Trail 45: Richland Creek Trail - PNC Arena to Schenck Forest

09/27/2014.  9:10 AM.

Start:  GPS N 35, 48.057, W 78, 43.526
End:   GPS N 35, 48.915, W 78, 43.940

My original plan was to finish the Reedy Creek Trail today. However, I learned that after Edwards Mill Road, where I finished my last outing, the trail continues to simply follow the Reedy Creek roadside, albeit the path is wide and separated from the road by a narrow median. It is probably a pleasant trail to bike or jog, but not ideal for birding. My rule for this project is that I generally skip the sections of the Capital Area Greenway that are exclusively roadside, so I decided to bypass the last section of the Reedy Creek Trail (which ends at an entrance to Umstead Park) and instead tackle a trail that links up to it called the Richland Creek Trail. It is also sometimes referred to as the Loblolly Trail.

The Richland Creek Trail begins at PNC Arena, travels north until it passes beneath Wade Avenue, and then enters the Schenck Forest. The trail then follows Richland Creek along the southern and eastern edges of the Schenck forest until it ends at Reedy Creek Road. For this outing, I started at the trailhead near the arena and ended a short distance into the Schenck Forest. I will complete the trail on my next outing.

There are eight or so parking spaces available next to the trailhead at PNC Arena. The address for the arena is 10 RBC Center Road. The trail's parking lot is actually on E. Stephen Stroud Way just off of Edwards Mill Road.


This day's outing can be divided into two major sections. The first is a mostly unpaved (and not well-marked) section from the trailhead to the underpass at Wade Avenue. The second section is what appears to be a drainage pipe maintenance right-of-way that follows Richland Creek along the edge of the Schenck forest. My outing for the day ended at a point where a tall white sign marks an entrance to the Schenck Forest. For a detailed description of how to navigate the poorly marked Richland Creek Trail, see here.

Birds Sighted Between PNC Arena and Wade Avenue

The first few hundred feet of the Richland Creek Trail are paved, but this ends abruptly at a fence that surrounds a murky pond. After this point, the trail becomes a mowed stretch of grass, and it remains a natural trail for the rest of its length, except for a very short section of paving at the Edwards Mill Road underpass.

Gray Catbird:  GPS N 35, 48.057, W 78, 43.526. Right at the entrance.

Hooded Warbler: This was a female, and was a difficult identification for me. It was not only a new species for the Capital Area Greenway list, but was also a new lifelist bird. When I saw it just briefly at the entrance to the trail, I wrote down as many details as I could, but was not sure what it might be. It wasn't until the return trip when I got a much better look at it that I was able to make the ID.

Eastern Wood Pewee: GPS N 35, 48.104, W 78, 43.539. This is also a new species for the Greenway List. I may have seen this before and thought it was an Eastern Phoebe.  If I had already confirmed an Eastern Phoebe earlier in a walk, I might not have looked closely enough to notice the difference.

Northern Cardinal: I did not see as many of these along this trail as I often do along the Greenways.

Red Bellied Woodpecker: In the same area as the Wood Pewee. This individual was a male.

Common Yellowthroat: GPS N 35, 48.129, W 78, 43.540. I haven't seen one of these on the Greenways since back on the Neuse River Trail.

Brown Thrasher: In the same area as the Yellowthroat. I saw only one.

Carolina Chickadee:  GPS N 35, 48.152, W 78, 43.532.

Northern Mockingbird: GPS N 35, 48.266, W 78, 43.553. I just saw one of these in the only really open area at the Edwards Mill Road underpass.

Blue Gray Gnatcatcher: GPS N 35, 48.377, 78, 43.567. This fellow was in a mammoth struggle trying to dislodge a fairly large caterpillar-like insect from a dead leaf.  It had to stretch out pretty far from its perch to reach the caterpillar, but couldn't seem to get it to let go of the leaf. It tried multiple times, then seemed to give up.

American Crow:  In the same area as the Gnatcatcher.  I only saw three but probably heard at least five.


At this point the trail continues through an underpass (see photo at left). This photo is taken from the northern side of Wade Avenue. Notice that there are two tunnels side-by-side. The left one is lit, because it is intended for pedestrians. The right side carries the creek. However, I should note that we had heavy rains three days before my visit, and the floor of the pedestrian side still had as much as an inch of water in some places. Hiking books or waterproof shoes might be in order if it has rained recently.

