St. Louis Audubon Society

Birding

Audubon Field Trips

The Saint Louis Audubon society hosts a number of field trips throughout the year. Although most of the trips occur in the St. Louis area, they also include day trips a few miles away, and week-end trips to the best birding areas in Missouri and Illinois.

For an ongoing listing of times, locations and directions for our field trips, please visit our Calendar or current Newsletter issue. Additional information about area birding hot spots is included below and will be updated as often as possible.

For specific questions about the field trips, please e-mail Mike Grant at mikecurlew@att.net. For other bird-related questions, contact Mitch at (314) 599-7390 or director@stlouisaudubon.org

Upcoming Birding Events

St. Louis Area Birding Hot Spots

There are a number of reliable birding sites within 50 miles of the St. Louis City limits. Although this list is by no means complete, it contains many of the best sites in the area. These locations and many more are detailed in Birds of the St. Louis Area: Where and When to Find Them.

Babler State Park

Take Hwy 44 to Hwy 109 and go north past Manchester Rd.
Take Hwy BA to the park entrance.
From I-64, take the Long Rd. exit in Chesterfield Valley and go south to Wild Horse Creek Rd. Turn right and follow this road to Hwy 109.
Go left on 109 and take BA to the park entrance.
Meet at the Visitor Center’s parking lot.

Baldwin Lake (carpool)

Meet at the commuter lot at Hwy 270 and Hwy 30 west, at 12:00 pm if you wish to car pool.
Take Hwy 270 across the Jefferson Barracks Bridge to IL.
Take Hwy 3 south to Redbud. Go east on Hwy 154 to Baldwin, IL.
Follow the signs in town to Lake Baldwin.
Meet at the parking lot inside the gate.

Blue Grosbeak Trail (Busch)

Take Hwy 94 south from Hwy 40.
About ¼ mile down Hwy 94 there will be a parking lot and gate on your left.
Meet in the parking lot.

BK Leach (carpool)

Meet in the southeast corner of the Dierberg’s parking lot at the southwest side of the junction of Hwy 70 and Hwy 79 45 minutes before the start of the trip.
Birding will be done along Hwy 79 towards the trip destination.

Busch Conservation Area

Take Hwy 94 south from Hwy 40.
About ½ mile down the road, turn right on Hwy D.
Go about 1 ½ miles to the entrance on the right.
Turn left at the T to Hampton Lake.
Meet in the parking lot.

Carlyle Lake (carpool)

See trip announcement for meeting place if you wish to car pool.
Take I-64 east across the Poplar St. Bridge.
Exit I-64 at Hwy 50 east toward Carlyle.
Follow Hwy 50 to Hwy 127 and turn left at the junction.
Turn right and meet at the McDonald’s parking lot.

Castlewood State Park

Follow Big Bend Rd to Ries Rd and turn south.
Left on Kiefer Creek Road.
Meet at lot on right, just after park office.

Columbia Bottoms

Off Hwy 270 east, take Riverview Blvd. exit and turn left (north).
Go about 3 miles to the entrance on the right and make the first left at Visitor’s Center.
Meet in the parking lot.

Cora Island

Located just three miles upstream on the Missouri River from the confluence of the Mississippi River the Cora Island Unit is the refuges eastern most unit. It occupies 1,265 acres mostly on a reminant island of the Missouri River.

Getting to the Cora Island Unit: Take Highway 367 north from St. Louis to Red School Road. Red School road is the second road after crossing the Missouri River. Travel 3 miles on Red School Road to Cora Island Road. Cora Island road is along Ebenezer cemetary. Follow Cora Island road just over a mile over the levee to the parking lot. During minor floods this road may be under water. Do not drive into flood waters.

Cuivre River State Park (carpool): Meet at the car pool lot on the southeast side of the Hwy 94 exit off Hwy 40.

Emmenegger Park

Go west on Watson Rd., just east of Hwy 44.
Turn right onto Geyer Rd.
Cross over 44 and make the 1 st left onto Craigwold Rd.
Follow the road over Hwy 270 and turn left.
Proceed to the entrance of the park on the right.

Forest Park

From the corner of Skinker & Clayton Rds, go north on Skinker 1/2 block to Wells Rd. and turn right into the park. Go past Government Dr. on Wells till you reach the sign for the John F. Kennedy Memorial Forest and a triangular MDC sign on your left. Turn left and proceed back to the parking area with restrooms and a picnic shelter. We will meet there.

Hawn State Park

Meet at the MODOT commuter lot closest to the highway on the southwest side of I-270 & Hwy 30. We will caravan/carpool from there.

(Hilda) Young Conservation Area

Meet at the MODOT lot for commuters in the southwest corner of I-44 and Hwy 109.

Horseshoe Lake

Take I-70 east across the Poplar St. Bridge.
Exit at Hwy 111 (exit 6) and turn left.
Go about 2 miles to the State Park entrance.
Meet at the 1st parking lot on the right.

Lost Valley Trail

Go south on Hwy 94 from Hwy 40 about 5.7 miles to the Lost Valley Trailhead on the right.

Mallard Lake Trail

Meet at the Lake House Restaurant parking lot.
Go west on Hwy 364 to the Maryland Heights Expressway exit.
Go north to Creve Coeur Mill Rd.
Turn right and go south, cross under Hwy 364, and look for the restaurant/parking lot on your left.

Meramec State Park

Meet at the MODOT lot for commuters in the southwest corner of I-44 and Hwy 109

Monroe County Driving Tour

Meet at the MODOT commuter lot closest to the highway on the southwest side of I-270 & Hwy 30. We will caravan/carpool from there.

Powder Valley Nature Center

Go west on Watson Rd, just east of Hwy 44.
Turn right onto Geyer Rd.
Cross over Hwy 44 and make the 1 st left onto Craigwold Rd.
Follow the road for about 1 mile to the entrance on the right before crossing over Hwy 270.

Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary

Hwy 367 north from I-270.
Turn right on last road before the Alton Bridge.
Turn right on the next road to the Teal Pond parking lot.

Shaw Nature Reserve (carpool)

Meet at the commuter parking lot at Hwy 44 & Hwy 141, the northwest corner off the north outer road, ½ hour before the trip meeting time.
Take I-44 west to Hwy 100 (Gray Summit exit).
Turn left back over 44 and then turn right.
The entrance is on the immediate left.
( $3 entrance fee without MOBOT garden membership)

St. Stanislaus Conservation Area

From I-270, take McDonnell Blvd (turns into Howdershell) north ~1.3 miles to Teson Rd.
Turn left and follow to a “T” at Aubuchon.
Turn right and follow to conservation area.
Meet in first lot on left.

Tower Grove Park

Take Hwy 44 to Kingshighway. Go south on Kingshighway to Magnolia, about 1/2 mile. Turn left onto Magnolia to the entrance to the park, Tower Grove Ave. Turn right on Tower Grove Ave. and turn right again onto Northwest Drive. Take Northwest Drive to the Gaddy Bird Garden, which will be about 1/2 mile on your right. We will meet at the entrance to the garden.

Two-Rivers NWR (carpool)

Meet at the Riverlands Teal Pond parking lot (see above) ½ hour before trip meeting time. Cross the Alton bridge and stay left.
Take the River Road north through Grafton.
Meet at the Gilbert Lake parking lot just north of the entrance to Brussels Ferry.

Voelkerding Slough (carpool)

Meet at Busch Conservation area (see above) at the field trip meeting time.