Three Rivers Birding Club

Three Rivers Birding Club Outings

Throughout the year, we have many outings to locations in Western Pennsylvania and beyond. For a more comprehensive calendar of birding and other Western Pennsylvania natural history outings and outdoor activities of other groups, see the links at the bottom of this page under the heading of "Events Calendars".

If you are birding one of the areas listed below, download a PDF copy of the birding checklist provided and take it with you:

Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania — Beechwood Farms Bird Checklist
Cook Forest — Cook Forest Bird Checklist
Erie County, Pennsylvania — Erie County PA Bird Checklist
Frick Park — Checklist of Birds in Frick Park
Harrison Hills Park — Harrison Hills Park Bird Checklist
Oil Creek State Park — Oil Creek State Park Bird Checklist
Shenango Reservoir — Shenango Bird Checklist
Westmoreland County — Westmoreland County Bird Checklist
Yellow Creek State Park — Yellow Creek State Park Bird Checklist

Outings are free and open to the public. In the event of inclement weather, contact the leader in advance to confirm whether the outing is on or canceled. Also, contact the leader with any questions about weather, driving directions, or trail conditions. Although we, too, like our pets, it is the club's policy not to include them on our walks.

Below is a general statement that will be followed for all our outings. Also, the leader may have specific requirements that are stated in the outing description:

"It is our intention to foster a safe environment during our outings. Social distancing and mask wearing are not required, and sharing equipment is optional; however, attendees should respect individuals who decide to remain socially distant or wear masks. Pets are not permitted on 3RBC outings. The leader may have certain prerequisites and can end a walk if an uncomfortable situation arises."

In the event of a late cancellation of or a change to any of our outings, please check the Three Rivers Birding Club Facebook page or the "Items of Interest" section of the Home page of this website for the latest information on outings, cancellations, and other events that could not make our newsletter's deadline.

3RBC Current Outings --- September 2025

Friday, September 5, 2025 – North Park

We will meet Adrian Fenton (AFe9963285@aol.com) for a fall birding outing at 7:30 AM at the Gold Star Pavilion in North Park on Lake Shore Drive. GPS coordinates: 40.593884, -80.003844. We will bird Gold Star wetlands area, Marshall Lake, and, if time permits, part of Latodomi Nature Center.

Note: Please email Adrian at AFe9963285@aol.com to let him know you plan to attend.

Saturday, September 6, 2025 – Harrison Hills Park

Meet leader Dave Brooke (724-487-3586) at this county park off Freeport Road between Natrona Heights and Freeport. We will meet him at the Environmental Learning Center parking lot at 8:00 AM. The Environmental Learning Center coordinates: 40.6572, -79.7024. As you enter the park, stay left, and then turn left at the first intersection, and go up the hill to the large parking lot. Dress for wet grass and mud. Previous fall outings have produced a nice variety of fall migrants, including warblers and vireos.

Friday, September 12, 2025 – Sewickley Heights Borough Park

Join Sheree Daugherty (shereedaugherty@gmail.com), for our second bird walk at Sewickley this fall starting at 8:00 AM in the upper parking lot. See the 3RBC website for directions. Be prepared for muddy trails.

Saturday, September 13, 2025 – Sewickley Heights Borough Park

This walk is intended for beginning/inexperienced birders and will be limited to the first seven people who email the walk leader Adrian Fenton at AFe9963285@aol.com).
Sewickley Heights Park is an excellent location for seeing fall migrants. We will go slowly to give everyone opportunity to see and identify birds. The staring time will be at 7:30 AM in the upper parking lot. Be sure to bring binoculars. For directions to the park go to 3RBC.org.

Saturday, September 13, 2025 — Deer Lakes County Park

John Vassallo ((johnnvassallo@yahoo.com) and Todd Hooe will lead this outing focused on fall migrants including warblers, vireos, and flycatchers. The outing will begin at 7:30 AM and last approximately 4 hours. We will meet in the parking lot at these GPS coordinates: 40.618722, -79.815371. From Creighton-Russellton Road, enter the park (Kurn Road), drive by two ponds on the right, then make a right turn and proceed to the last parking lot. Although the trails are pretty well maintained, please dress for possible wet grass, mud and rainfall.