Birds Sighted North of Wade Avenue in the Schenck Forest Area

House Wren:  GPS N 35, 48.698, W 78, 43.605. I was surprised to discover that this was not only a new species for the Capital Area Greenway List, but also a new bird for my lifelist. I had seen the name so many times on lists of birds in the area that I just assumed I'd seen it already. But thinking back, I can't remember a specific sighting.  I have lots of Carolina Wrens and one or two Winter Wrens, but no House Wrens.

Tufted Titmouse: GPS N 35, 48.793, W78, 43.810.


New Species Sighted on the Return Trip

Red Shouldered Hawk: GPS N 35, 48.487, W 78, 43.558. This is just south of the Wade Avenue underpass.

Turkey Vulture: I saw it from the same area as the Hawk.

Northern Flicker: GPS N 35, 48.347, W 78, 43.573. First saw a female, then a male a couple of minutes later.

Magnolia Warbler: GPS N 35, 48.208, W 78, 43.522. This was a lucky ID, as it was a female and I was not able to determine which species in the field.  I wrote about half a page of notes about its features, then tried to figure out which species once I got home. It turns out that the Magnolia Warbler has a distinctive undertail pattern not found in any other warbler species, and I had described that pattern perfectly in my notes. All of the other features matched as well, but the undertail pattern was the clincher. This makes the fourth new bird for the Raleigh Greenway List and another new bird for my lifelist.

Blue Jay: I heard at least four of these on the day, but was not able to identify one visually until late on the return trip.

Brown Headed Nuthatch:  It has been several weeks since I saw one of these.

The Richland Creek Trail turned out to be an excellent place for birding. I saw a total of 19 species, four of which were new for both the Capital Area Greenway List and for my lifelist. I saw very few people on the trail, especially the first part from PNC Arena to Edwards Mill Road. There were a handful of joggers on the rest of the trail, but most of the time I was alone with the birds. Birders should be aware that there are a lot of spiderwebs just off the main, worn part of the path, presumably because this trail gets less traffic than most. Also, as noted above, hiking shoes or boots might be preferable if there has been any rain. I would like to come back in late October or early November to see how many species might be identified with some of the leaves down from the trees.

Trail 44: Reedy Creek Trail - I-440 to Edwards Mill Rd.

09/13/2014.  9:08 AM.

Start:  GPS N 35, 48.340, W 78, 41.549
End:   GPS N 35, 48.872, W 78, 42.762

My starting point for this part of the Reedy Creek Trail was a bit difficult to access. It is the point where the House Creek Trail splits away, and the main trail continues across I-440 via a long pedestrian bridge. The only way to reach this junction is by walking some distance along either the south section of the Reedy Creek Trail, or from Horton Street where there is parking next to a section of the House Creek Trail. I chose to access the trail from Horton Street. If I was not trying to continue viewing the trail from east to west, a better option would have been to park at the North Carolina Museum of Art. Because I had previously reported on birds seen along the House Creek Trail, I did not begin keeping track of birds until I reached my starting point at the pedestrian bridge.

This segment of the Reedy Creek Trail can be divided into two major parts. The first is the section from the pedestrian bridge over the I-440 freeway through the North Carolina Museum of Art grounds and ending at Blue Ridge Road. The second section is essentially a wide sidewalk along the south side of Reedy Creek Road.

Birds Sighted from the Pedestrian Bridge through the Museum Park

This part of the trail moves away from the freeway after the pedestrian bridge, and passes through a decent patch of woods. About halfway to Blue Ridge Road, the museum offers several trails, some paved and some not, for walkers and cyclists to enjoy. Although I don't believe these are technically part of the Reedy Creek Trail, I decided to try a paved path called the Blue Loop. A sign suggested this loop was about one mile in length. I also noticed a pond along the way that I hoped might attract some birds. The Blue loop leaves the forest and passes through open fields with an occasional large and interesting sculpture placed along the way. The pond is small and I did not actually see any birds there, but that may have been the fault of the weather. It started to drizzle just about the time I set foot on the Blue Loop and continued until I had left this section of the trail and moved on to the next.

Red Eyed Vireo: GPS N 35, 48.322, W 78, 41.763. I saw a group of what were probably four of these.

Tufted Titmouse:  Just one, in the same area I saw the Vireos.

Carolina Chickadee:  At least three together, and a total of five on the day.

Red Bellied Woodpecker: I saw one of these in the same area with the three previous species. This one was a juvenile with some fuzzy feathers still on its back.



Summer Tanager: GPS N 35, 48.301, W 78, 41.987. This was a female. I haven't seen one of these along the Raleigh Greenways in a long time.

Northern Cardinal: In the same area with the Tanager. I saw a total of five but heard many more.

