The South Unit boasts marsh, dune, swale, oak woods, beach and Lake Michigan in one location, offering exceptional opportunities for spotting a range of species.
Directions
From US-41, turn east on Wadsworth Rd., then drive 2 miles into the park to the Nature Center parking lot.
Leader: Beau Schaefer (847) 337-3602 beauschaefer@yahoo.com
Double-header Daniel Wright Woods/Half Day Forest Preserve trip at one of the best migrant traps in Lake County, thanks in part to the Des Plaines River.
Directions:
From Waukegan Rd., turn west on Everett Rd. in Lake Forest, drive to the end (St. Mary’s Rd), and turn left (south) into the parking lot.
Leader: Jerry Hampton 630-400-0755
Our annual mid-October trip to Middlefork Savanna can be a sparrow spectacle with special finds in previous years including Harris’ Sparrow, Purple Finch, Pine Siskins and more.
Directions:
From Rt. 60, take Rt. 43 north to Westmoreland Dr./Middlefork Dr. Turn left to the parking lot
Leader: Donna Kenski (847) 347-3474
NEW! We’ll explore the trails and wetlands of one of Lake County’s newer preserves looking for both landbirds and waterfowl.
Leader: Jerry Hampton 630-400-0755
Directions:
Drive to the intersection of Lake Cook Rd. and N. Arlington Heights Rd. Turn north on Arlington Heights Rd., then west on Checker Rd. Park in the parking lot at 18163 Checker Rd. (This is the preserve’s east parking lot and larger than the one on the west.)
Meet at Drury Lane parking lot on the north side of the preserve. We will walk out to the observation deck
Directions:
From I-94, exit Grand Ave. west to Rollins Rd., then left (west) on Rollins and south on Drury Lane .3 mile to parking lot on left.
Leader: Beau Schaefer 847-337-3602 beauschaefer@yahoo.com
Multi-stop trip begins at Gillson Park in Wilmette and heads north with stops at Tower Road, Glencoe Beach overlook and more to look for migrating waterfowl. Bring scopes if you have them.
Directions:
From Sheridan Road turn east at Lake Avenue toward lake. Turn right on Overlook Drive and then into the parking lot of the Beach House.
Leader: Jeff Sanders 847 675 7172 — Field Trip DAY contact Rena Cohen 847 971 1107
The rolling topography of this preserve is filled with multiple wetlands, making it a magnet for migrating waterfowl. The large open space can also offer great views of migrating raptors, and surprise sightings last year at this time included Snow Bunting and Northern Saw-whet Owl.
Directions:
From US-41 N, exit west on IL-173, drive 1.5 miles to Hunt Club Rd., turn north. Preserve is on the east side. We will meet in the main lot.
Leader: Nancy Tikalsky 773-655-0269
Learn more about Pine Dunes Forest Preserve (Lake County Forest Preserve)
Our second Lake Michigan ducky trip of the season will begin at Openlands Lakeshore Preserve and head north with multiple stops looking for newly arriving waterfowl. Bring scopes if you have them.
Directions:
From downtown Highwood, turn east on Walker Ave., then north on Patten Rd. to parking lot just south of the bridge. Unless signage specifies, parking on road is ok as well.
Leader: Josh Engel 224 213 2280
Arizona, here we come! Led by a local birding tour company, this trip will cover Portal and the Chiricahua Mountains, Sulphur Springs Valley, the Huachucas, and the Patagonia-Sonoita Creek Corridor, plus the Sonoran Desert on the optional Feb 10 extension.
Target birds include Mexican Chickadee, Rivoli’s Hummingbird, Blue-throated Mountain-gem, Violet-crowned Hummingbird, Elegant Trogon, Arizona Woodpecker, Whiskered Screech-Owl, Bendire’s and Crissal Thrashers, Black-chinned Sparrow, Painted Redstart, Vermilion Flycatcher and many others. The extension will add species such as Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Crissal Thrasher, Harris’s Hawk, Gilded Flicker and Rufous-winged Sparrow.
Email renabird3@gmail.com for itinerary and cost. Maximum 11 participants. Lake Cook Chapter Member priority.
Join Lake/Cook and Red Hill Birding’s Adam Sell for a spring jaunt to southern Illinois. Migrants are at their peak in this area in late April, and most of the southern breeding specialties are already actively setting up territories. We’ll search for migrants that haven’t yet reached our area plus specialties like Chuck-wills-Widow, Prairie, Worm-eating, and Kentucky Warblers, Bell’s Vireo, Blue Grosbeak, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, Fish Crow, and Loggerhead Shrike. Bonus: we will be staying at the Giant City State Park Lodge, where species like White-eyed Vireo, Worm-eating Warbler, Kentucky Warbler, and Red-shouldered Hawk can be right outside our door.
We’ll be traveling by one or two vans from the Chicago area, depending on participant numbers. Email renabird3@gmail.com for itinerary and cost. Maximum 15 participants. Member priority