Saturday, May 2: Cold Brook Farm, Tewksbury, NJ

Yellow warbler. Photo by Ric Cohn.

Registration limited to 12 participants.

Meet at 8:30 am in Tewksbury, New Jersey, at the address sent to you on registration.

This trip will take place rain or shine, unless it is pouring.

Join us at Cold Brook Farm, the home of club members Deb and Jason DeSalvo. We will explore fields, wooded areas, the river, and wetlands to discover the many different migratory and breeding bird species that use this restored property to refuel and to nest. Deb and Jason have been working hard to remove invasive plant species and plant natives to improve the habitat for insects, birds, and other animals. Among the nest boxes they have installed are those for American kestrels and eastern bluebirds. Our May 2025 trip to Cold Brook Farm yielded 58 species, including great horned owl, 4 flycatcher species, 4 vireo species, rose-breasted grosbeak, bobolink, ruby-throated hummingbird and 6 warbler species.   

Bring binoculars, a snack, and something to drink. If it has rained recently, waterproof boots are recommended.

Email mbcoutings@gmail.com if you want to attend. Address and driving directions will be sent to you once you register.

Saturday, May 9: Big Day with Montclair Bird Club at Garret Mountain Reservation

Scarlet Tanager. Photo by Ric Cohn.

Meet Fred Pfeifer at 8 a.m. at Great Meadow Picnic Grove Parking Lot by the Great Meadow bathroom.

Saturday, May 9^th is New Jersey Audubon’s Big Day, a day to raise money for environmental causes and to draw attention to bird conservation. Teams set out to see and hear as many different bird species as they can in a 24-hour period. We’re not planning on birding for 24 hours, but we are going to try to see and hear as many species as we can within the park boundaries.

Garret Mountain Reservation in Woodland Park, NJ is a well-known migrant trap in the middle of metropolitan northern New Jersey. It’s 310 acres of woodlands, fields, a pollinator garden, and pond, commonly host a wide variety of spring migrants including warblers, flycatchers, tanagers, and vireos as well as many resident birds.

We will bird for as long as we can, but you can feel free to leave at any time.  If you’d like to, you may also use this opportunity to raise money for your favorite environmental organization: see the websites for New Jersey Audubon and Friends of Garret Mountain and if you would like to donate to any of them.

For more information and to express your interest email mbcoutings@gmail.com.

Saturday, May 16: South Mountain Reservation, West Orange, NJ

Black and white warbler. Photo by Ric Cohn. 

Meet at 7:30AM in the main parking lot on Crest Drive (2nd on right; you'll see a wooden sign that says "Bramhall Terrace, entrance to Summit Field).

South Mountain Reservation is a 2,100-acre nature reserve in southern Essex county. Nestled between the first and second ridges of the Watchung Mountains and overlooking the urban sprawl of the greater Newark area, it can often serve as a tremendous migrant trap in the heat of spring migration. We will walk several trails throughout the reservation and hope to see good numbers of thrushes, warblers, sparrows and others taking advantage of the feeding opportunities in the reservation's varied habitats as they pass through our area. Many of the trails are paved, but it is recommended to wear sturdy hiking boots for some trails can be a little rocky and uneven. 

Usually, there are porto-san bathrooms at this location and at later stops throughout this walk. 

For more information, email mbcoutings@gmail.com.

Directions from Montclair area: From I-280, take exit 7, Pleasant Valley Way south for 3.5 miles, then turn left onto South Orange Avenue. Take this road for 1 mile and turn right onto Crest Drive, marked with a sign for the dog park (you will encounter Crest Drive just after you've reached the crest of the hill you've been ascending). Stay straight on Crest Drive and within a half mile there will be a very long parking lot on the right in an open space with a vista to your left. We will meet at the far end of this parking lot.