The following birds were sighted along the Blue Loop during a light rain.

American Redstart: GPS N 35, 48.390, W 78, 42.076. This was a female. A new species for my Capital Area Greenway list.

Eastern Bluebird:  GPS N 35, 48.444, W 78, 41.515. These were quite numerous around the open fields of the museum, and also later along Reedy Creek Road. I counted 23 in total.

American Crow:  Also numerous around the grounds of the museum. I counted 13 in total.



European Starling:  Huddled on power lines as the rain fell. I counted nine in total.

Rock Pigeon:  GPS N 35, 48.533, W 78, 42.171. I saw 10 of these along the edge of the museum roof near the outdoor movie screen.  I would later count 84 more on power lines along Reedy Creek Road.

New Species Sighted Along Reedy Creek Road 

Beyond the Museum of Art, the Reedy Creek Trail simply follows along the south side of Reedy Creek Road. The sidewalk is wide, and flanked by a number of state government and university buildings. I walked the road starting around 10:30 AM and saw almost no traffic. I think I was passed by cars only two or three times. It appears that all of these buildings are closed on Saturday, so the walk was much more pleasant than it might have been.

Northern Mockingbird: GPS N 35, 48.638, W 78, 42.464. I saw a total of six of these.

American Robin:  Surprisingly, I only saw one of these on the day.

Blue Jay:  GPS N 48.831, W 78, 42.748. I saw three of these here. I had heard Blue Jays calling in two other places but could never get a look at them.

Eastern Phoebe:  GPS N 35, 48.897, W 78, 42.827. Hunting insects over pastureland near the end of Reedy Creek Road.

Mourning Doves:  I saw just two of these flying overhead.

New Species Sighted on the Return Trip

White Breasted Nuthatch:  GPS N 35, 483872, W 78, 42.829.

Chipping Sparrow:  GPS N 35, 48.845, W 78, 42.829.  I saw at least eight of these, but there may have been several more.


This part of the Reedy Creek Trail shows some promise for birding, particularly if you include some of the short unpaved trails through the Museum of Art grounds. I was excited to see an American Redstart, which I had only seen a couple of times before, and the Summer Tanager was a nice addition as well. I suspect this trail would be even better in a month or so when some of the leaves come off of the trees and it is a bit easier to see into the woods. I count a total of 18 species for this outing, which is not bad by recent standards. Had it not rained for an hour or so, those numbers might have been a bit higher.

Trail 43: House Creek Trail - Lake Boone to Crabtree Valley Ave.

08/30/2014.  8:33 AM.

Start:  GPS N 35, 48.971, W 78, 41.252
End:   GPS N 35, 50.140, W 78, 40.552

This part of the House Creek Trail runs from Horton Street to Crabtree Valley Avenue where it meets the Crabtree Creek Trail.  It has much better shade than the southern section of the House Creek Trail, but still follows along I-440 such that there is no break from the traffic noise. Still, it was a nicer walk than the previous section. The trail seems to attract a good number of cyclists and a few runners on the weekend, so I had to be careful at times when crossing from one side of the path to the other to check out a bird.

Parking is not terribly convenient for accessing this section. There is no direct path down from Lake Boone Trail road. Instead, it is necessary to walk a short distance down Horton Street to pick up the part of the trail that passes under Lake Boone Trail road from the south. The easiest parking appears to be found at Lake Boone Shopping Center at the corner of Wycliff Road and Lake Boone Trail. Park as close as you can to the Circle K, then walk east on Lake Boone Trail, pass under the I-440 freeway, and then turn south down Horton Street. The entrance to the House Creek Trail is about 100 feet down Horton Street on the left.

This part of the House Creek Trail can be divided into two sections. The first runs from Horton St. to Glen Eden Drive. At this point, the trail exits onto the street, and it is necessary to cross over the I-440 freeway to pick up the trail again on the west side of the freeway. The trail then runs for perhaps 3/4 of a mile until it ends at a McDonald's restaurant along the edge of the Crabtree Creek Trail on Crabtree Valley Avenue.

Birds Sighted Between Horton Street and Glen Eden Drive

Northern Cardinal:  GPS N 35, 49.031, W 78, 41.260. I ended up seeing six total, but I heard many more.

Tufted Titmouse:  In the same area as the Northern Cardinal.

Carolina Wren:  GPS N 35, 49.133, W 78, 41.238. Saw a total of three. Two were together and one might have been a juvenile.

American Robin:  GPS N 45, 49.383, W 78, 41.103. A few of these were spotted-breasted juveniles.

