DH and I visited Asheville, NC back in 2006 and I fell in LOVE with the town! I would live there if I could. I saw my very first hummingbird PERIOD while we were there and it was so exciting. I also fell in love with the Eastern Towhee and its "drink-your-TEA!" chirps. Let's see if you've got anything for birding hotspots in NC.
Along the Great Smoky Mountains in NC is the #16 favorite place to see warblers.
#23 on the list for favorite places to see hummingbirds is the Hummingbird Festival at the Reedy Creek Nature Center in Charlotte.
In terms of seeing shorebirds, the Cape Hatteras National Seashore is #17 on the favorites list.
The Mason Farm Biological Reserve is a 367-acre natural area adjacent to a golf course in Chapel Hill. Its habitats includes brushy fields, oak-hickory forest, and wet meadows. There are at least 216 species that can be seen here, including: American Woodcock, Rusty Blackbird, Blue-headed Vireo, and Indigo Bunting. Best times to go include spring, fall and winter; summer is good but can be buggy.
Yates Mill County Park is a sprawling protected area located 5 miles south of downtown Raleigh. It has pine hardwood and oak hickory forests surrounding a mill pond. In spring and summer, you can see Little Blue and Green Herons, Broad-winged Hawks, Spotted Sandpipers, and a great variety of warblers. In the fall, you can see migrating warblers and sparrows and in the winter, you can see Hermit Thrush, Winter Wrens, and Hooded Mergansers. Spring and fall are particularly good to come here but year-round you'll undoubtedly be pleased.
Patsy Pond Nature Trail in Ocean, NC is a hotspot that includes many different habitats, including longleaf pine savannah, wiregrass, and pond, which is either open or covered in lilypads. Residents that can be seen here include: Red-cockaded Woodpecker, Pine Warbler, and Carolina Chickadee. Breeding species include: Bachman's Sparrow, Great Crested Flycatcher, and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. Spring is best for Bachman's Sparrow, when it's singing but fall is regarded as a favorite time of year to visit because any and all neotropical migrants are possible and the pond serves as a way station for shorebirds and waterfowl.
Hello missed you all could not stay away been watching and I can not help but join in again. North Carolina only thing to say I love it here. I was born and raised in Northern Michigan, in my teens Dad wrapped us up and relocated to Ft. Lauderdale when my hosband passed away I scooped up my 13yo and moved to North Carolina best decision I made in my lifetime.
Where I live in Hendersonville NC 18 miles from Asheville, live on the TN state line one direction and SC Stateline the other way. We do not have the frigate cold as in Michigan nor the blistering heat as in South Florida it is like a magical dome over us to keep the climate perfect. The beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains keeps the tornados away and when the summers get to hot she protects us by giving us a short non humid shower to cool everything down.
I live a nice 30 minute drive to the Great Smokie Mountins where we can shoot elks grazing
20 minutes away from Pischa National Forest where you can find hundreds of waterfalls and wildlife enjoying the cool water
Hiking along a path come across a bear
I am 5 minutes from the largest wetlands in WNC
Where you can pick up a heron wading in the water a turtle sunning on the bank
A deer walking along the tree line
Home of the White Squirrel
Hendersonville my home is loaded with historical landmarks
Home of the Apple Festival
Birds, Chickadee, Titmouse, Cardnal, Robins, Wren, woodpeckers, finches, many more are year round residents, Hummingbirds visit every spring through fall not counting the Raccoons that peer out of the trees at you around dusk.
I love it here and anyone looking for a fun relaxing vacation this is the place and the people are very friendly here.
Sorry to chew your ears off, can not stop talking about my beautiful WNC and wanted to make this my welcome statement and hope you all will except me back.
Love you all.....
All I can say is WELCOME BACK CAROL! :) We are so happy to see you back. And what great photos of your hometown! I sincerely hope one day DH and I can move to North Carolina, maybe when Kyle is older. I love Florida, don't get me wrong, I've lived here for almost 25 years, but if I could live anywhere else, it'd be NC. Thanks for sharing all those great pictures Carol, and again, thanks for coming back. :)
Week of May 14 thru 20~Washington, D.C.
- KylesMom409
on Jan. 30, 2012 at 6:49 PM