Bartow County
Birding Locations |
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Legend
Su = summer
F = fall
W = winter
Sp = spring
YR = year-round
[July 2005] = Most recently checked by KB
[N/A] = Not yet checked by KB
 = Location is within +/- 10 miles of the indicated interstate highway. This is especially helpful for out-of-town birders who may be passing through Georgia while travelling and would like to get a quick birding fix. This is also helpful for birders planning a "Big Day," where staying close to a major interstate corridor is essential for covering the greatest diversity of habitats in 24 hours.
 = Location is a "Georgia Birding Hotspot." Though this designation is subjective, it generally means that the area should be given high priority when planning a birding trip to a region. Some Hotspots offer incredible, productive birding virtually year-round (Jekyll Island), while the best birding of the year may be more seasonal at others (Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park).
SBM = Shorebird Migration; this very generally refers to mid-March thru May in spring and mid-July thru mid-October in fall. Fall is the prime shorebird season. Baird's and Buff-breasted Sandpipers likely only in fall. Peak passage of specific species is quite variable.
PM = Passerine Migration; this very generally refers to April and May in spring and August thru mid-October in fall. This includes all songbirds - wood warblers, vireos, tanagers, thrushes, flycatchers, etc. Peak passage of specific species is quite variable. Spring migration is much more concentrated and birds are often in colorful breeding plumage. Fall migration is more spread out; fall wood warblers can be notoriously difficult to identify (or even impossible to determine sex), with numerous juveniles which do not exhibit the same obvious field marks as adults.
IBA = Important Bird Area; the aim of the IBA Program is to identify and conserve key breeding and feeding sites for birds. An Important Bird Area is a place that provides essential habitat for one or more species of bird, whether in breeding season, winter, or during migration. These sites are considered to be exceptionally important for bird conservation; see Georgia's IBA Webpage. If you visit an IBA, help by filing a simple online report.
Bartow County
1) The Bartow County Loop [July 2009]  
SBM, winter
[DeLorme pg. 19, E-7,8]
Read about Birding Georgia's Sod Farms
NOTE: A spotting scope is a must on this birding route; proceeding with only binoculars may end in frustration! This itinerary can take as little as 1-2 hours or as long as four, depending on your schedule and the birds that are present - obviously you can customize it by cutting out certain sections or spending more time at others. It is great for migrating shorebirds, open habitat migrants and breeding birds, wintering waterfowl, and more. Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper, Upland Sandpiper, American Golden Plover, Stilt Sandpiper, Greater White-fronted Goose, Snow Goose, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Northern Pintail, American Wigeon, Bank Swallow, White-rumped Sandpiper, Dickcissel, Bobolink, Grasshopper Sparrow, Brewer's Blackbird, Black-necked Stilt, Wilson's and Red-necked Phalarope, Merlin, Bald Eagle, Horned Lark, and Black Tern are all interesting species seen along the route in recent years. Most birding is from roadsides, but even so if you are cautious, polite, and wary of local traffic this rural route offers some of the state's best opportunities to study migrating shorebirds of various ages in various plumages: along with possible rarities mentioned above, you may find numbers of Pectoral Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper, Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs, "peeps" (Least, Semipalmated, and Western Sandpiper), Semipalmated Plover, and more. Begin at Exit 283 on I-75 (GPS). Go west for 0.9 miles coming from points south, 0.7 miles from points north and turn left onto Old Alabama Rd (you'll first pass under the overpass of Hwy 41, and the first left after going under the overpass is Old Alabama Rd; a large brown sign for the Etowah Indian Mounds points to this road, and there is usually a "No Thru Trucks" sign on the street sign). Continue 