Blue Grosbeak: GPS N 35, 49.569, W 78, 41.000. This was a female. I haven't seen one of these in a very long time. This is a new species for the Capital Area Greenway list.

Birds Sighted Between Glen Eden Drive and Crabtree Valley Avenue

This part of the trail is on the west side of the I-440 freeway and passes through part of Marshall Memorial Park. Some new condominiums are being built along the Greenway, and there are a couple of short unpaved side trails, apparently associated with the park, that pass through the woods as well. There is also a small pond (see left) along the trail.

Brown Thrasher:  GPS N 35, 49.833, W 78, 40.830. I saw two together in one place and there may have been a third. I thought there might be one juvenile in the bunch, but not sure.

Eastern Towhee:  A male in the same tree with the Brown Thrasher.

Gray Catbird: GPS N 35, 49.922, W 78, 40.603. I saw only one of these but heard two others further down the trail.

Mourning Dove: GPS N 35, 50.099, W 78, 40.603. Saw four of these in total on wires at the end of the trail.

New Species Sighted on Return Trip

Northern Mockingbird:  GPS N 35, 50.140, W 78, 40.552.

Chimney Swift: GPS N 35, 49.900, W 78, 40.706. I'm pretty sure I have seen these along the Greenways before, but was uncertain of their identification so did not list them. This is a new species for the Capital Area Greenway list.

Blue Gray Gnatcatcher: GPS N 35, 49.845, W 78, 40.817.

Carolina Chickadee: Saw two in total.

Eastern Bluebird:  Saw a total of three of these, one of which was probably a juvenile.

Blue Jay:  GPS N 35, 49.824, W 78, 40.838. I heard these several times along the trail, but only saw two of them.

Pine Warbler: GPS N 35, 49.683, W 78, 41.009. This area turned out to be a very good place to spot birds around 10:45 AM.

This part of the House Creek Trail was not fantastic for birding, but was better than the first section to the south. I ended up adding two new species for the Raleigh Greenway list and identifying a total of 16 species. I probably would not return to the House Creek Trail again for birding, but can see why it might be popular for running and cycling.

Trail 42: Reedy Creek - House Creek Trail to Lake Boone Trail Rd.

08/16/2014.  8:41 AM.

Start:  GPS N 35, 47.636, W 78, 41.097

End:   GPS N 35, 48.956, W 78, 41.240

The southern entrance to the Reedy Creek Trail is at the corner of Hillsborough and Gorman Street. Perhaps the best place to park if you want to access this southern entrance is either the Burger King, or the Applebee's across the street. The Reedy Creek Trail follows along the southern edge of the Meredith College campus almost to I-440, then turns north and follows the western edge of campus, paralleling I-440, until it crosses under Wade Ave. 

A short distance north of Wade Ave., the trail diverges. The Reedy Creek Trail continues west toward Umstead Park, while a new trail turns north. This northern branch is called the House Creek Trail. For this outing, I followed the Reedy Creek Trail to the branch point just before the large pedestrian bridge over I-440, then took the House Creek Trail north from there. The House Creek trail appears to connect up with the Crabtree Creek Trail after perhaps 3 miles, though I only went about a mile down the trail on this outing.

It was sunny and warm, with temperatures in the mid-70s Fahrenheit as I began my outing. Much of the first half of the trail is unshaded, so it can get pretty hot out there in the direct sunlight. I will divide the trail into two sections - The Reedy Creek Trail portion, and the House Creek Trail portion, each of which was probably about a mile long.

Birds Sighted Along the Reedy Creek Trail

There were two primary habitat zones on this part of the trail - open grassy areas with dispersed trees along the trail's edge for about the first half, along the southern edge of the Meredith campus, and then a thicker screen of trees later on. There was one stretch of trees that were almost all cone-bearing rather than deciduous. At one or two places along the trail, stagnant-looking ponds could also be seen.

American Crow:  GPS N 35, 47.636, W 78, 41.097. Saw a total of three on the day.

Northern Mockingbird:  Also from the beginning of the trail. Later I would see what appeared to be two juveniles and one adult.

American Robin: GPS N 35, 47.646, W 78, 41.129. Saw just one fly overhead early on, but would later see three more on the House Creek Trail.

Eastern Bluebird:  In the same spot as the first American Robin. I would later see one juvenile and one adult on the House Creek Trail.

Red Winged Blackbird:  A lone female standing on a lightpost.

Blue Jay:  GPS N 35, 47.671, W 78, 41.272. Saw these in two different places along the trail.

