrooms at the farm.
Cost: free.
Directions: Call John Parke at 908.766.5787 x 18 to pre-register for this trip to Danaray Farm; directions will be sent to registrants.
 
Half-Day Field Trip for Skylands Wildlife at Howling Wolf Farm, Hope, Warren County
October 25
9:00 a.m. to noon.
Led by John Parke.
This 200-plus-acre farm located in Warren County has it all: grasslands, wetlands, woodland, and farm fields. This patchwork of diverse habitat offers opportunities to view Black Bear, Eastern Coyote, Red Fox, and Mink. Numerous resident bird species such as Wild Turkey, Eastern Bluebird, Barred Owl, and Pileated Woodpecker are regulars here. Bring the kids – a great day for a family outing in the countryside. Howling Wolf Farm will have for sale an array of their freshly picked produce, farm-fresh meats, cut flowers, and it’s the time of year to harvest pumpkins! See: http://www.localharvest.org/farms/M5169  for additional details. Parking is limited so please pre-register to receive directions to the farm. Note: There are no public restrooms at the farm. Limit: 15 people.
Cost: free.
Directions: Call John Parke at 908.766.5787 x 18 to pre-register for this trip; directions will be sent to registrants.

CLASSIC FIELD TRIPS
The best destinations, the best leaders. Collectively, our Classic Field Trips sample all N.J. birding has to offer, not to mention botany, butterflies, and other aspects of natural history. These all-day trips go to midafternoon or later (you can opt to leave early if you need or want to) unless otherwise indicated. Bird checklists will be provided; results from past Classic Field Trips are posted on our Web site.

OLD MINE ROAD: WALPACK BEND
Sunday, September 14
8:00 a.m. to midafternoon
Join associate naturalist Dennis Briede to search for fall migrants in the Walpack Bend area of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. This area is very good for warblers, thrushes, vireos, Bald Eagles, and other passerines.
Cost: $15 members, $20 nonmembers.
DIRECTIONS TO: Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area: Karamac Parking Area
Take I-80 west to the last exit in NJ. Bear right at the end of the exit ramp, going north on Old Mine Rd. Karamac parking lot is the first parking lot you will see on the left after going through the five-minute traffic light on Old Mine Rd.

BEGINNING BIRDING FIELD TRIPS: GREAT SWAMP
Saturday, September 20
Saturday, November 15
9:00 a.m. until noon
We’ll start by observing the birds at the bird feeders outside the bookstore window at the Hoffman Center and then migrate to the Great Swamp, always a great destination. Led by Rich Borzelli.
Cost: $10 members, $15 nonmembers. (can be applied to membership).
DIRECTIONS TO: Scherman-Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary
Exit Route 287 at 30B, follow the ramp to the traffic light, proceed through the light at 202 onto Childs Road, and bear right at the fork onto Hardscrabble Road.  We’re one mile ahead on the right; go up the long driveway to the Hoffman Nature Center.  Meet at the Hoffman Center. 

PINE BARRENS
Sunday, October 5
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
An all-day trip in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, the first national Biosphere Reserve. The group will study Pine Barrens ecology, botany, geology and soils, the ecosystem’s adaptations to forest fires, some local specialties (including pine barrens gentian), and other facets of natural history in this unique region of New Jersey. With naturalist Rick Radis and possibly another leader. Bring rubber boots if you have them.
Meet at 9:00 a.m. at Lucille’s Restaurant on Route 539 in Warren Grove.
Cost: $15 members, $20 nonmembers
DIRECTIONS TO: PINE BARRENS FIELD TRIP:  Meet at Lucille's Restaurant, 1496 Route 539 Warren Grove NJ at 9 a.m. (sharp!).  Take the Garden State Parkway to exit 58, the Tuckerton exit. Take Route 539 north for about 7 miles. If you are coming from NW NJ or PA, you can pick up Route 539 south from Interstate 195 in Allentown. Warren Grove is map 57, grid #M-24 on the second edition (2001) of DeLorme's New Jersey Atlas and Gazeteer.  Come early if you want a non-PC breakfast. Trip goes to 3 or 4 p.m. Please bring the usual stuff, plus knee-high rubber boots or old shoes, because the last stop is mucky unless you stay on the boardwalk. Also, please bring cell phones, keep them on, and provide the # when registering. Rick’s cell number will provided to registrants. 
 
