Now is the time to go hawk watching! To help you see lots of hawks, falcons, eagles, and other raptors, we’ve compiled a roundup of 24 great fall hawk watches across North America. Follow the links below to find maps, directions, bird lists, contact information, and detailed descriptions. Each site welcomes visitors.
Arizona
Yaki and Lipan Points, Grand Canyon National Park
Hawks, eagles, falcons, and the occasional California Condor fly past this pair of hawk watches along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.
California
Located on a hilltop just north of the Golden Gate Bridge, Hawk Hill hosts the largest known concentration of migrating raptors in the Pacific states: 30,000 sightings of 19 raptor species each fall.
Delaware
Ashland Nature Center and Hawk Watch, Hockessin
Birders tally 10,000 to 20,000 raptors each fall at this site in northern Delaware. The biggest show happens September 15-25, when hundreds or even thousands of Broad-winged Hawks can cruise past in a day or even a few hours.
Florida
Florida Keys Hawk Watch, Curry Hammock State Park
This site, which records the largest number of Peregrine Falcons of any North American count site, tallies an average of 15,000 southbound birds a year, only 21 percent of which reverse course when they find themselves confronted with a significant water crossing at the end of the Keys. How many complete the crossing is a mystery.
Iowa
Hitchcock Nature Center, Honey Creek
Each fall, about 11,000 individuals of up to 20 raptor species pass this hawk watch, located in western Iowa’s globally significant Loess Hills. The prime viewing period is between September 20 and October 20.
Mexico
Every day from August to November, thousands of raptors pass over sister count sites Cardel and Chichicaxtle during the most spectacular avian migration in the world. More than five million birds — predominantly Broad-winged and Swainson’s Hawks, Mississippi Kites, and Turkey Vultures — fly overhead on their way to Central and South America.
Minnesota
Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory, Duluth
A 315-acre woodland on a bluff overlooking Lake Superior. Tens of thousands of Broad-winged Hawks pass by in September, followed by impressive numbers of Bald Eagles and Red-tailed Hawks in late October, but its claim to fame is the Northern Goshawk. Hawk Ridge hosts the largest concentration of the species in North America.
Montana
Bridger Mountains Hawk Watch, Bozeman
Getting to this lofty ridge requires determination (elevation: 8,520 feet), but it’s worth it, since this is the premier location in the lower 48 states for observing migrating Golden Eagles in autumn. Up to 1,800 have been observed in a season, and more than 500 have been tallied in a day. The Bridger Raptor Festival takes place first weekend of October each fall.
Nevada
Goshute Mountains HawkWatch is a well-known and popular migration site with hundreds of people visiting each fall. Sitting at 9,000 feet in northeastern Nevada, the site not only offers spectacular panoramic views of nearby mountains and the Salt Flats, visitors also get incredibly close views of raptors as they migrate through the Intermountain Flyway.
New Jersey
Cape May Hawk Watch, Cape May Point
Hawk counting at Cape May goes back at least to 1931, when wardens hired by the Association of Audubon Societies set out to conduct daily tallies. As the ravages of DDT became apparent in the 1960s, leaders at New Jersey Audubon began to raise funds for an autumn hawk count at Cape May Point. In 1976, they hired Pete Dunne to be the site’s first official counter. In the article linked above, he recounts the early years of the hawk watch on the occasion of its 40th anniversary, in 2016.
New Mexico
Manzano Mountains HawkWatch, Cibola National Forest
The observation post here sits at an elevation of 9,195 feet on a northeast-facing, postcard-perfect limestone outcrop. It offers views of a large variety of migrating raptors flying right over your head — from Sharp-shinned Hawks to Golden Eagles. Annual counts typically range from 5,000 to 7,000 migrants of up to 18 species.
New York
Chestnut Ridge Hawk Watch, Mt. Kisco
A hawk watch north of New York City that regularly tallies the highest counts of any watch site in New York State. The biggest attraction is the Broad-winged Hawk migration in mid- to late September. Look for Red-shouldered Hawks in late October and early November and Golden Eagles and goshawks from late October through November.
Franklin Mountain Hawk Watch, Davenport
This site provides a spectacular panoramic view of the Susquehanna River Valley in central New York State. It’s a great spot for watching Broad-wings and Red-tails, and it’s one of the premier places on the Eastern Flyway for viewing Golden Eagles.
Ontario
Hawk Cliff Hawk Watch, Elgin County
Located near the midpoint of the north shore of Lake Erie, this site tallies as many as 15 raptor species daily totaling several hundred to a few thousand birds.
Holiday Beach Conservation Area, Amherstburg
The 40-foot-tall observation tower at Holiday Beach, about 15 miles south of the city of Windsor, is strategically located to maximize viewing of raptors that funnel along the north shore of Lake Erie to cross at the southern end of the Detroit River. Expect accipiters in September, Peregrine Falcons in early October, and Golden Eagles in November.
Oregon
Bonney Butte Hawk Watch, Mt. Hood National Forest
This incredible site offers amazing topside views of raptors against an astounding mountainous backdrop, which includes Mt. Hood.
Pennsylvania
Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, Kempton
September sees a procession of Osprey and Bald Eagles. By mid-month, all eyes are trained for Broad-winged Hawks. The peak flight passes between September 12 and 22. Accipiters and falcons take center stage in October, followed by Red-tailed Hawks and Golden Eagles in November and, in December, by Rough-legged Hawks and a second surge of Bald Eagles.
Texas
Corpus Christi Hawk Watch at Hazel Bazemore Park
Located along the Nueces River in the northwest corner of Corpus Christi, Texas, this site hosts the largest concentration of migrating raptors in the United States or Canada each fall. The average count of 720,000 is more than three and a half times that of the second largest site. And since 30 species of diurnal raptors have been recorded over the years, the site can also be called the most diverse.
Smith Point Hawk Watch, Smith Point
No place is better for raptor photography than this hawk watch on the shores of Galveston Bay, not far from Anahuac NWR in southeastern Texas. The birds come in low over the tower and often circle around, giving ample opportunity for photos.
Virginia
Kiptopeke State Park, Cape Charles
This park, on Chesapeake Bay on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, is one of the best places on the planet to observe migrating falcons. One-day totals of more than 350 Merlins have been recorded, and two or more 100-Peregrine days occur each fall.
Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch, Afton
This hawk watch, in central Virginia’s Rockfish Valley, is located behind an inn off I-64. As many as 18,000 birds of prey fly past each year. Broad-winged Hawks peak during the third week of September.
Washington
Chelan Ridge Hawk Watch, Pateros
This site offers mountainous vista combined with close-up views of passing birds. The chance to see northwestern specialties, such as the Black Merlin, dark-morph Broad-winged Hawk, and Harlan’s Red-tailed Hawk, separates the ridge from other hawk-watching sites.
Slate Peak is the highest place in Washington accessible by car. The peak is about two hours north of Chelan Ridge and is open to visitors. It does not have an active hawk count, but it’s still a good spot to view southbound raptors.
West Virginia
Hanging Rock Raptor Observatory, Monroe County
“Hanging Rock is a special place,” writes Jim Phillips, the former chief counter at the site. “The name comes from the way the sandstone juts at an angle toward the sky. You can perch on the rocks, throw a leg over either side of the top of the ridge, and look to the ridge and valley of the Appalachians to the east and the Appalachian Plateau to the west.”
To find more locations to view migrating birds of prey, see HawkWatch International’s Migration Network as well as HawkCount.org.
Where to look for Golden Eagle in fall
Tips from Pete Dunne for identifying hawks in flight
Originally Published
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