4.1 miles (watching out for lots of road construction and crews; 2009), and turn right at a light onto Douthit Ferry Rd. [DeLorme: p. 19, grid E-8,9] In 0.3 miles, just after crossing over a concrete bridge over the Etowah River, carefully park on the right in a gravel area; stay away from the gate onto the sod area and do not block access to it, either. From just behind the gate, you can set up your scope and check the largest part of what is called the Legacy Sod Farm; this farm has not been as productive in recent years but should always be briefly checked, particularly after heavy rain when large pools of water form on the sod. Though you should stick to the gravel area on this side of the road, if you carefully walk across Douthit Ferry Rd and hop the guard rail, you may find passerine migrants in the wooded edges there - in spring and summer it is worth picking your way down to a view of the side of the bridge, where a colony of Cliff Swallows has built their "clay pot" nests for several years. Turn right out of the gravel area, and just 0.2 miles down the road, turn left and park in a large gravel parking area for a soccer park and walking trail. Horned Lark, Eastern Meadowlark, and American Pipit are often found in the surrounding cotton stubble or even out on the fields in colder months. You can walk the trail to the river to cover more scrubby riparian woods for passerines during migration if you like. During shorebird migration, you can get another angle on the sod farm from the paved trail, but don't even go near the sod and it's actually best not to cross this fast-moving road to try to scope from the opposite shoulder! Turn left out of the soccer fields, and in just 0.1 miles turn right onto Indian Mounds Rd. Scan the sod to your right out your window as you drive slowly (PHOTO 5), then on your left after you pass the maintenance buildings (PHOTO 6). You may stop very briefly on the shoulder in a gravel area on the right across from the maintenance building to scan the sod and a sometimes muddy, marshy area near the pivot of a watering boom if you notice that birds are present while cruising through. Do ALL birding along this road from inside your car unless you decide to walk over there from the soccer fields – look for shorebirds like Pectoral Sandpiper, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, American Golden Plover, Pectoral Sandpiper, Yellowlegs, Solitary Sandpiper, etc... but most will usually be Killdeer. Do not block traffic, slam on brakes, pull off on a blind curve or otherwise be a nuisance or danger to locals and yourself, no matter what bird you thought you caught a glimpse of! Be aware that the farm owners here are NOT birder-friendly and be ready to leave if any farm vehicle approaches you. Do not even try to discuss the matter with farm employees and be polite if they engage you, even if rudely. At 0.8 miles from Douthit Ferry Rd, you'll arrive at the gate to the visitor's center of the Etowah Indian Mounds. Directly across from this interesting historic site is a low, marshy area (PHOTO 7) which - if mowed and/or flooded by recent rains - can hold shorebirds, waterfowl, or even the odd wader; but again, it's kind of hard to safely scan the area unless the visitor's center parking lot is open and you can run over for a quick scan from there. When done, return to Old Alabama Rd the way you came (using Douthit Ferry Rd) and turn right to continue west for 1.8 miles, where it dead-ends into GA Hwy 61 as you pass the end of a local airport's runway on your right. Turn right onto Hwy 61, continue 1.1 miles, and turn left at a light onto GA Hwy 113. In 1.6 miles, make a note of Lucas Rd on your left in an area of open fields; if you want to do an "extended" version of this itinerary you may wish to slowly tour a loop through open habitat by using this road, and turning right when it hits Kincannon Rd, which will eventually bring you back to GA Hwy 113 - this tends to be more interesting in winter when you may come across American Kestrel and various flocks of sparrows including Chipping, Savannah, Field, Song, and Vesper. Back on Hwy 113, at 3.2 miles from your turn off Hwy 61, turn left onto Brandon Farm Rd [DeLorme: p. 19, grid E-8]. Drive slowly (but politely, don't get in the way) with