One of my favorite birding "events" of the year is the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) that occurs mid-February every year.
This is a great project to do with your kids or grandkids as you only have to participate for 15 minutes. For homeschoolers, this is a great science project to show how field data is collected and compiled for use in various studies.
Want to participate? It's easy. Here is a link to instructions.
Again this year I will be doing the GBBC all four days and invite anyone who would like to come. I am a little restricted on time on Monday, February 18, but I plan to go anyway for a couple of hours. Here is where and when I intend to start each day:
Friday, February 15: 8:00 AM, Wichita Bluff Nature Area, off Seymour Highway. Meet in the parking lot. We'll walk the entire trail to Loop 11 and back (about 2.5 miles round trip). This will probably be the longest in terms of time, so expect around 3 or 4 hours, depending upon the birds. Although not a strenuous hike, it is the most hilly of the GBBC target places. People with limited mobility may find this difficult, but the trail is paved.
Saturday, February 16, 8:00 AM, Lake Arrowhead State Park. This is the regularly scheduled monthly bird walk. We usually walk about 1 mile. We take our time, so it normally takes around 1.5 hours. The ground is level, but there are places where we are not on a paved surface surface.
Saturday, February 16. TBD. I am thinking about heading from Lake Arrowhead to do a short walk along the Wichita Valley Rail Trail. I have been meaning to hike this trail and haven't yet. The trail is 5.6 miles and I don't have any intention of hiking the entire distance (especially as I would have to walk the return as well.) I thought I would hike a mile or so and then turn around. If someone wants to go, we can iron out the details. The trail is reported to be cinder and gravel.
Sunday, February 17, 8:00 AM. Circle Trail between Lucy Park and Williams Park. This is a very pretty section of the trail. We had some good birds here last year. This is not a strenuous walk. There are a couple of low-grade hills. The entire distance is paved. I have never measured the distance but I estimate the walk there and back would be around 2 - 2.5 miles.
Monday, February 18, 8:00 AM. I have some limitations on time on Monday, so my plan is to go to the Chat Trail in Lake Wichita Park and walk around the borrow pit as well. When the birds are cooperative, this is "the" birding location in Wichita Falls. This is a short hike on gravel and some on a paved surface. About a half mile total. If I have time, I may walk more of the trail toward the spillway or along the lake shoreline--weather dependent.
Contact me at green.wichitafalls@gmail.com if you would like to bird with me one of these days.
Good birding!
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