Field Trips

Woodland Cemetery, Hendrie Valley, LaSalle Marina

Join a morning hike in and around several local hotspots at the west end of and along the north shore of Hamilton Bay.

Leader: Rob Dobos.

Details: Meet at the Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG) Centre, 680 Plains Rd. W. in west Burlington; parking in the lot off Spring Gardens Rd. Trip ends at 12:00 noon.

Field Trip Description: Woodland Cemetery is an excellent place to view fall diurnal land bird migration. With good conditions (NW or W winds) there can be hordes of blackbirds, robins, jays, finches, and raptors streaming by. Unusual species are often found amongst them. The cemetery also provides great views of the west end of Hamilton Harbour for waterbirds. We will also walk the trails and boardwalk from Valley Inn to Hendrie Valley which can be good for passerine migrants such as warblers, vireos and sparrows. The trip will end at LaSalle Marina to look for more waterbirds on Hamilton Harbour.

Fifty Point, Grimsby Sewage Lagoons

Spend the day exploring Fifty Point and the Lake Ontario shoreline there, and the Grimsby Sewage Lagoons.

Leader: Bob Curry.

Details: Meet at the Lakeland Viewing Tower on Van Wagners Beach Road (it’s the new building on the beach, NW of Hutch’s Restaurant, with a roofed observation tower). The group will then drive to the Fifty Point area, about 6 km east along the shoreline, carpooling as much as possible. Trip ends at 3:00 p.m.

Field Trip Description: Fifty Point and Grimsby Sewage Lagoons provide an excellent combination of landbird, shorebird and other waterbird migration. We will be looking for lingering warblers, vireos and flycatchers and the elevated areas of Fifty Point Conservation Area are excellent places to look for Hamilton specialties like jaegers and wayward gulls. The Grimsby Sewage Lagoons provide an excellent habitat for shorebird study, and there could be several species of ducks present as well as a few migrant passerines.

Dundas Hydro Ponds, Princess Point

Spend the morning exploring the marshes and watercourses at the westernmost reaches of Hamilton Bay.

Leaders: Jim Heslop & Bob Stamp.

Details: Meet at the Olympic Arena on Olympic Drive in Dundas. Trip ends at 12:00 noon.

Field Trip Description: Last year, the Dundas Hydro Ponds provided the first Hamilton record for White‐faced Ibis in October. Other birds that can be viewed here include a variety of shorebirds, waterfowl and lingering landbird migrants like warblers and sparrows. There is also a possibility of Nelson’s Sharp‐tailed Sparrow here. Princess Point provides a view of the Dundas Marsh area and American Cootes Paradise. Last year the mudflat there provided an opportunity to see a number of shorebirds as well as American White Pelican and many waterbirds. It is also a good place to view migrating hawks and eagles passing over the High Level Bridge when the winds are favourable.

Shell Park

This will be a morning trip, and the Shell Park property and its woodlots are a great place for a birding hike.

Leaders: Gavin Edmonstone & Mark Cranford.

Details: Meet at Shell Park Parking east of Burloak Drive and west of Bronte Road on the north side. Trip ends at 12:00 noon.

Field Trip Description: Shell Park is an excellent haven for migrating passerines and provides a number of habitats in which to find lingering flycatchers, vireos, warblers and sparrows. Fall rarities found here in the past have included Yellow‐throated Warbler and White‐winged Dove.

Van Wagners Beach and Ponds, Windermere Basin

Spend a day on the beach searching the horizon of Lake Ontario for exciting migrants from the Arctic. If the prevailing winds are not suitable for this, then the trip will go on to a couple of other interesting bodies of water to look for other species.

Leader: Brandon Holden.

Details: Meet at Hutch’s Restaurant on Van Wagners Beach Road. Trip ends at 3:00 p.m.

