Saturday, June 13
Join us for a weekend of birding and paddling in Snow Hill, MD! Registration is open.
On Saturday, June 13, we’re hosting a morning trip and an afternoon trip. In the morning, we’ll go birding at Furnace Town. After lunch in Snow Hill, we’ll meet at Baywater Landing for birding and oyster tasting on the shores of Chincoteague Bay.
Saturday morning, June 13
Songbirds of Furnace Town (HIKING)
Time: 8:00 – 11:00 am
Guides: Russ Kovach & Jim Rapp
Cost: $40/person (cost includes admission to Furnace Town)
Meeting Location: meet in the parking area along Millville Road next to Furnace Town, located at 3816 Old Furnace Rd, Snow Hill, MD 21863. GPS coordinates: 38.204032, -75.471253
Please note: Dress and prepare for hiking on trails that may be wet and muddy. Waterproof boots are recommended. Please prepare for ticks. Be sure to bring insect repellent. For information about preventing tickborne diseases, please click here.
We’ll hike along the trails of the Furnace Town Historic Site, nestled between the Pocomoke State Forest and The Nature Conservancy’s Nassawango Creek Preserve. These forests are characterized by large areas of Loblolly Pine, mixed pine-hardwood, bottomland hardwood, and Bald Cypress trees. Along the trails, we’ll search for breeding neotropical migrants such as warblers, vireos, flycatchers and tanagers. We’ll begin the tour from 8:00 to 9:00 am exploring the trails and pond outside the Furnace Town fences. At 9:00 am, we’ll enter the grounds of the historic site to bird the property until 11:00 am.
Saturday afternoon, June 13
Chincoteague Bay Birding & Oyster Tasting (DRIVING/HIKING)
Time: 1:00 – 4:30 pm
Guides: Russ Kovach & Jim Rapp
Cost: $40/person
Meeting Location: the Baywater Landing Marina, located at 3908 Bayside Rd, Snow Hill, MD 21863. GPS coordinates: 38.132476, -75.299204
Please note: Cost includes six shucked local oysters from Baywater Seafood. You may purchase additional oysters if you wish.
The coastal bays of Maryland provide habitat for summer shorebirds and briny bivalves! We’ll watch the birds and eat the oysters during this afternoon adventure along the landings of Chincoteague Bay. This field trip involves driving between locations and short, easy walks. Total driving distance between sites is less than 8 miles.
We’ll meet at the Baywater Landing Marina east of Snow Hill, MD, before departing on a two-stop caravan tour for birding along the landings. At Baywater Landing, we’ll scan the skies and salt marsh for gulls, terns, herons and songbirds. We’ll then drive to Figgs Landing, where we will scope the shallow ponds for ibis and shorebirds. From Figgs Landing, we will drive a short distance to Truitt’s Landing, where we will explore the marshes for sparrows and shorebirds.
We’ll return to Baywater Landing around 3:30 pm, where our friends at Baywater Seafood will introduce us to their operation. We’ll enjoy our oyster tasting while they explain the connection to their business and clean coastal water. We’ll plan to depart Baywater Landing around 4:30 pm. Participants are invited to bring coolers with beer or wine to enjoy during and after the oyster tasting.
Click on the Google Map for specific field trip meeting locations:
Please note:
- No cancellations are accepted after June 1, 2026. For a further explanation of our refund policy, please click here.
- Trips will go rain or shine, unless torrential rains prevent us from viewing wildlife.
- If the trip is canceled due to dangerous conditions, we will notify you via email. Please note that the email will be sent to all participants BCC, so you may need to check your email spam folder. A full refund will be provided within 15 days.