Birds of the Adirondacks: Bobolink at Heaven Hill Farm. Photo by Larry Master. www.masterimages.org

Birding Festivals in the Adirondacks:
2016 Great Adirondack Birding Celebration
Heaven Hill Farm, Henry's Woods, and John Brown Homestead Field Trip


Birds of the Adirondacks: Bobolink at Heaven Hill Farm. Photo by Larry Master. www.masterimages.org Birds of the Adirondacks: Bobolink at Heaven Hill Farm. Photo by Larry Master. www.masterimages.org
This site is no longer being updated with current information on birding activities at the VIC. For current information on the events planned for the 2017 Great Adirondack Birding Celebration, visit: http://www.paulsmiths.edu/vic/gabc/schedule/. For information on birding in the Adirondacks, visit: Adirondack Wildlife: Birds of the Adirondacks.

The field trip to Heaven Hill Farm and the John Brown Homestead in Lake Placid -- part of the 13th annual Great Adirondack Birding Celebration -- offers the opportunity to see a wide variety of birds, including those which make their home in meadowland, successional meadows, and woodland.

Heaven Hill Farm is a 600-acre farm, formerly owned by Henry Uihlein and now administered by the Uihlein Foundation. The acreage includes meadowland, successional meadows, and woodland. Bird species usually seen here include Bobolink, Northern Parula, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue-headed Vireo, Black-throated Green Warbler, Hermit Thrush, Broad-winged Hawk, Turkey Vulture, Song Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, American Goldfinch, Savannah Sparrow, Pileated Woodpecker, Northern Harrier, and Cooper's Hawk. The walking is easy along farm roads.

Birds of the Adirondacks: Brown Thrasher at the John Brown homestead in Lake Placid (19 May 2014)
Brown Thrasher at the John Brown homestead.

The field trip continues with a trip to the John Brown State Historic Site, located just outside of the village of Lake Placid. The John Brown homestead is at the end of John Brown Road – a dead end road off Old Military Road, about three miles from Heaven Hill Farm.

The birds normally seen at the John Brown homestead in early June are those which inhabit successional fields, such as the Brown Thrasher. A network of easy-access trails through mixed hardwood-conifer forest and hardwood forest provides opportunities to see a variety of warblers, such as Black-throated Blue Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, and Black-and-White Warbler.

A trip report from the Heaven Hill Farm/Henry's Woods, John Brown trip during the 2015 Great Adirondack Birding Celebration is available here.



Explore the VIC

The Paul Smiths VIC offers a wide variety of programs throughout the year to educate and inform Adirondack Park residents and visitors about the natural wonders of the Adirondack Mountains. You can help support these programs by joining the Friends of the VIC. More information on Friends of the VIC memberships

Explore the Trails

The VIC trails are free and open to the public, from dawn to dusk, spring through fall. In winter, the trails are open to cross-country skiers and snowshoers for a fee. Day or season passes may be purchased.