windows down, listening and looking on wires and hedgerows for Eastern Kingbird, Blue Grosbeak, Field Sparrow, Eastern Meadowlark, etc. At 0.5 miles from Hwy 113, carefully pull off and park near the base of a huge set of powerline towers on the right. In this area in migration, nice flocks of Bobolinks can be found out in the fields behind the fence, Orchard Orioles may be heard or spotted in a small grove of trees, and special breeding birds best found in May and June include Blue Grosbeak, Red-winged Blackbird, Grasshopper Sparrow, and Dickcissel. Just down the road, you will come to a cattle watering hole on the left and a sometimes wet (sometimes just mud). Park very carefully and safely on the shoulder here, and scan the muddy edges of the mud hole on your left for shorebirds - do this from your car using binoculars at first in case they are close to the road and/or spooky. Then, get out and walk around a little, scoping any shorebirds carefully while also listening and looking for Dickcissel, Blue Grosbeak, Eastern Meadowlark, Grasshopper Sparrow, Eastern Kingbird, American Kestrel, swallows, and other open habitat birds. In all seasons you will likely encounter large flocks of Rock Pigeon, European Starling, Brown-headed Cowbird, and a few Eurasian Collared-Doves. After sorting through the shorebirds here, continue up the hil until the road dead-ends into Taff Rd (1.1 miles from Hwy 113) and turn right, then park in a gravel area on the left (PHOTO 1) just off the road in front of the Gaines Cattle buildings. Make sure you do not block access to the cattle farm buildings. The owners have never said anything to me, and I always wave and smile and they seem fine with birders being present. Scope the muddy pond across the road (PHOTO 2) thoroughly for shorebirds like Pectoral Sandpiper, "peeps," Spotted Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper, Yellowlegs, etc. in spring and especially in fall. Rarities encountered here and on Brandon Farm Rd in recent years include American Golden Plover, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper, White-rumped Sandpiper, Stilt Sandpiper, both Red-necked Phalarope and Wilson's Phalarope (mid-late May seems best), inland Willet and Sanderling, and even a Black-necked Stilt made an appearance - so these two cattle watering holes are always worth checking in just about any season! Continue down Taff Rd, briefly scanning a second lake on the right (PHOTO 3). Sometimes waterfowl like Gadwall, Green or Blue-winged Teal, American Wigeon, or waders will be here, and if the water is down you may find a few shorebirds on the edges. Various swallows congregate all along Taff Rd in this area in migration- most will be Barn Swallows or Northern Rough-winged Swallows, a few Cliff Swallows or Purple Martins may join in, and Bank Swallow is somewhat reliable in early fall so pay attention. In winter, along with waterfowl this is a good area to look for rare Brewer's Blackbirds mixed in with massive flocks of cowbirds, starlings, Common Grackles, and Red-winged Blackbirds; there are plenty of Savannah Sparrows as well. A pair of Loggerhead Shrikes has a huge territory that spans most of this area, but you'll be lucky to spot them on the fence posts or barbed wire. Continue down Taff Rd and you can briefly see a pond with several dead snags in it on your left... but you really should NOT try to stop and bird this pond because it is a blind hill and is not safe. Instead, at approx. 0.9 miles from your turn off Brandon Farm Rd (before you reach Hwy 113), turn left at an unmarked black asphalt drive up a slope, and you'll find yourself at a historic marker and a preserved old white schoolhouse. Park around back under a large oak, and you'll notice an outbuilding with bird feeders and a tiny pond behind it. The owner is friendly and may come out to greet you - a large flock of Eurasian Collared-Doves and House Sparrows is resident. But the real attraction to making this quick stop is beyond the close pond in the distance - far down in the fields you can scope another cattle watering hole which has hosted lots of interesting waterfowl in winter over the years (though quite far away!)