New River Birding and Nature Festival

Our crew scours a reverting clearcut high on a West Virginia mountainside this morning. Beautiful looks at Chestnut-sided and Hooded warblers at this very spot. Scores of other birds on this trip, starting with a field full of Bobolinks. We saw lots of interesting plants, salamanders, and other stuff as well.

I'm down here for (I think) the eighth straight year, coming directly to West Virginia from Shawnee State Forest in southern Ohio, where we celebrated the Ohio Ornithological Society's 10th anniversary last weekend. The New River Birding and Nature Festival is a fabulous, week-long event that draws people from near and far. It's a blend of field trips and speakers, fueled by good food and fun people.

We're seeing lots of good stuff, with lots more to come. If and when time permits, I'll try and slap some photos up. If you've sent me an email or some other form of a message lately, sorry for the lack of response as I'm mostly off grid until next Sunday.