April 2025 Bird Walks in & around the Hudson Valley
Join bird walks near you! Columbia, Dutchess, Ulster and Greene County NY & Berkshire MA.
Columbia County - Alan Devoe Bird Club
For more details & to register, please visit:
https://www.alandevoebirdclub.org/AboutCalendar.htm
SAT, APRIL 12
MOUNT LEBANON SHAKER with Columbia Photo Club
Coordinator: Mike Birmingham 518-755-7469
Meet 8:00 am at the Museum visitor parking lot. The Museum is located at 202 Shaker Road off Route 20 in New Lebanon. A nice mix of fields, woods and structures and of course birds. This walk is open to all but will emphasize opportunities to photograph birds.
SAT, APRIL 26
WILSON POWELL SANCTUARY with Hudson Mohawk Bird Club
Coordinator: Kathy Schneider 518-248-8665
Meet 8:00 am at main parking lot off Hunt Club Road. Located off County Route 13, one mile southwest of the intersection of CR 13 and the Old Albany Turnpike (Old Chatham Village Square), take Pitt Hall Road, then a left on Hunt Club Road. Sanctuary entrance is on the right. The Sanctuary is owned & managed by the Alan Devoe Bird Club. Over 200 species including 20 warblers, have been recorded for this property.
Dutchess County - Waterman Bird Club
For more details & to register, please visit:
https://watermanbirdclub.org/about-us/field-trips-2/
Wednesday, April 2
DRT/Gold’s Gym
Leaders: Ken & Carol Fredericks (845-452- 7619). Meet at the parking lot behind Gold’s Gym, 258 Titusville Rd., Poughkeepsie at 8:30am.
Sunday, April 6
Woodcock Watch at Cary/IES
Leader: Mike Farigone at 6:45pm. Parking area is on the east side of Route 82, approximately one mile north of State Troop K Barracks and the junction of Routes 82 and 44, on the east side of Route 82, across from the Cary Greenhouse complex. Please call Barb Michelin at 845-242-2301 if you plan to attend. Rain date April 14th. Bring a flashlight.
Wednesday, April 9
Thompson Pond
Leader: Janet Allison (845-264-3222). Meet there (335 Lake Rd., Pine Plains) at 8:30am.
Wednesday, April 16
Stony Kill Farms
Leader: Barbara Michelin (845-242-2301). 69 Farmstead Ln of Rt.9D, Wappingers Falls. Meet at the Manor House parking lot at 8:30am.
Wednesday, April 23
Buttercup West
Leader: Barbara Butler (914-474-5981). Meet at the parking lot (Stissing Mt. Ln. & right onto Mountain Rd., Stanfordville – off Rt.82) at 8:30am.
Saturday, April 26
Pond Gut
Leader: Russ O’Malley (845-464-1147). Meet at 95 Pond Gut Road (off Gidley Rd., Pleasant Valley) at 8:30am.
Wednesday, April 30
Vanderbilt Mansion
Leader: Ernie Welch (email: razor06bill@gmail.com). Meet at the visitor parking lot (Rt.9, Hyde Park) at 8:30am.
Ulster County - John Burroughs Natural History Society
For more details & to register, please visit: https://jbnhs.org/events/list/
Sunday, April 13
SPRING YOUNG NATURALIST OUTING AT BLACK CREEK PRESERVE
9:00 am - 12:00 pm. The first of a new series of welcoming seasonal walks designed to bring together young families in the field interested in exploring and learning more about Ulster County’s natural world. This spring outing will be a timely visit to Scenic Hudson’s recently updated Black Creek Preserve. Spring ephemerals, newly emerging Mourning Cloaks, returning breeding birds (like Louisiana Waterthrush), and even juvenile American Eels (glass eels) are expected signs of spring at this location and in this timeframe. Please make sure to register by emailing JBNHSinfo@jbnhs.org
Saturday, April 19
SPRING BIRDING WILDCARD
The spring procession of migrants starts in earnest in this time period with new arrivals daily. Depending on recent reports or rare sightings, the destination (or destinations) of this trip will be determined just prior to the outing by field trip leader Peter Schoenberger (pdsis@yahoo.com). Please make sure to register with Peter for meet-up time and location.
Saturday, April 26
SPRING CATSKILL PEAK HIKE – WESTKILL MTN
Meet at Kingston Thruway traffic circle park & ride at 7:00AM to carpool, or meet at 8:00AM at the trailhead (end of Spruceton Road in West Kill, coordinates 42.180802,-74.270499). West Kill Mountain at 3898′ is the 6th highest Catskill peak, and most of this hike will be through first growth forest. Michael Kudish documented a large red spruce in Diamond Notch estimated at 250 years of age. We will start on a gentle slope along the creek to scenic Diamond Notch Falls. From there we cross the stream and climb steadily to the summit, gaining about 1800′. Round trip distance is 6.5 miles, and should take around 5 to 6 hours. Just before the summit is Buck Ridge Lookout, where we can break for lunch. Hikers should have water, food, and be prepared for black flies. Rain will cancel. For more info or to register contact Dave Hayes 845-417-9251 or vireo44@gmail.com.
Saturday, April 26
SPRING TREE IDENTIFICATION WALK ESOPUS BEND NATURE PRESERVE
9:00 am - 12:00 pm. It’s a wonderful time of year to visit the Esopus Creek Conservancy’s Esopus Bend Nature Preserve regardless of the focus but a true joy to celebrate the woody plants and trees in the preserve with some giant specimens of several species to enjoy. Make sure to bring along binoculars to help with bud and flower identification if not for looking at a tree top warbler. Other signs of spring flora and fauna will be noted along this walk as well. Please make sure to register with Steve Chorvas (schorvas@gmail.com) for this co-sponsored outing. Please visit www.esopuscreekconservancy.org to learn about other outings and ways to support and volunteer at the preserve.