... the list includes Northern Pintail, Grater White-fronted Goose, Ross's Goose, Snow Goose, Green-winged Teal, Gadwall, American Wigeon, and sometimes Sandhill Cranes congregate here in numbers as they are moving through. Turn left back onto Taff Rd and almost immediately you'll hit Hwy 113 and take a left to continue west. At 0.6 miles down the road you'll reach a traffic light with a BP gas station with a convenience store (and deli!) that makes a nice mid-way stop for restrooms and snacks. From this intersection, you may wish to visit a nice wetlands outside the town of Euharlee, but you may skip this if you are just in "shorebird mode." To reach it, head north from the light on Covered Bridge Rd for 3.2, and turn left onto Euharlee-Five Forks Rd (just past the small Euharlee General Store). Go through one stop sign, and in 1.0 mile at a stop sign turn left onto Hardin Bridge Rd. Go straight through the next stop sign, and in 1.0 mile from your turn off Euharlee-Five Forks Rd you will see a pretty wetlands open up on the right. You can park here carefully on the shoulder and look for waders and waterfowl (Wood Duck and Least Bittern breed here) plus the surrounding riparian scrub and woods may hold good passerines in migration. When done, retrace your route back to the BP, turn right to go west on Hwy 113 and go 2.1 miles to a sign reading "S.R. 113 Conn North" and turn right onto this road, which is actually the Old Hwy 113 roadbed. At 1.2 miles from this turn, turn right onto Main St at a small Pure gas station. Go around a sharp left curve, and at the next stop sign (0.6 miles from your last turn) in the center of the tiny town of Taylorsville, turn right, and over the RR tracks you'll go. You will then go through another stop sign after only 0.2 miles, taking a slight right and putting you onto Euharlee Rd. You will see a sod farm open up on the right at 0.2 miles. Turn right at a small circular sign reading "Sod Atlanta" onto a gravel sod farm access road. Park off on the left side just off the paved road, and you will scope the farm from here, which is conveniently the highest vantage point in the area. This is private property, and the farm owners have not approached birders as long as they stay up on this knoll just inside the farm; do not walk down the hill towards (or past!) an obvious stop sign and a gate. This farm has been good for "grass-pipers" in recent years including Buff-breasted Sandpiper, American Golden-Plover, Upland Sandpiper, Pectoral Sandpiper, even more diversity when there is standing water, and lots of swallows are known to frequent this spot as well from spring through fall. As you return to Old Hwy 113 the way you came, continue straight at the sharp curve instead of following it to the Pure gas station, which is Bartow St and will take you 0.8 miles through some open cattle grazing fields which may have Blue Grosbeak, Grasshopper Sparrow or other open habitat birds in spring and summer. When you deadend into Old Hwy 113, turn left. When you hit the new Hwy 113, turn left to head back east and backtrack all the way back, passing the BP light, passing Brandon Farm Rd, and coming to the light were you first turned from Hwy 61; reset your odometer at the light (past the light you'll be on Hwy 113/61 (combined). Just 0.7 miles past the light, turn left onto Riverside Dr; you will no doubt have noticed that you passed a sod farm just off the highway on the left before this turn [DeLorme: p. 19, grid E-8]. Carefully pull off on the shoulder here, and you can scope a lot of sod from the shoulder of this road industrial area road but do not walk past a line of landscaping trees along the perimeter of the farm. This farm has hosted numbers of Buff-breasted Sandpipers, and other good stuff like American Golden-Plover and Upland Sandpiper, and more common birds already mentioned including Horned Lark and other shorebirds. When finished, turn left back onto Hwy113/61, and in 1.5 miles you will turn right at a McDonald's onto Douthit Ferry Rd. This is the same Douthit Ferry Rd mentioned earlier, and in 2.4 miles you'll rejoin Old Alabama Rd, completing your tour of the Bartow County Loop; turning left will retrace your way back to I-75.
      
PHOTO 1 PHOTO 2 PHOTO 3 PHOTO 4 PHOTO 5 PHOTO 6 PHOTO 7
Photos and text by KB.
2) Pine Log WMA [Nov 2008] 
PM, late Sp-Su for breeding birds
See Beaton's Birding Georgia.
