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Clive29

Well-known member
Hi There,

I'll be on a slow road trip up route 95 though Georgia travelling from Florida to New York first week of May and am trying to locate good birding locations along the way that might be worth popping into. Would appreciate any suggestions.

Regards
Clive
 
Since I-95 stays fairly close to the coast, most of your quicker access areas will be marsh and lowland forest habitat. Howfyl-Broadfield Plantation Historic Site sounds kind of dry and uninteresting to a birder but it is adjacent and similar in habitat to Altamaha NWR, which is now charging a fee to visit it's freshwater impoundments. The historic site will also have impoundments and good habitat for songbirds and raptors. Overwintering ducks will be gone by late winter/early spring.
To try something unique and also for good birding take the short ferry ride from St. Mary's to Cumberland Island, near the Florida state line. The island is magical in appearance and has a good variety of habitats, from marsh to large live oaks to ocean shoreline. Wild horses, hogs and armadillos add to the exotic atmosphere. Try this site for information:
http://www.stmaryswelcome.com/birdingtrail.html

Don't forget Birdingpal.org, though there are not many contacts on the Georgia coast.

One last place as you leave Georgia and cross into South Carolina that is familiar to birders in both states is the Savannah NWR. A very nice driving tour will take you through freshwater marshes with just enough scrub habitat with a few islands of trees to hold songbirds. Try this site:
http://www.lowcountrybirder.com/savannah-national-wildlife-refuge/

Steve
 
I didn't mention Sapelo Island, another interesting place to bird. It has the only east coast population of Plain Chachalacas and a variety of habitat similar to but more slightly more populated with houses and people than Cumberland. There is a ferry that goes there but special permission from one of the Gullah inhabitants is required to actually wander the island. If you decide that you might want to try this, I can pass along the number of someone we used for a day visit just recently in December. You can rent bicycles to get around a bit faster.
Really, with all there is to choose from, I hope you've planned for a sloooow road trip!

Steve
 
Been checking it out Steve, once I've got a better idea of my time schedule I might take you up on the contact, it certainly looks like a great place to visit.. and not too far of the route. Cheers mate
 
Liz and I have been to Sapelo 5 or 6 times. This trip, we kayaked there, carefully planning our travel with the tides. This gave us only four hours on the island so we spent little time taking pictures. Here are a few samples of the island. We saw some shore and water birds on during our time on the water. Camera work from the seat of a kayak is not easy photography though our return trip was incredibly smooth.

Steve
 

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The Shrike was at Howfyl-Broadfield Plantation; the others at or on the way to Sapelo Island.
From Jacksonville, Florida, north to Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, the east coast of the US is lined with barrier islands of which Sapelo Island is one. From our home in western North Carolina, exploring and birding this coastlline is one of our favorite getaways.

Steve
 

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Looks marvelous.. I've been looking at the area all around St Marys and it looks like there is certainly is lots of great habitat.
 
St. Mary's would be your takeoff point for Cumberland Island. This past trip, we paddled across Cumberland Sound over to the extreme southern end of Cumberland Island from Fort Clinch in Florida. We only spent a couple of hours on the beach there but it was almost completely devoid of birds. A few Terns, Gulls, Brown Pelicans and a lone Sanderling. Let's hope you do better!

Steve
 

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