Northern Cardinal:  GPS N 35, 47.747, W 78, 41.560.

Great Crested Flycatcher:  GPS N 35, 47.890, W 78, 41.603. I wasn't sure what this was at first because its back was to me. It was in a little cluster of just two or three deciduous trees amid two long parallel rows of cone-bearing trees. There may have been two others lower down in the trees but I could never get a look at them. I finally settled on Great Crested Flycatcher and then verified by call using my iBird Pro app.

Gray Catbird: GPS N 35, 48.141, W 78, 41.496.

Mourning Dove:  GPS N 35, 48.245, W 78, 41.521.  Three up on wires.

Common Grackle:  GPS 35, 48.314, W 78, 41.521. Perched on a electric cable stanchion.

Birds Sighted Along House Creek Trail

This trail branches from the Reedy Creek Trail just before the pedestrian bridge across I-440. A short distance down the trail is a parking lot on Horton Street located at GPS N 35, 48.695, W 78, 41.466.

Carolina Wren:  GPS N 35, 48.341, W 78, 41.541.

Field Sparrow:  I was fooled briefly by this one, as it had a rusty crown but no black line behind the eye like a Chipping Sparrow would.

Pine Warbler:  GPS N 35, 48.821, W 78, 41.438.

Chipping Sparrow: In the same area as the Pine Warbler. There is a small cement path that bridges the creek in this area, and allows observation of an open field that may be swampy when it rains. This turned out to be a good place to spot birds (see photo at left).

Northern Flicker: A young one, as the color on the back of the neck was muted.

New Species Sighted on the Return Trip

Carolina Chickadee:  GPS N 35, 48.816, W 78, 41.432.



Indigo Bunting:  GPS N 35, 48.535, W 78, 41.556. This is my first firm sighting of this bird along the Capital Area Greenways. I had a probable sighting once before, but couldn't be absolutely certain.

Downy Woodpecker:  GPS N 35, 47.899, W 78, 41.607.

This was not among the more interesting trails I have surveyed, but I did end up identifying 19 species, two of which were somewhat unusual for the Raleigh Greenways - Great Crested Flycatcher and Indigo Bunting. I would probably not visit this part of the trail again for birding, but it did seem to be very popular with both runners and cyclists.

Trail 41: Rocky Branch Trail - Hunt Drive to Gorman St.

06/28/2014.  9:13 AM.

Start:  GPS N 35, 46.346, W 78, 39.440
End:   GPS N 35, 47.347, W 78, 41.158

Hunt Dr. is a short stretch of road between Western Blvd. and Umstead Dr. There is a soccer field just south from Western Blvd where parking is plentiful. I parked along the edge of Dorthea Dix Soccer Field #1 and walked the short distance north along Hunt Dr. to the Rocky Branch Trail.

This part of the Rocky Branch Trail is very urban. The trail parallels Hillsborough St. following Rocky Branch Creek, then passes along the southern edge of the NC State University campus until it reaches Gorman Rd. Most of the trail has roadway on one side and trees on the other. There are two places where the trail is lined with trees on both sides, but even so, traffic noise is present throughout. I would not select this part of the trail for birding unless I lived near campus and this was the easiest place to access on foot. The extent of development around the trail means that the likelihood of seeing anything unusual is rather low. On this outing, I saw only common birds that I typically see on any of the Capital Area Greenway trails.

Birds Sighted Between Hunt Dr. and NCSU Campus

It was cloudy and mid-70s Fahrenheit when I began my outing. It turned partly cloudy as the morning drew on. Lots of foliage on most of the trees made it hard to see some of the birds, even when they were calling, so I may have missed two or three species because of it.

American Crow:  I saw the first of these in a tree near the parking lot by Dorthea Dix Soccer Field #1.

Northern Mockingbird:  GPS N 35, 46.591, W 78, 39.663.

American Robin:  GPS N 35, 46.591, W 78, 39.663.

Northern Cardinal:  I heard these at several places along the trail, but only saw four of them.

Eastern Bluebird:  GPS N 35, 46.680, W 78, 39.746.

Red Bellied Woodpecker:  In flight.

Mallards:  GPS N 35, 46.742, W 78, 39.896. These are probably domesticated birds. They were on the pond at Pullen Park.

Canada Goose:  Also on the pond at Pullen Park.

Gray Catbird:  GPS N 35, 46.821, W 78, 40.126. Saw several of these at different points along the trail.

New Species Sighted Along NCSU's Part of the Trail

Mourning Dove:  GPS N 35, 46.953, W 78, 40.356.  Saw five of these in total.

