Bird Watching

Saturday, June 6, Bird Watching Hike Along the Grist Mill Trail, rain or shine!
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You are welcome to join members of the Friends of Patapsco Valley & Heritage Greenway for a hike along the Grist Mill Trail in Patapsco State Park. Founding Members of the Maryland Chapter of the Audubon Society, Dave and Elaine Pardoe, will lead this bird watching hike along the Grist Mill Trail, in the Avalon/Orange Grove Areas that runs parallel to the Patapsco River. Elaine & Dave Pardoe have been birders for over 30 years and have been privileged to go birding with some of the top ornithologists in the country who have greatly helped their ability to identify and enjoy birds. They are both natives of Baltimore, and Dave grew up near the Avalon area of the Patapsco River Valley State Park. Family trips and Boy Scout outings and camping adventures there played a major part in his love for the natural world and a subsequent career in conservation. He is retired from the National Wildlife Federation after which he served on the Board of the National Audubon Society for nine years; and he is on the Board of the local Audubon Society of Central Maryland. While Dave has been more involved in the institutional aspects of wildlife conservation, Elaine provides the ears to distinguish the challenging vocalizations of birds that some refer to as "songs." Although the primary purpose is to look for birds, you can't help notice the diverse plants, abundance of wildlife, interpretive history signs, trees we have planted in the last few years along the Grist Mill Trail, and of course, the beautiful Patapsco River. We hope you will join us to enjoy the great outdoors, walking along the Grist Mill Trail and learn first hand why our members are dedicated to preserve, protect and enhance the history, heritage and environment of the Patapsco River Valley!

TIME: 8:45 am-9 am registration. Walk begins promptly at 9 am. Ends approximately 11 am.

MEETING LOCATION: Meet near Lost Lake in the Avalon Area of Patapsco State Park. For a great map of the park, go to http://www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/central/avalon.html. Look for registration sign and group!

COST: Free to members; All others $5/person. Free trail map included. Note: There is a $2/fee per vehicle to enter the park.

DIRECTIONS TO PATAPSCO STATE PARK: The Avalon Area of the Patapsco Valley State Park entrance is off of U.S. Route 1, just south of its intersection with Route 195 (and approximately 2 miles north of Route 100). Turn onto South Street and make an immediate left into the park entrance and follow signs to the Glen Artney area. For those of you using GOOGLE MAPS OR MAPQUEST, the approximate GPS coordinates to the entrance of the park are 39.219504,-76.704869. To find Lost Lake, a great map of the inside of the park is located at http://www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/central/avalon.html.

TO REGISTER: email patapscofriend@gmail.com or call 410-480-0824 by Friday, June 5, 7 pm.