COLD BROOK PARK FOR MIGRANTS
Saturday, October 11
8:00 a.m. to midafternoon
Cold Brook Park has a reputation for good numbers of migrants at this time of year. Led by NJAS associate naturalist Dave Harrison.
Cost: $10 members, $15 nonmembers.
DIRECTIONS TO: Cold Brook Reserve (Van Doren Farm)
Take Interstate 78 east to exit 24, Oldwick/Whitehouse. Proceed north from this exit on Route 523 towards Oldwick. Continue straight on Route 517 when Route 523 turns to the right. After passing through the center of Oldwick, the park entrance will be on the left. A gravel parking lot is located on the left side of the driveway.

SPARROWS AT WARREN GREEN ACRES
Saturday, October 18
Sunday, November 2
8:00 a.m. to noon
Warren Green Acres site is a magnet for migrant sparrows in the fall, and no one knows the site better than leader Mike Newlon.
Cost: $10 members, $15 nonmembers.
DIRECTIONS TO: Warren Green Acres
From Route 78, take Exit 36, Warrenville.  Proceed south from the highway and make the first left onto Mountain Avenue, at a light.  Go about 1.1 miles to the unmarked entrance, on the left.

WALLKILL RIVER NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE
Saturday, October 25
Meet at 8:45 a.m.
Visit the Wallkill River NWR with local expert and associate naturalist Ken Witkowski for short-distance migrants and raptors.
Cost: $15 members, $20 nonmembers.
Directions to: Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge
Meet at the Refuge Headquarters on county Route 565 approximately 1.5 miles north of Route 23. From Route 287, take Route 23 north for about 25 miles to Route 565 north.  Proceed north on Route 565 about 1.4 miles to the refuge headquarters, on the left.  http://wallkillriver.fws.gov/directions.htm

Double-trouble State Park, Crossley Preserve and NJAS’s Hovnanian Preserve.
Saturday, November 8
Meet at 9:00 a.m.
Join Lloyd Shaw for a day in Ocean County visiting Double Trouble State Park, the Crossley Preserve, and NJAS’s Hovnanian Preserve.
Cost: $15 members, $20 nonmembers.

FREE NATURE WALKS
HIKE THROUGH HISTORY at Scherman-Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary and Adjacent Morristown National Historic Park and Cross Estate
Sunday, October 19
1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
Join Gordon Thomas Ward, author of A Bit of Earth, as he leads you through one billion years of history along 2½ miles of the Sherman-Hoffman Sanctuary and Morristown National Historical Park trails. Listen to stories of the Wisconsin Glacier, Logtown, sawmills, forges, a Revolutionary War troop encampment, Lenape burial grounds, the Cross Estate, and local folklore while you walk the hills, fields and brooks of this historic and environmentally significant area. Bring the family and wear sturdy walking shoes for this entertaining hike. Gordon will autograph books after the hike.
Cost: free.
DIRECTIONS TO: Scherman-Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary  Take Route 287 exit 30B, follow the ramp to the traffic light, proceed through the light at 202 onto Childs Road, and bear right at the fork onto Hardscrabble Road.  We’re one mile ahead on the right; go up the long driveway to the Hoffman Nature Center.  Meet at the Hoffman Center

NATURE WALKS at Kittatinny Valley SP, Andover, Sussex County
Sundays, September 7 and 14, October 5 and 12, November 2 and 9
(First and second Sundays of September, October, and November)
Meeting times: 8:00 a.m. in September; 8:30 a.m. in October and November.
Trips last through late morning.
Led by Tom Halliwell, Joe Burgiel, or other NJAS naturalists. Cosponsored by NJAS and the Paulinskill Valley Trail Committee.
DIRECTIONS TO: Kittatinny Valley SP, Andover, Sussex County
Meet in the parking lot on the left at the south end of Twin Lakes on Goodale Road, Andover. Take route 206 N to Andover. About 1.6 miles N of the traffic light in Andover, turn right onto Goodale Road (just past the lake on the right).  Drive about 0.6 mile on Goodale Road to the parking lot on the left overlooking Twin Lakes. (DeLorme 24, G-2; Boyle p. 44). Bring binoculars.