House Finch:  GPS N 35, 47.042, W 78, 40.561.

Blue Jay:  GPS N 35, 47.130, W 78, 40.772.

New Species Sighted on the Return Trip

American Goldfinch:  GPS N 35, 47.337, W 78, 41.087.


Eastern Towhee:  GPS N 35, 47.286, W 78, 40.983.

Carolina Chickadee:  GPS N 35, 47.242, W 78, 40.930.

Tufted Titmouse:  In same area with the Chickadee.

Carolina Wren:  GPS N 35, 47.125, W 78, 40.755.

Northern Flicker:  There were two Northern Flickers in the same little section of trees with the two Carolina Wrens. In fact, there must have been something tempting in this little spot, as I saw five or six species within an area of perhaps 5 meters by 5 meters, including some juvenile American Robins.

Brown Thrasher:  In the same area with the Northern Flickers and Carolina Wrens.

Downy Woodpecker:  I saw three of these in total, and two of them were in the same area with the Thrashers, Wrens, and Flickers.

All-in-all, a pretty average day of birding.  Believe it or not, the most unusual species I saw was the House Finch, which I normally only see in residential areas with feeders. Strangely, I didn't even see a single hawk or vulture.  But I did see 20 species, which is better than I have managed on some outings. This was the last section of the Rocky Branch Trail, as I am not planning to walk the 0.4 mile section comprised of a sidewalk along the busy Gorman St.  My next trail will be the House Creek Trail, which passes by Meredith College and extends all the way to the Crabtree Creek Trail.

Trail 40: Rocky Branch Trail - S. Wilmington to Hunt Drive

05/17/2014.  9:01 AM.

Start:  GPS N 35, 45.797, W 78, 38.622
End:   GPS N 35, 45.949, W 78, 38.591

The southern entrance to the Rocky Branch Trail does not quite connect to the Walnut Creek Trail, although the two are only separated from each other by perhaps 700 feet (210 meters) of distance along S. Wilmington St.  My original plan was to park at a City of Raleigh facility near the intersection of S. Wilmington and City Farm Rd., but there were "No Trespassing" signs when I arrived, so I decided to look for another place to park instead.  I ended up parking at Eliza Pool Park on Fayetteville St. and then walked the one-third mile or so to a side entrance to the trail.

There may be other options for parking in the area.  A check of the map shows an entrance to the trail where Keeter Center Dr. and Walnut St. meet.  There is currently housing construction going on there, but you might be able to park on the street. There is also the Bright Hope Divine Holy Church along Walnut St. that might be a place to park on days when there are no services at the church.

I will divide the trail into three segments, each bordered by a roadway. The first segment runs from S. Wilmington St. to Fayetteville St. The second runs along the Mount Hope Cemetery from Fayetteville St. to S. Saunders.  The last segment runs from S. Saunders to Hunt Dr.  I stopped at Hunt Drive because it looked like there might be some convenient parking down that road for my next visit, and because the trail looked like it was about to follow much more developed areas from Hunt Dr. forward. I suspect that my next outing is going to feel very urban.

Birds Sighted Between S. Wilmington and Fayetteville St:

This area had pretty good tree cover in some parts, a bit of swampy land toward the northeast side in one place, and a decent array of birds, though I did not encounter anything new. I should note that there may be a couple of homeless people living back in the trees along this strip. In one place I could barely make out a makeshift tent of what might have been black plastic garbage bags back in the trees, and on the other side of the trail I heard coughing that might have been another camper. But I did see a few people walking, jogging, or riding through, so the trail does appear to get some regular use.

Because of the parking situation, I entered the trail from about the midway point, turned right first until I reached S. Wilmington St. (see photo above for a view of the Wilmington St. entrance), then retraced my steps and followed the trail out to Fayetteville St.

Northern Mockingbird:  Singing away on a light pole near the cemetery.

Chipping Sparrow:  GPS N 35, 45.797, W 78, 38.600.

Northern Cardinal:  A total of three.

American Crow:  Two identified by call.

American Robin:  GPS N 35, 45.804, W 78, 38.574.

Blue Gray Gnatcatcher:  GPS N 35, 45.585, W 78, 38.455. Saw one and heard it calling to another.

Swallow, Unknown Species:  My guess is Northern Rough Winged Swallow based on a glimpse of its color, but I can't be sure.

Carolina Wren:  GPS N 35, 45.723, W 78, 38.548.

Carolina Chickadee:  GPS N 35, 45.755, W 78, 38.548.