[DeLorme: p. 19, grid C-10; Birding Georgia: p. 38]
This is one of my personal favorites in early spring to early summer, for neotropical migrants, breeding birds, and nocturnal species like Whip-poor-will, Chuck-will's-widow, and owls. April and May are also awesome because it is the only time the access road gates are open to vehicles because of turkey hunts. Stamp Creek hosts breeding pairs of Louisiana Waterthrush, though they can be tricky to hear or see on every visit and should not be expected. In recent years a resident population of Red Crossbills was observed on a few occasions; despite many searches in various seasons they have not been seen since February 2004. They were seen off-and-on that year, and if you come here for a winter walk to check for them, you may also enjoy the treat of a large number of Fox Sparrows. In winter 2006-07 a group of up to 20 birds was reliably seen along the road within the first 200 yards of the gate at the parking lot near the bridge over Stamp Creek. Just east of this access point is another road into the property, near Stamp Creek Church; however, there is not as much room to park - only 2-3 vehicles, and make sure not to block the gate. A personal favorite spot both for birding and just beauty is a wildlife plot that is a couple miles down the road from the main parking lot. After passing a large planted wildlife field on the left that is immediately adjacent to the road, continue down over a creek (listen for Kentucky Warblers in this area) and head up the next hill until you see another large clearing on your left with a few large trees in it. Park here and bird the field thoroughly - Indigo Buntings, White-eyed Vireos, Prairie Warblers, and Yellow-breasted Chats are likely in spring-summer. Bluebirds often nest in a cavity in one of the trees in the middle of the field so keep your distance and look out for them. Directly across the field from the turn-in, there is a very rough but walkable "road" for tractors to access and mow a separate wildlife plot way up on the hill. As you walk up this road, you should hear Black-and-white Warblers, Prairie Warblers, Yellow-breasted Chat, and Field Sparrows singing. In areas of pine (there are plenty in here), you may also spot uncommon Pine Elfin butterflies along with good numbers of Sleepy Oranges, Red-banded Hairstreaks, and other butterflies. Finally, you will come into a gorgeous mountain-top wildlife clearing, with 360-degree views of the surrounding countryside (PHOTO 1). If you don't mind the hike in (gate closed), this also makes an awesome "hawk watch" vantage point in fall. Note that PHOTOS 2-5 were taken in winter so the views will be quite different in the prime spring season at this location.
    
PHOTO 1 PHOTO 2 PHOTO 3 PHOTO 4 PHOTO 5
Text and photo by KB
3) Reynold's Bend Rd [Jan 2008]
W for pipits, larks, etc.
[DeLorme pg. 19, grid D-7 or Lat 34 13' 07' N; Long 84 59' 14' W]
This area has great potential for open-habitat winter species like American Pipit, American Kestrel, or (speculatively) Lapland Longspur. The habitat is very similar to that at Fite Bend Rd (Gordon County) with vast fields of corn stubble, but the problem is that the vast majority of the property, along a bend in the Etowah River, is private and not accessible to birders. I hope to do some scouting to see if I can determine the owners and talk to them about allowing birders to briefly visit, but until access is granted the area that is viewable from public roads represents only about 20% of what is there. Still, a quick visit in early Feb 2007 yielded a nice flock of American Pipit (30-40 birds), with many more possible in the largest fields just to the north of where the road becomes private. Coming west on US Hwy 411 from Cartersville, turn right (north) onto Reynold's Bend Rd. Almost immediately on your left is a small pull-out affording a view of a nice field of corn stubble on the west side of the road. Continue down the road, passing through a few more small patches of corn stubble. The edges of these fields may host sparrows like Field, White-throated, Savannah, and Song along with Hermit Thrush and Dark-eyed Juncos. You will eventually reach a gate with a stop sign on it. Park in a gravel area on the left just before this gate. From here, you can scan a fairly large area of corn stubble, where a nice number of American Pipit were found in Feb 2007. You can see silos ahead in the distance - just beyond them lay much larger fields (as seen on Google Earth) but as stated above, this is private property and cannot be viewed.
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Copyright 2009 Ken Blankenship. All rights reserved.
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