NH-Pawtuckaway+State+Park


 * =Birding in New Hampshire=

Rockingham County
Deerfield and Nottingham =Pawtuckaway State Park= 40 Pawtuckaway Road Nottingham, New Hampshire 03290 Pawtuckaway State Park webpage Pawtuckaway State Park trail map

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Tips for birding Pawtuckaway State Park
From Birdwatching in New Hampshire

Pawtuckaway SP, Nottingham/Deerfield
Coordinates: 43.0929607, -71.1790466 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--Boulder Trail, Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.1193334, -71.1778781 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--Burnham's Marsh, Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.0935924, -71.1527151 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--Fundy Cove boat launch, Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.1093713, -71.1480087 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--Fundy Cove, Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.1043224, -71.1452772 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--Middle Mt. trail, Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.106132, -71.1861706 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--Middle Mt., Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.1078402, -71.1874016 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--North Mt., Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.1221351, -71.1950296 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--Pawtuckaway Lake, Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.0811762, -71.1591339 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--Reservation/Tower Rd. loop
Coordinates: 43.1015469, -71.1966419 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--Round Pond, Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.1133659, -71.1770053 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Pawtuckaway SP--South Mt., Nottingham
Coordinates: 43.101339, -71.1809564 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

About Pawtuckaway State Park

 * Location**: Best birding entrance is from Reservation Road in Deerfield, off NH-107, but the other 2 entrances may also be worth checking.

Reservation Road entrance--From NH-101 exit 3, take NH-43 north through Candia and past the Deerfield Fairgrounds for 7.4 miles. At the junction with NH-107, turn right (south) on NH-107 and go .7 mile to Reservation Road, and turn left.

From NH-101 Exit 5 in Raymond, go north .5 mile on NH-107 to the junction with NH-27. Turn left and follow NH-27 & NH-107 for 4.0 miles until they split. Bear right onto NH-107 north for 3.2 miles to Reservation Road, and turn right.

On Reservation Road, go 1.1 miles to the powerline crossing and continue another couple of miles until the road ends at a T intersection. The road to the left traverses the western edge of the park and will eventually circle back and come out a short distance west of the T intersection, where you can turn right to return to the powerline crossing. The road is usually gated in the winter and spring.

Main entrance--From NH-101 Exit 5 in Raymond, go north on NH-107 for .5 mile, turn left at NH-27, and then make an almost immediate right on NH-156. Go about 1 mile to Mountain Road, and turn left. Follow about 2 miles to the entrance road to the park, which provides access to the campground area, the south end of the Fundy Trail, and to several other trails leading up the mountain. There is an entrance fee during the warm-weather months, and the road is closed during the colder months.

Boat launch entrance--From NH-101 Exit 5 in Raymond, go north on NH-107 for .5 mile, turn left at NH-27, and then make an almost immediate right on NH-156. Go about 4.8 miles to Deerfield Road and turn left. Go 1.8 miles to just past Shadow Lane, and turn left onto the blacktop road, which becomes dirt just around the curve. (The sign for the boat launch is missing.) This road terminates after about .5 mile at the parking area and the north end of the Fundy Trail.

At the Reservation Road entrance, it is worth birding the high-tension north-south power line corridor, which has small shrubs and an ATV path in both directions. Most shrubs cut back in 2006 by power company on periodic maintenance cycle, which may affect birds seen for some time. A good-sized pond over the hill going south. Parts of the trail may be impassable due to high water after heavy snow-melt or heavy spring rains. Chestnut-sided, Prairie, & Yellow Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Field Sparrow, Eastern Towhee, Eastern Kingbird.
 * Target birds**:

Pawtuckaway is best birded in May and June and seems to attract both northern and southern birds. Breeding Dark-eyed Juncos, Evening Grosbeaks, Yellow-throated Vireos, Cerulean Warblers, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers. Other common breeding birds include Scarlet Tanager, thrushes, many warblers (Blackburnian, Redstart, Ovenbird). The most reliable area for **Cerulean Warbler** in recent years has been the first mile of Middle Mountain Trail as well as Tower Rd within a few hundred yards up and downhill from the trailhead. This is also a good area for **Blue-gray Gnatcatcher** (try the cleared parking spot just above the trailhead) and **Yellow-throated Vireo**. **Acadian Flycatcher** (a rarity in NH) has been seen most recently a few hundred yards up Tower Road from the trail to the Fire Tower and along the Boulder Trail, though there are many areas worth checking for this species. **Winter Wren** and **Dark-eyed Junco** seem to be most reliable on South Mountain near the fire tower area, while **Evening Grosbeak** can frequently be heard overhead in the pines near the intersection of Tandy and Reservation Rds or along the first stretch of the North Mountain Trail north of Reservation Rd. **Louisiana Waterthrush** may be found in the ravine across the road from the trail to the fire tower, or along the beginning of the road to Round Pond from the "T" intersection with Tower Road (though they may be difficult to find after mid-May). This latter spot, with many Eastern Hemlocks, is a good area for some of the other breeding **warblers** and even **Pine Siskins** on occasion. Listen throughout for rare southern species such as **Worm-eating**, **Yellow-throated**, and **Kentucky Warblers**, as all have been reported here very rarely. Finally, the power-line cut before the intersection with Tandy Road can be good depending on the stage of succession, with **Brown Thrasher**, **Prairie Warbler**, **Indigo Bunting**, and **Field Sparrow** as possibilities.


 * Description**: A huge state park covering most of the southern end of the Town of Nottingham. It centers around several peaks that comprise Mount Pawtuckaway and abuts the western edge of Pawtuckaway Lake. (The other edges of the lake are private property.) An area called Burnham Marsh is near the end of the main entrance road just before the campground and adjacent to the Fundy Trail. Because of the campground and the many people who stay there, this area usually has a lot of people around, so the birding may not be ideal.

Pawtuckaway Lake is on the east side, but most birding is done in the large forested area in the western part of the park. That area includes Middle Mountain and South Mountain, trails through extensive forest, and ponds and scattered open wetlands. The flies come out after mid-June, so try to visit before then. Of course, most of this rather large park is not explored by birders on an annual basis, and surprises likely await in the more remote areas.

The Fundy Trail between the campground area and the boat launch area passes through woods and by Burnham Marsh. It can be productive, but because of the nearby campground and the many people who stay there, it is often crowded.

HikeNewEngland.com - Includes trail maps and trail descriptions.
 * Related Links**:

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media type="custom" key="29308827" || L821823 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.0929607 -71.1790466 Pawtuckaway SP, Nottingham/Deerfield L1408351 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.1193334 -71.1778781 Pawtuckaway SP--Boulder Trail, Nottingham L1408163 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.0935924 -71.1527151 Pawtuckaway SP--Burnham's Marsh, Nottingham L1408360 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.1093713 -71.1480087 Pawtuckaway SP--Fundy Cove boat launch, Nottingham L1416684 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.1043224 -71.1452772 Pawtuckaway SP--Fundy Cove, Nottingham L794744 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.106132 -71.1861706 Pawtuckaway SP--Middle Mt. trail, Nottingham L1416732 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.1078402 -71.1874016 Pawtuckaway SP--Middle Mt., Nottingham L1408190 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.1221351 -71.1950296 Pawtuckaway SP--North Mt., Nottingham L696957 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.0811762 -71.1591339 Pawtuckaway SP--Pawtuckaway Lake, Nottingham L1259618 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.1015469 -71.1966419 Pawtuckaway SP--Reservation/Tower Rd. loop L1408343 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.1133659 -71.1770053 Pawtuckaway SP--Round Pond, Nottingham L5892376 US US-NH US-NH-015 43.101339 -71.1809564 Pawtuckaway SP--South Mt., Nottingham