European Starling:  GPS N 35, 45.880, W 78, 38.557.

Eastern Bluebird:  Only saw one of these here.

Common Grackle:  GPS N 35, 45.916, W 78, 38.565.

New Species Sighted Between Fayetteville St. and S. Saunders:

This area was moderately wooded but not quite as densely as the previous section.

Blue Jay:  GPS N 35, 45.949, W 78, 38.591. Just one, but I heard others along this part of the trail.

Mourning Dove:  Just one.

Ruby Throated Hummingbird:  GPS N 35, 45.966, W 78, 38.679.  This was the highlight of the day. My first hummingbird of the season!

Gray Catbird:  GPS N 35, 46.083, W 78, 38.821.

New Species Sighted Between S. Saunders and Hunt Drive:

This section of the trail had a large open grassy area with a few large trees on one side, and a thin line of woods on the other. The grassy area was popular with starlings and robins. There was quite a bit of bird activity between the grassy areas and the nearby trees, but mostly just two or three species.

Red Bellied Woodpecker: GPS N 35, 46.223, W 78, 39.083.

Tufted Titmouse:  GPS N 35, 46.310, W 78, 39.252.

New Species Sighted on the Return Trip:

Turkey Vulture:  GPS N 35, 46.201, W 78, 38.978.

Red Shouldered Hawk:  GPS N 35, 45.720, W 78, 38.636. I saw two of these flying overhead on my way back to the car. They weren't technically on the trail, but would have been visible from there, I think, if I had been on the trail when they circled by.

Although I identified 19 species along this trail, most were quite common birds and the numbers seemed low. It could be that the full spring foliage made it harder to see more variety, but I suspect the level of development around this trail limits the diversity of species somewhat, despite the fact that the trail is quite pleasant to walk. A nice place to take a stroll if you live near here, but I wouldn't choose it for birding again.

As this is the 40th outing along the Capital Area Greenway, it is time to summarize the variety of birds I have seen over the last ten outings, as well as overall.  In 40 outings, I have seen a total of 78 different species, and 64 of these have been seen at least once during the last ten outings. The most common birds, with eight or more sightings in the last ten outings, have all been seen on at least half of all 40 outings as well.  These are American Crow, Carolina Chickadee, Northern Cardinal, Red Bellied Woodpecker (all were seen ten times each), Carolina Wren, American Robin, Blue Jay, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Mockingbird, Tufted Titmouse, and White Throated Sparrow (eight or nine times each).

The moderately common species were seen at least five times each during the last ten outings, and most have been seen ten times or more out of 40 trips. These are Eastern Towhee, Ruby Crowned Kinglet, Yellow Rumped Warbler, Eastern Phoebe, Mourning Dove, Turkey Vulture, Eastern Bluebird, European Starling, Golden Crowned Kinglet and Red Shouldered Hawk. The last two may be more common recently because I have gotten better at identification, or perhaps because I have been exploring south of the city, where they might be more abundant.  Forty-three species were seen on fewer than five outings of the past ten. Those species that were seen at least twice include Brown Thrasher, Canada Goose, Chipping Sparrow, Common Grackle, Northern Flicker, Song Sparrow, White Breasted Nuthatch, Blue Gray Gnatcatcher, Double Crested Cormorant, Gray Catbird, Great Blue Heron, Mallard, Pine Warbler, American Goldfinch, Barn Swallow, Belted Kingfisher, Brown Creeper, Brown Headed Nuthatch, Dark Eyed Junco, Hermit Thrush, House Finch, Red Tailed Hawk, Red Winged Blackbird and Winter Wren.

The remaining 19 species were each seen only once, and several of these were new species for the Greenway list.  The new species were Bald Eagle, Bufflehead, Mute Swan, Northern Shoveler, Ovenbird, Pied Billed Grebe, Red Eyed Vireo, Sharp Shinned Hawk, Tree Swallow, White Eyed Vireo, and Wood Duck. Most of these new species are lake birds because three of the last ten outings included lakeside trails. Other species sighted only once in the last ten outings include Black Vulture, Cedar Waxwing, Cooper's Hawk, Field Sparrow, Fish Crow, Ring Billed Gull, Ruby Throated Hummingbird, and Yellow Bellied Sapsucker.

Trail 39: Lake Johnson Park

04/26/2014.  8:52 AM.

