NH-Pondicherry+Wildlife+Refuge


 * =Birding in New Hampshire=

Coos County
Jefferson Whitefield =Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge= Jefferson, New Hampshire 03583 Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge website Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge brochure and trail map

media type="custom" key="29303229"

Tips for birding Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge
Moose and white-tailed deer frequent the area and there is considerable beaver activity. Over 200 species of birds can be seen here throughout the year. During the summer loon, American bittern, ring-necked duck, green-winged teal, northern harrier, osprey, Virginia rail, black-backed woodpecker, olive-sided flycatcher, gray jay and Swainson’s thrush are just a few of the birds you may hear or see. From New Hampshire's Wildlife Viewing and Birding Trails, p. 4

Pondicherry NWR, Jefferson/Whitefield
Coordinates: 44.3828884, -71.5176487 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pondicherry NWR--Cherry Pond access trail, Whitefield/Jefferson
Coordinates: 44.3644636, -71.5296435 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pondicherry NWR--Cherry Pond, Jefferson
Coordinates: 44.3737095, -71.5189683 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pondicherry NWR--Little Cherry Pond, Jefferson/Whitefield
Coordinates: 44.3823589, -71.5273046 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pondicherry NWR-Mud Pond, Jefferson
Coordinates: 44.391905, -71.5181637 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

The Pondicherry protected areas are jointly owned by New Hampshire Audubon, the New Hampshire Department of Fish and Game, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the Silvio O. Conte National Wildlife Refuge. New Hampshire Audubon Society - Includes link to bird checklist New Hampshire Natural Heritage Bureau U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Connecticut River Birding Trail Hike New England

Tips for birding Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge
The list of birds seen at the refuge is extensive. It is often the first and northernmost stop on a traditional New Hampshire May Big Day effort. Mourning Warbler is a specialty, although scrub growth may be passing the stage where it provides optimal habitat for this species. Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Winter Wren, and Lincoln's Sparrow are all possible. In migration, the refuge can be visited by a variety of waterfowl, including eiders and scoters. Phalaropes have been found there as well.

Don't forget to bird the airport grasslands (from the road) and the airport marsh. Meadowlark, Bobolink, and Kestrel are possible in the grass, and there's the rare possibility of a migrating Upland Sandpiper. Hooded Mergansers and Rusty Blackbirds, among other things, might be found in the marsh.

From the parking area, there is a long, level trail that runs 1.5 miles to railroad tracks in front of Big Cherry Pond. About .3 miles further, on the left, next to a wooden something on the tracks, is a small woodland trail to Little Cherry Pond. That trail is about .7 miles long, making the round trip to Little Cherry about 5 miles. If instead, you take the railroad tracks to the right, you have Big Cherry on the left, and Moorhen Marsh on the right.

About Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge
Nestled beneath the mountains north of the Presidential Range, Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge has often been called a "crown jewel" of New Hampshire's landscape, and visitors to the site will easily understand why. The ponds, wetlands, and forests of this refuge support a wide variety of significant ecological features. The sweeping views from the wetlands and ponds are truly unique, and the hiking trails through lowland spruce - fir forest provide an easy way to experience this characteristic natural community of New Hampshire's North Country in person. A recently constructed viewing platform at the south end of Cherry Pond provides stunning views out across the pond and back towards the Presidential Range.

Good examples of natural community systems you can see here include lowland spruce - fir forest/swamp system and poor level fen/bog system.

The refuge was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1974 by the National Park Service. The Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge is owned and managed by New Hampshire Audubon, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the New Hampshire Department of Fish and Game. The New Hampshire Bureau of Trails and a local Friends group also play a role in the management of the refuge.

Directions: From downtown Whitefield, where Routes 3, 142, and 116 come together, take Route 116 north/east for about 2 miles to Hazen Road. Turn right onto Hazen road, and follow it about a mile to the sign for the Mount Washington Regional Airport. Turn left at the sign onto Airport Road, and follow the road past the airport. After about 1.5 miles, there is turn on the left for a small parking area with a kiosk and trailhead.

Access from Rte. 115 between the towns of Twin Mountain and Jefferson Highlands. The refuge is northwest of the road. There is a parking area with a new kiosk along Airport Road. A wide dirt trail (a former rail grade, soon to be made universally accessible) leads from here north about a mile and a half to the new viewing platform at the edge of Cherry Pond. The Little Cherry Pond hiking trail skirts the western edge of the pond and then leads west to a viewing platform at Little Cherry Pond.

Landowners: New Hampshire Audubon, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NH Department of Fish & Game From Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge website

|| media type="custom" key="26704888"

media type="custom" key="29303227"

|| L156863	US	US-NH	US-NH-007	44.3828884	-71.5176487	Pondicherry NWR, Jefferson/Whitefield L3084188	US	US-NH	US-NH-007	44.3644636	-71.5296435	Pondicherry NWR--Cherry Pond access trail, Whitefield/Jefferson L811746	US	US-NH	US-NH-007	44.3737095	-71.5189683	Pondicherry NWR--Cherry Pond, Jefferson L3510407	US	US-NH	US-NH-007	44.3823589	-71.5273046	Pondicherry NWR--Little Cherry Pond, Jefferson/Whitefield L1153434	US	US-NH	US-NH-007	44.391905	-71.5181637	Pondicherry NWR--Mud Pond, Jefferson