Self-guided Birding Locations
A migrant trap close to the bayfront, Charleston Road Marsh is worth visiting for a chance to find fall migrants dropping in, seek out songbirds spending the winter skulking in the shrubs, or enjoy some colorful spring travelers on their way back north. Peaceful and rarely very crowded, this marsh is an underappreciated and under-birded gem with great potential for bringing in migrants common and rare.
Easily reachable by car or public transit (the VTA 51 bus), this Cupertino city park has a level paved trail that follows the creek through orchards, forest and fields and is lined with benches at reasonable intervals, making it a beautiful, accessible natural area in the heart of Silicon Valley. The paved trail continues south through McClellan Ranch Preserve, where SCVAS's headquarters are located.
Looking for an easy, flat walk that encompasses a variety of birding habitats? The Calero Creek Trail at the end of San Jose’s Almaden Valley encompasses an old orchard, riparian areas, chaparral hillside and suburban plantings that attract a wide variety of smaller perching birds and raptors.
Coyote Lake County Park is a wonderfully diverse park in the South County. We’ll travel the out-and-back spur to Roop Pond, and the hiking-only Rancho La Polka Loop trail, both of which are lightly traveled, affording more opportunity for solitude with the birds! With a small pond, oak woodland, and oak savannah transitioning into grassland, this can be an excellent area for all of the typical oak woodland birds and overwintering raptors.
McClellan Ranch Preserve in Cupertino is a special place to visit in fall and winter. The SCVAS bird feeders and baths are being filled regularly, our wintering sparrows have returned, and the benches under the SCVAS Nature Shop awnings make a nice place to sit quietly and observe.
When thinking about ideal attributes for a fall birding location, different people might think of different features: large variety of species, good possibility for rarities, close views of birds or easily accessible without too much walking. I’m happy to say that, if you picked any of the above, New Chicago Marsh in Alviso is the place for you!
Pearson-Arastradero Preserve is an open space preserve on the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The preserve is located in Palo Alto and is a great place to go birding if you live in Mountain View, Los Altos, Palo Alto, or San Mateo.