Field Trip Description: The western end of Lake Ontario is a major Fall hotspot in Hamilton. East winds can produce all three species of jaegers, Sabine’s Gull, Black‐legged Kittiwake, and other exciting migrants. Two years ago Manx Shearwater was found here. Many other species of gulls, shorebirds and waterfowl are also seen from this vantage point. A scope is helpful for viewing these specialties, and we expect a number of birders will be there with scopes that they’ll be willing to share. If east winds aren’t present, we can likely find something lurking about at the Van Wagners Ponds and the new park at the Windermere Basin. Both are excellent places to find a variety of birds.

Bring your own, or enjoy one of the Hamilton‐Burlington area restaurants.

Woodland Cemetery / Hawk Watch

This will allow an afternoon check for migrants in and around Woodland Cemetery, migrating hawks if the winds are good and migrant passerines if not.

Leader: Tom Thomas.

Details: Meet at the Spring Gardens Rd parking lot in Woodland Cemetery. Trip ends at 3:30 p.m.

Field Trip Description: Woodland Cemetery is a good spot for observing migrant passerines and, with the right winds, can also be a good lookout for the hawk migration. The cemetery also provides great views of the west end of Hamilton Harbour for waterbirds.

Dundas Hydro Ponds, Princess Point

This afternoon outing will follow a similar route to the same trip held Saturday morning.

Leader: Cheryl Edgecombe.

Details: Meet at the Olympic Arena on Olympic Drive in Dundas. Trip ends at 3:00 p.m.

Field Trip Description: Refer to the Saturday at 8:00 a.m. outing to this location for the map and field trip description.

Fifty Point, Grimsby Sewage Lagoons

Spend the morning exploring Fifty Point and the Lake Ontario shoreline there, and the Grimsby Sewage Lagoons.

Leader: Dave Milsom.

Details: Meet at the Lakeland Viewing Tower on Van Wagners Beach Road. Trip ends at 12:00 noon, or later if leader and participant(s) wish to continue.

Site Description: Refer to the Saturday at 8:00 a.m. field trip to this location, as described above, for map and field trip description.

Dundas Hydro Ponds, Princess Point

Spend the morning in the marshes and watercourses at the westernmost reaches of Hamilton Bay.

Leader: Dave Don.

Details: Meet at the Olympic Arena on Olympic Drive in Dundas. Trip ends at 12:00 noon.

Field Trip Description: Refer to the Saturday at 8:00 a.m. field trip to this location, as described above, for map and field trip description.

Shell Park

This will be a morning outing in the Shell Park property and its woodlots searching for migrant passerines.

Leaders: Mark Cranford.

Details: Meet at Shell Park Parking east of Burloak Drive and west of Bronte Road on the north side. Trip ends at 3:00‐4:00 p.m.

Field Trip Description: Refer to the Saturday at 8:00 a.m. field trip to this location, as described above, for map and field trip description.

Van Wagners Beach and Ponds, Windermere Basin

Spend the morning on the beach scanning the lake for Arctic migrants.

Leader: Stu Mackenzie.

Details: Meet at Hutch’s Restaurant on Van Wagners Beach Road. Trip ends at 12:00 noon.

Field Trip Description: Refer to the Saturday at 8:00 a.m. field trip to this location, as described above, for map and field trip description. Time permitting, the group will go on to Windermere Basin, but only if the winds off Lake Ontario are blowing the wrong way to bring in migrants off the lake.

Seeing and Hearing Birdsong, Lakeland Centre

This very special event will be a workshop put on by our Saturday evening’s guest speaker.

Leader: Donald Kroodsma.

Details: Be at the Lakeland Centre on Van Wagners Beach by 9:00 a.m. (it’s the new building on the beach, NW of Hutch’s Restaurant, with a roofed observation tower). Seating is limited, so those that arrive too late may not be able to be accommodated. Ends at 11:00 a.m.

Field Trip Description: Using a computer and Common Raven software, we’ll explore birdsong to the delight of both ears and eyes. The list of possibilities is endless. How about a conversation between American Crows? Or a drumming Ruffed Grouse? Or American Robins, Northern Mockingbirds, Thrashers, Marsh Wrens, Pewees, Red‐eyed Vireos, Warblers, so many birds, so little time.