Sunday, April 27
JBNHS PLANT SWAP AND SALE
Join JBNHSers to swap or purchase native or at least beneficial plants to add to your own backyard or to share for others. Bring questions regarding identification, installation, and maintenance too. This event will be held at the Hasbrouck Park Pavilion in Kingston. More details will follow but please email JBNHSinfo@jbnhs.org if you’d like to help and/or participate.
Greene County, NY - Larry Federman’s RamsHorn Birding
Every Friday at 7:30 am from April 18th through May 23rd 2025
Spring Bird Walks
RamsHorn-Livingston Audubon Sanctuary (Catskill)
The cost per walk is $10 per person which covers the refreshments at the end of each walk! Led by local birding expert Larry Federman, a former Audubon Society Education Coordinator and President of the local Audubon chapter, Northern Catskills Audubon. You can subscribe to his mailing list by contacting him at birderlarry@verizon.net to receive information on his upcoming bird walks and talks.
Berkshire County, MA - Hoffman Bird Club
For more details & to register, please visit: https://hoffmannbirdclub.org/events/
Saturday, April 5
Dovekie Day
Join the Hoffmann Bird Club for the first Annual Dovekie Day! Beginning as an April Fools Joke, a wooden Dovekie was carved and set on Smiley’s Pond in Egremont. After a bit of confusion and skepticism, the Dovekie was retrieved and now lives to tell the tale every year. Dovekie Day is a morning of birding in search of the hidden Dovekie. The carved Dovekie will be placed on a Berkshire County water body the evening before the event.
Teams will race to be the first to find the Dovekie by 12PM. Teams will get points for when they find the Dovekie and points for every bird they see along the way, with a bit of mayhem and jokes mixed in. Dovekie Day can be enjoyed on foot or easily by car and will be followed by a celebration at noon. This is not a typical “birding competition”, this is a morning of fun and laughs.
Teams will meet at 7:30 am (location TBD)
Groups will begin the search starting at 8am
You must call Zach when your team finds the Dovekie
Count-up and celebration will be held at 12pm
Deadline to register: Wednesday, April 2nd
You are required to have a team of 2-4 individuals and you must have a team name
Sunday, April 13
Leader’s Choice (April), Williamstown
7:30 am. Join us as we look for arriving migrants at one or more hotspots in this birdy little town. The trip will consist of visiting 3-4 birdy spots with easy to moderate walking on grass or gravel paths, or along the roadsides. Meet at the Williamstown Public Library, 1095 Main Street at the intersection of Routes 2 and 7. RSVP here.
Monday, April 14
HBC Monthly Meeting: Sue & Ed Lewis – “Southern Africa Birds and Mammals”
7:00 PM, social time at 6:30 PM. In October 2023, Hoffmann Bird Club members Sue and Ed Lewis traveled to the countries of South Africa and Lesotho for a month-long birding trip. During this adventure, they traveled to the southernmost point of Africa, from the ocean to the heights of Lesotho, from the fynbos (more about this in the presentation) to desert to jungle. Although the trip was primarily for birding, the mammals (think aardvarks to zebras) of Africa were a major bonus. This presentation takes you through the outing, presenting some of the ecology of each visited location, some of the local culture and people, and of course the BIRDS! More details here.
Saturday, April 19
The Joy of Birding: An Outing for New Explorers; Lenox
Meet in the parking lot of Parsons Marsh in Lenox, 170 Under Mountain Rd, 9:00 am. New to birding? Not sure where to start? This session will start with a discussion on basic tools, practices, and strategies for identifying birds and connecting with your local environment. We will then take a short walk to put what you’ve learned into practice. Advance RSVP required, limited to 6 participants. RSVP here. What to bring: sturdy shoes, water, and binoculars if you have them. Binoculars will be available to borrow during the workshop.
Saturday, April 26
Annual Meeting and Banquet: Carl Safina – Alfie & Me: What Owls Know, What Humans Believe
5:00 pm – 9:00 pm Crissey Farm, 426 Stockbridge Rd. Great Barrington, MA.
Carl Safina, Ecologist and Bestselling Nature Author will present “Alfie & Me: What Owls Know, What Humans Believe”. Carl Safina is an ecologist, author, and founding President of the Safina Center. He is the first Endowed Professor for Nature and Humanity at Stony Brook University. His work centers on animal psychology and the relationship between humans and nature. His newest book, “Alfie & Me: What Owls Know, What Humans Believe,” is a moving account of raising, then freeing, an orphaned screech owl, whose lasting friendship with him illuminates humanity’s relationship with the natural world. Safina hosted the PBS series Saving the Ocean with Carl Safina. More details here.
Berkshire County, MA - Berkshire Bird Observatory
Every Wednesday at 5:30 PM from April through May 2025
Spring Bird Walks
Berkshire Food Co-op
Ben Nickley of Berkshire Bird Observatory leads a weekly bird walk right in the town of Great Barrington, in collaboration with The Great Barrington Land Conservancy.
Learn to find, identify and more fully appreciate migratory and resident birds on these community birds walks. Bring binoculars if you have them--if not, we can share. Beginners are welcome!
Bird walks last about an hour. We cover ~1.5 miles of ground along the GB Riverfront Trail. The trail is flat, fine gravel, and handicap accessible.
Please register for this free program HERE.
Local birdy things wanted!
If you have any bird walks that is not listed here, or bird related event, bird-themed art shows etc in & around the Hudson Valley, I’d love to introduce them here on Beakuency Substack and/or radio show on WGXC. Please feel free to get in touch!