HAWK WATCHING
BEGINNER HAWK WATCH AT WASHINGTON VALLEY PARK/CHIMNEY ROCK
Saturdays, September 13 and 20
Sundays, September 14 and 21
10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The only county park-owned hawk watch in New Jersey is located in the Somerset County Park Commission’s Washington Valley Park. The watch is located on the southern edge of the Watchung Ridge, and is a good location to witness southbound migrant hawks in the fall. Mid-September to early October is the best time to see the greatest number and diversity of hawk species. NJAS and the Somerset County Park Commission will have seasoned hawk watchers at “The Rock” to help find and identify southbound hawks.
DIRECTIONS TO WASHINGTON VALLEY PARK: The Hawk Watch is located on the First Watchung Ridge in Martinsville. It is most easily accessible from Interstate 287. From the north or south, take
I-287 to the exit for Route 22 east.
Follow Route 22 east for approximately one mile. Turn right onto the jughandle at Vosseler Avenue. Turn left onto Vosseler Avenue and cross Route 22. Proceed uphill until you reach the top (about 0.6 miles). Look for Miller Lane on your left. Turn left onto Miller Lane. Drive about 0.5 miles down Miller Lane to the parking lot for the hawk watch. NOTE: Miller Lane is narrow and mostly gravel, with a number of private residences along it. Please drive slowly and yield to oncoming cars. The trail to the hawk watch begins at the far end of the parking lot.
No preregistration. Just come and stay as long as you want.
Cost: free.

MONTCLAIR HAWK LOOKOUT: FIFTY-SECOND ANNIVERSARY OPEN HOUSE
Sunday, September 14
10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The Montclair Hawk Lookout remains the best place, and this is the best time, to see thousands of Broad-winged Hawks migrate over the Lookout. The window for peak Broad-winged Hawk migration is September 14 to September 25. The high count was over 17,000 hawks on September 16, 1988, at the dedication of the lookout in memory of Andy Bihune. Big Flights are weather-dependent. We can only hope for a big one during our annual open house on September 14. (You can’t see them if you’re not there….)
Bring water, binoculars, visor or hat and wear a smile on your heart. We will have some loaner binoculars available.
Cost: Free.
DIRECTIONS TO: Montclair Hawk Watch
* From the Garden State Parkway in Bloomfield, take exit 151 for Watchung Avenue and head west on Watchung to its end at Upper Mountain Avenue in Montclair, about 2.1 miles. Make a right turn and go north on Upper Mountain 0.7 miles to Bradford Avenue. Make a left turn and go up Bradford 0.1 miles to Edgecliff Road and make a right turn. Go up Edgecliff 0.2 miles and park on the shoulder (to avoid parking problems, please park well off the side of the road). The lookout path for fall viewing is on the south (left) side of the road. 
* Via mass transit, as it is located in the heart of northern New Jersey's urban complex, an important factor in these days of high traffic congestion. Walking time from the railroad and bus station on Bellevue Avenue in Upper Montclair is about 15 minutes. Take Bellevue west (up the mountain) to Upper Mountain Avenue, turn right and follow the directions above.

SCOTTS MOUNTAIN HAWK WATCH
Saturday, October 11
10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Located on the edge of Merrill Creek Reservoir, this site is handicapped-accessible and offers views of waterfowl and gulls along with the larger late-season hawks.
No preregistration. Just come, and stay as long as you’d like.
Cost: Free.
DIRECTIONS TO: Scott’s Mountain Hawk Watch:  Take I-78 west to Exit 3, the last exit in New Jersey.  Go 1.1 miles to the traffic light at Route 519 and turn right (north).  Go 2.2 miles north on 519,   crossing Route 57, and turn right onto Fox Farm Road, at the small sign for Merrill Creek Reservoir.  Go 2.6 miles, bearing right at the fork after one mile, to the entrance to the parking lot, on the right.