Birding Festivals in the Adirondacks:
2014 Great Adirondack Birding Celebration
Bloomingdale Bog Field Trip

• Time: Saturday, 7 June, 7:00 AM and Sunday, 8 June, 7:00 AM
• Fee: Included in Great Adirondack Birding Celebration registration fee
• A la carte price: $40 per person
• Where to Meet: Parking area on Route 55 (see map below), about 10 miles south east of the Paul Smiths VIC
• What to Bring: Gear for a short day trip: hat, binoculars, sunscreen, snack, water, rain gear, insect repellent

Boreal Birds of the Adirondacks:
Female Black-backed Woodpecker on Blooomingdale Bog.. Photo by Larry Master. www.masterimages.org. Used by permission.

The Bloomingdale Bog Trail follows an abandoned railroad right-of-way once used by the Chateaugay Division of the Delaware and Hudson Railroad that connected Plattsburgh to Saranac Lake. The trail is an elevated sandy, dirt, or gravel walkway with many open views of Bloomingdale Bog, one of the largest bogs in northern New York. The walking is easy along the level trail. The group can walk either northeast toward Bigelow Road or southwest toward Saranac Lake. Those who opt for a shorter walk can leave the group between walk segments.

Bloomingdale Bog, one of the best places in the Adirondacks to observe boreal birds, is an eBird Birding Hotspot. The area encompasses a bog and cedar woods with sedge marsh and coniferous woods. Sightings may include:

• Boreal Chickadee
• Gray Jay
• Black-backed Woodpecker
• Palm Warbler
• Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
• Olive-sided Flycatcher
• Alder Flycatcher
• Ruby-crowned Kinglet
• Cape May Warbler
• Bay-breasted Warbler
• Lincoln's Sparrow

Getting There

From the Paul Smith's College VIC parking lot: Turn RIGHT onto Route 30. After 0.8 miles, turn LEFT onto Route 86. Drive though the hamlet of Gabriels. You will see open farmland on both sides of the road after leaving the hamlet of Gabriels. At approximately 0.8 miles, you will see a cemetery on your left. Make a LEFT turn onto County Route 55, just past the cemetary (heading towards Bloomingdale and Plattsburgh). Follow County Route 55 for two miles and watch for a gate on the left. This gate is the start (at one end) of the trail that runs through the Bloomingdale Bog. There will be a blue sign with yellow letters -- GABC (Great Adirondack Birding Celebration) to indicate the meeting point for the Blooomingdale Bog field trip. You can park on either side of the road.

From Saranac Lake: Take Route 3 north to a stop sign in Bloomingdale, then continue straight ahead with Norman's Store on the right. The main road swings left toward Gabriels (County Route 55). Follow this for approximately 2.5 miles and watch for a gate on the RIGHT. There will be a blue sign with yellow letters -- GABC (Great Adirondack Birding Celebration) to indicate the meeting point for the Blooomingdale Bog field trip. You can park on either side of the road.