Birding in the Moraga area on level trails and fire roads owned by EBMUD. This area features a variety of habitats: chaparral and scrub, grassland, pine-oak woodland, marsh, and the top of the reservoir. Likely birds include raptors, sparrows, California Thrasher, nuthatches, wrens, and the shy Wood Ducks. Walking is on hard-packed trails, with some ... Read more

The millions of shorebirds that winter on San Francisco Bay make it a state and global Important Bird Area. It is part of the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network and is also designated as a Wetland of International Importance under UNESCO’s Ramsar Convention. This time of year, we’ll have a chance to see shorebirds that ... Read more

Join us for a slow stroll around the S.F. Botanical Garden in Golden Gate Park, exploring the many birds that thrive amidst several micro-habitats with more than 8,000 kinds of plants. This trip is oriented towards helping beginning birders develop their skills, and recurs on the first Sunday of each month. Entry to the Garden ... Read more

The millions of shorebirds that winter on San Francisco Bay make it a state and global Important Bird Area. It is part of the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network and is also designated as a Wetland of International Importance under UNESCO’s Ramsar Convention. This time of year, we’ll have a chance to see shorebirds that ... Read more

We'll meet at the very end of Winton Avenue in Hayward, walk out to the Bay Trail, and head north. We should arrive at Frank’s Dump, a major high tide roost for shorebirds, when the tide has been coming in for about 4  hours. We’ll walk about 3 miles on flat, unpaved trails. Because it ... Read more

September is a great time to bird the West County Wastewater District--Landfill Loop Trail.  There will be a mixture of waterfowl and shorebirds along with the opportunity to practice gull identification.  This is also a good location for finding vagrant fall migrants. The trip will consist of a 3 mile hike along a flat sandy/dirt ... Read more

Join us for a walk along the Oakland shoreline focusing on shorebirds returning from their summer breeding grounds up north. We will begin at low tide. Walking is mostly on paved paths with a short section of sand. Scopes are very beneficial at this location and appreciated. Leader: Megan Jankowski, mindfuldocumentation@gmail.com, cell (415) 515-0732 This ... Read more

The UCSF Mount Sutro Open Space Preserve is a 61-acre remnant of more than 2000 acres of eucalyptus trees planted by Adolf Sutro. UCSF has instituted a long term management plan for the OSP with the initial phase focused on removing dead and dying trees to improve fire safety. Some tree replacement planting is evident, ... Read more

Let’s look for fall migrants and winter residents in beautiful Tilden Park along the Vollmer Peak trail, enjoying the varied forest and scrub habitats and scenic vistas along the way. We’ll walk 2 to 3 miles (depending on our pace) along a paved trail with a rise of about 1,500 feet. We’ll do a fair ... Read more

Meet in front of the Fort Mason Community Garden to explore several different habitats in this compact part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The focus will be looking for migrants.  The garden and the battery could have Orioles, Warblers, Tanagers and Flycatchers. We'll also scan Aquatic Park for shorebirds and water birds.  Restroom ... Read more

Migration is in full swing along the Pacific Coast Flyway, so come to the Albany shoreline to see who's showing up or passing through.  Novices, advanced birders, and everyone in between are welcome as we visit the Albany mudflats, McLaughlin Shoreline State Park, and the Albany Bulb.  For a sense of how this walk goes, ... Read more

Bird busy-ness at Lake Merritt should begin to pick up this month as early migrants return to their winter spa at "Club Bird." Perhaps we'll even see a Spotted Sandpiper pumping its way along the beach....There'll be enough repetition for newcomers to develop solid understanding of the regular avian residents along with enough to see ... Read more

Vaux's Swifts migrate south along the Pacific Flyway each fall, and one of their few known stopping points in Northern California is a brickyard in San Rafael. At sunset on many September and October evenings, as many as 19,000 Vaux’s Swifts mass together, form a vortex, and then fly into the decommissioned brickyard chimneys to ... Read more

Part of the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay NWR, Coyote Creek Lagoon and Coyote Creek are waterbird heaven. We will experience waterfowl, shorebirds, herons, rails and raptors. If we are lucky, we will see Bald Eagles and/or Golden Eagles. We will walk 3.0 miles (1.5 miles out and back) along the flat, compacted-gravel Coyote Creek ... Read more

It’s still early for ducks, but come look for shorebirds, waders, rails, raptors and a few passerines on this shoreline ride.  We will ride up to 20 flat miles from San Leandro BART (on city streets) to San Leandro Marina and down to Winton Ave. on the Bay Trail on mostly paved trail.   The ... Read more

The Albany Waterfront is one of the most exciting and diverse areas for birds in the East Bay, situated directly across the Bay from the Golden Gate, giving great views and also making it an important stopover and wintering spot for migrating shorebirds and waterfowl. The waterfront boasts several different habitats, including open Bay waters, ... Read more