Registration is NOT required for this field trip.
Field Trip Leader: Timothy Jackson
We will look (and listen) for songbirds, raptors, woodpeckers, game birds, and hummingbirds in a three to four mile walk through predominately oak grasslands with some pockets of chaparral. We’ll visit a couple of ponds early in the walk to look for wetland species and then parallel part of the creek which feeds the north fork of the American River. We’ll be on the lookout for incoming breeding season migrants and a few lingering non-breeding season migrants. The trip should last until 12 noon or 1 pm. Depending on precipitation the trails may be muddy and bordered by wet grass.
Links to ebird checklists for previous trips are:
2019: ebird.org/checklist/S55516921
2023: ebird.org/checklist/S135606856
2024: ebird.org/checklist/S170792649
Meeting Location: Meet Tim at the Northside Elementary School parking lot at 7:30 am. The address is 860 Cave Valley Rd. Cool, CA 95614. It is a little less than a mile south of the town of Cool along Highway 49.
Directions from Highway 50 (recommended route): From Sacramento head east and leave Hwy 50 at exit 30B. This will cloverleaf onto El Dorado Hills blvd. heading north. At approximately 5 miles the road crosses Green Valley Rd. and becomes Salmon Falls Rd. Continue on Salmon Falls Rd. for a little under 12 miles. Turn right on Salmon Falls Cutoff Rd. and in a few hundred feet turn left onto Highway 49 heading north. Go about three miles and turn left onto Cave Valley Rd. Park in the Northside Elementary School lot on the left.
Directions from Highway 80 (descends into and ascends out of the American River Gorge): From Sacramento head east and leave Highway 80 at exit 119C. The exit lane will split in two during the cloverleaf so make sure to get in the left lane and turn left onto Elm Ave at the stoplight. In a few hundred feet turn left at another stoplight onto Highway 49. Continue for seven miles and turn right onto Cave Valley Rd. Park in the Northside Elementary School lot on the left. While the destination is closer to the highway on this route it does involve hairpin turns on a rural highway in a river gorge. Take the route from Highway 50 if you are not prepared for this type of drive.
Nashville Warbler, Image by Ray Rozema