Start:  GPS N 35, 45.813, W 78, 42.838
End:   GPS N 35, 45.813, W 78, 42.838

The north parking lot at Lake Johnson Park was nearly full when I arrived just before 9 AM. It appears to be a quite popular place on Saturday morning. The long axis of the lake runs east to west, and is divided nearly in half by Avent Ferry Road. There is parking on both sides of the bridge, so if the north side lot is full, try crossing the bridge and parking on the south side.  To the west of Avent Ferry Road is an unpaved trail that circles about half of the lake.  It starts as a graded path along the north side of the lake, then becomes a rougher trail on the south side after crossing a wooden bridge over a marshy area.  To the east of Avent Ferry Road, the path is paved all the way around the lake from the north side parking lot to the south side. Although there were many visitors on this Saturday morning, the unpaved west trail was not terribly busy.

From the north parking lot (see photo at left), you can cross Avent Ferry Road and begin walking the graded trail along the western half of the lake, you can cross the pedestrian bridge that leads to the other side of the lake, or you can cross Avent Ferry Road and walk east along the northern shore following the paved trail. I began my outing by crossing Avent Ferry Rd. and walking the graded trail to the west.

I will divide the outing into three sections. The first section is the graded western trail along the northern part of the lake to the wooden bridge. This trail seems to attract a number of joggers, perhaps because it's well-shaded and has a softer surface. The second section is the more natural trail along the southern edge of the lake. The last section is the entire paved portion that makes up the eastern part of the lake.

Birds Sighted In the Parking Lot and Along the Graded Western Section:

Belted Kingfisher:  GPS N 35, 45.813, W 78, 42.838.  I heard this one calling, then saw it fly by while I was still in the parking area on the north side of the lake.

Northern Cardinal:  Lots of cardinals around the lake, particularly to the east.

Gray Catbird:  In the parking area.

American Robin:  Also near the parking area.

Mallard:  A lone male.  The lake area has signs posted asking people not to feed the ducks and geese.  These seem to have been very effective keeping the numbers down.

Canada Goose:  Only saw three around the parking area, but later there were at least eight out on the lake at the western end.

Common Grackle:  There were several of these moving around the parking area.  I never saw more than four at one time, but there were probably more.

Mourning Dove:  GPS N 35, 45.754.

Barn Swallow:  Saw several flying out over the lake from the edge of the pedestrian bridge.

Tree Swallow:  At least one was flying out over the lake with the Barn Swallows.  This is a new bird for my Capital Area Greenway List.

Blue Jay:  GPS N 35, 45.780, W 78, 42.997.  I saw at least four of these in one place. Later I saw two at a nest.

Downy Woodpecker:  In the same area as the Blue Jays. The first one I saw was male. Later I saw a female along another part of the trail.

Double Crested Cormorant:  GPS N 35, 45.812, W 78, 43.081.  Saw four of these in one place.

Blue Gray Gnatcatcher:  Near where I saw the cormorants.


American Goldfinch:  Two brightly colored males.

Brown Headed Nuthatch:  GPS N 35, 45.876, W 78, 43.152.

Red Shouldered Hawk:  GPS N 35, 45.912, W 78, 43.194.

New Species Sighted Along the Southwest Part of the Lake:

American Crow:  GPS N 35, 46.157, W 78, 43.297.  I heard these several times before I finally saw one.

Tufted Titmouse:  GPS N 35, 46.058, W 78, 43.366.

Carolina Chickadee:  Never saw more than one in a single place.

Carolina Wren:  GPS N 35, 46.009, W 78, 43.391.


Yellow Rumped Warbler:  GPS N 35, 45.745, W 78, 43.300.

Red Bellied Woodpecker:  GPS N 35, 45.681, W 78, 43.255. I'm pretty sure this one was at its nest hole.

New Species Around Eastern Side of Lake Johnson:

Red Eyed Vireo:  This was the first time I had identified this Vireo along the Raleigh Greenways.  A new one for the Capital Area Greenway List.

Ovenbird:  GPS N 35, 45.599, W 78, 42.388.  This is a new bird for my Capital Area Greenway list, and for my lifelist.  This turned out to be my 499th species identified.

It took me about three hours and 40 minutes to bird the entire lake. It may have been partly a function of the time of day, but the best birding by far was along the western part of the lake. A good way to shorten the walk would be to bird the western side of the lake only, and then to use the pedestrian bridge to return to either the north or south parking lot.

Overall, this was an excellent outing, with 25 species identified, three new birds for the Capital Area Greenway list, and one new bird for my lifelist!  Since this outing, I have managed to pick up eight additional new species on an outing to a different location with a colleague who is much more skilled than I am. My 500th species turned out to be the Prothonotary Warbler - a nice one for the 500th!