Start: GPS N 35, 46.082, W 78, 41.450
End: GPS N 35, 45.748, W 78, 42.696
This section of the Walnut Creek Trail begins at Trailwood Drive and ends at Lake Johnson Park. There is no easy parking near the entrance to the Trailwood Drive segment. Because it was a holiday and nobody was around, I was able to park in the Method Child Development parking lot. It is just a short distance up Trailwood Drive at its intersection with Avent Ferry Road.
I will divide this outing into three segments. The first segment is from Trailwood Drive to Gorman St. It follows along Walnut Creek and generally has the look and feel of the photo on the left. The second segment is from Gorman St. to Lake Johnson Park. It is similar to the first section in character, but I recall seeing more pine trees. The last section runs about halfway around the north part of Lake Johnson, so has the potential for lake birds in addition to various forest species.
Birds Sighted Between Trailwood Drive and Gorman Road:
White Throated Sparrow: GPS N 35, 46.082, W 78, 41.450. The males are starting to really show their summer colors.
Northern Cardinal: Ubiquitous along the trail.
Ruby Crowned Kinglet: I saw two of these together. One was definitely a male, and I assume the other was a female.
Blue Gray Gnatcatcher: I haven't seen these for a while, but they were in two or three different places along the trail on this day.
Tufted Titmouse: GPS N 35, 45.981, W 78, 41.564
Yellow Rumped Warbler: GPS N 35, 45.915, W 78, 41.629. Another common bird along the trail on this day.
American Robin: GPS N 35, 45.920, W 78, 41.689. The robins seem to have mostly paired off. The largest group I saw together was five birds. Otherwise, all were in pairs.
Carolina Chickadee: GPS N 35, 45.915, W 78, 41.733. Had a grub of some sort in its beak. Later I saw two together, one feeding the other and both vibrating their wings.
Common Grackle: I saw at least eight of these in one place, and ran across groups of them twice. Might have been the same group both times, though.
Turkey Vulture: GPS N 35, 45.653, W 78, 41.947.
White Eyed Vireo: GPS N 35, 45.717, W 78, 42.213. The most exciting find of the day, this bird was a new species for both my lifelist and the Capital Area Greenway list.
Eastern Bluebird: GPS N 35, 45.717, W 42.213.
Great Blue Heron: GPS N 35, 45.667, W 78, 42.313. In flight.
Barn Swallow: GPS N 35, 45.779, W 78, 42.313.
Chipping Sparrow: Just one. Seems like it's been a while since I've seen one of these.
Mallard: GPS N 35, 45.900, W 78, 42.470. A lone male.
Carolina Wren: One bird singing enthusiastically.
White Breasted Nuthatch: I was a little surprised how long it took to finally see a tree climber. It seemed like they got more active after about 11 AM when it started to warm up.
Canada Goose: GPS N 35, 45.748, W 78, 42.770. Only two of these. Kind of surprising for such a large lake.
Greylag Goose: A domesticated bird in the US, but listable on e-bird.org. I won't count it in the Capital Area Greenway List.
Mourning Dove: At the parking lot next to Avent Ferry Road.
Red Bellied Woodpecker: GPS N 35, 45.807, W 78, 42.583.
American Crow: GPS N 35, 45.757, W 78, 42.226. At bridge by parking lot. I had heard these several times earlier in the day but didn't see any until this point.
Northern Mockingbird: Just one.
Eastern Phoebe: In same area with the crow and mockingbird.
Eastern Towhee: GPS N 35, 45.681, W 78, 42.110.
Downy Woodpecker: GPS N 35, 45.919, W 78, 41.702.
Blue Jay: GPS N 35, 45.949, W 78, 41.574.
My outing ended at around 12:30 PM with one new species for my lifelist and one new species for the Raleigh Greenway list (White Eyed Vireo). Most of the other birds are relatively common along the Greenways.
