Casual Birdwatching in West Virginia

Offered Monday of Festival week for our week-long guests and those here for the first half of the week, and Thursday for those coming in at week’s end, Birding by Butt is yet another unique part of the New River Birding and Nature Festival. An opportunity to meet other festival participants, spend quality time with our well-known and respected field guides, the setting is best described as laid back while the birding is most often described as spectacular.

Imagine sipping a hot cup of coffee on the porch at Opossum Creek Retreat and being treated to the song and fiery looks of a Blackburnian Warbler – not an occurrence that happens every year, but certainly one that has happened more than once. Hooded Warbler, Black-and-White, and Northern Parula are in abundance here and with plenty of spotting scopes and well-trained eyes on hand, many of our guests find themselves seeing the birds often enough that they turn from identification to watching for behaviors.

Adding to the flavor of the day, is the day-long banding of both hummingbirds and song-birds that enables guests to see birds up close and personal – even getting the opportunity to assist in removing them from the nets and in releasing them once the bands are placed.

Known for our great food, New River Birding and Nature Festival table fair is at its absolute best on Birding by Butt days as Cathedral Café’s own Wendy Bayes provides a breakfast buffet that includes salmon quiche, homemade flap jacks and more. Its hard to save room but Wendy cook lunch for us today too.