Sunday, September 14, 2025 — Wingfield Pines

We will meet Conor Tompkins ( conorotompkins@gmail.com) at Wingfield Pines at 8 AM. We can anticipate seeing migrating warblers, ducks, lingering summer breeders, and other fall birds. If we are lucky, we will hear the resident Virginia Rail! The dirt trails can be uneven and muddy, so wear long pants and boots. The outing will last around 2 hours. If there is interest, we can regroup at the Over The Bar Bicycle Cafe down the street afterwards for brunch.

There is limited parking in the adjacent parking lot, but there is plenty of parking up the hill by the Boyce Mayview pool. If you do not have issues with mobility, please consider parking up the hill by the pool to free up the parking closer to the entrance. There are no bathrooms or port-a-johns at the location. See the 3RBC website for directions. GPS coordinates for starting location 40°20'09.8"N 80°06'41.3"W (40.336235, -80.111461).

Saturday, September 20, 2025 — Raccoon Creek State Park

Meet Malcolm Kurtz at Raccoon Creek State Park at 8:30 AM. We will gather at the Lake and Valley Trail parking lot, which is on Raccoon Park Road, GPS coordinates 40.5016868, -80.42241937. The Lake trail is very productive; we will look for fall migrating birds.

3RBC Current Outings --- October 2025

Friday, October 3, 2025 — Hartwood Acres

Come explore the Saxonburg Blvd. Fields of Hartwood Acres with Dan Mendenhall (dmendenhall@aswp.org) and John Dzikiy. We will start at 8:00 AM at the Hartwood Acres Mansion parking area (200 Hartwood Acres), hiking down through the woods, around the meadow trails, and back up the hill to the mansion parking area. The terrain can be steep in areas and dress for possible wet grass, mud, and rainfall. We will hike approximately 3 miles.

Please email Dan (dmendenhall@aswp.org) to register if you plan to attend, as we will cap participants at ten people.

Saturday, October 4, 2025 — Linda's Farm

Linda Croskey has invited us again to visit her farm for this bird walk. We will meet at 8:00 AM at 882 Deer Creek Road, Gibsonia 15044. (GPS coordinates: 40.665712 -79.8923529) Location is northern Allegheny County in West Deer Township, there will be a sign at the end of the driveway. (Across the road is Harvest Valley Farm).

Linda's farm is comprised of a variety of natural habitats; several acres of goldenrod fields, farm fields with brushy edges, mature deciduous trees, plus several wildflower and milkweed meadows. This attracts grassland birds, warblers, and many fall migrants.

Dress for ticks and bring water and snacks. Walking is mostly level along paths with a few hills over uneven terrain. For additional directions call Linda at 724-612-9963 or email her at lcroskey@consolidated.net.

Sunday, October 5, 2025 — Frick Park

Meet Michelle Kienholz (mlkienholz@aol.com) at 8:00 AM at the Frick Environmental Center located at 2005 Beechwood Blvd, in Squirrel Hill, 15217 for a morning bird walk in Frick Park.

Frick Park is an excellent location for the fall migration, and we're hoping for lots of warblers, other migrants and local birds.

Saturday October 18, 2025 — Frick Park Family-oriented Bird Walk

Join young birder Ezra White on Saturday, October 18 at 9:30 AM, for a family-oriented birding walk at Frick Park. Families are welcome on this day to learn about birding, view the many birds that call Frick home, and enjoy the beautiful fall colors.

We'll meet on the bridge to the Environmental Center, where we'll enjoy and learn to identify Frick Park's many bird species - ranging from feeder birds like cardinals, chickadees, and woodpeckers to fall visitors like migratory warblers, tiny kinglets, and maybe even an owl!

The walk meets at the Frick Environmental Center (2005 Beechwood Blvd, Pittsburgh, PA 15217) and will continue for 2 to 3 hours; however, participants are welcome to leave early.

Participation is limited to 15 individuals, so please contact Ezra at ezradavidwhite@icloud.com to register.

3RBC Current Outings --- November 2025

Saturday, November 1, 2025 — Yellow Creek State Park

This outing will be a joint outing of the 3RBC and the Todd Bird Club. Meet Roger and Margaret Higbee at the park office at 8:00 AM. The Park office is located on Route 259 just off Route 422 east of Indiana. Allow an hour and a half to drive from Pittsburgh. The Park has a wide variety of habitats and a large lake that attracts a wide variety of waterbirds and sometimes exciting rarities.

Please contact Roger or Margaret Higbee (724-354-3493 or Roger's cell 412-309-3538) if you plan to go.