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Great Allegheny Passage - Dawson Trailhead: Birds & Bikes

Date & Time: Saturday, May 16, 8:30am

Leader: Alex Busato, busatoalex67@gmail.com, 724-963-6612

Directions: Follow Rt. 119 south to Connellsville and cross the Youghiogheny River. At the second light, make a sharp right turn onto Vanderbilt Rd (rt 201). Follow to Vanderbilt then turn right onto Scottdale Dawson Rd. at a house with a large dinosaur sculpture in the yard (yes, really). Follow until just before Dawson bridge, then turn left onto Front St. and immediately left again onto Hollow Rd (may be unlabeled). This will take you to the lot. GPS: 40.045510, -79.662268

Description: The Great Allegheny Passage is one of the region’s best trail systems, following the scenic Youghiogheny River Valley and passing through some great habitat only accessible by the trail. We will be exploring one of the more remote sections of trail, known for hosting numerous Scarlet Tanagers, Baltimore Orioles, Yellow-throated Warblers, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks. The main highlight of this stretch are the Cerulean Warblers that breed here each summer, and we are likely to hear and hopefully see these uncommon birds in numbers. 

This outing will be  best experienced with the help of bikes, since the section hosting the most Cerulean Warblers are approximately 2.5 miles from the trailhead, so the bike group will peddle here first to explore more on foot before returning. This trail allows both standard bikes and eBikes, and bike rentals are also available from the nearby Bikes Unlimited (https://bikesunlimited.life/rentals) in Connellsville. However, those that are unable to bike or choose to bird on foot will still be able to see many birds along this stretch closer to the trailhead, and we will elect a second group leader for this portion based on demand. There are limited restroom facilities at the trailhead (porta-potties that aren’t always well maintained).