> Going to Berkley Springs in West Virginia this weekend. Anything I should > look for/expect to see? Any advice? Nobody else answered this so I'll give it a shot. To my eyes the birdlife in the panhandle of West Virginia is not so different from central Maryland. There are a few exceptions. Wild Turkey and Ruffed Grouse are more common. We own property just east of Berkley Springs, and both are on our "yard list". With more undisturbed areas there are more areas to bird in, but lots may be private property and could be off limits. A nice place that I bird when I'm in Berkley Springs, is the C & O Canal which can be accessed in Hancock, Maryland. Walking south along the canal takes you to Little Pool, where in the spring the birding can be great. Yellow-throated Warblers are common, along with Warbling Vireo and Lousianna Waterthrush. I've even found a few Prothonotary Warblers there. These will all be gone at this time of the year, but along the river is an okay spot to look for fall migrants as well. They'll just be fewer and harder to ID. Going north along the canal there eventually takes you by an old cement plant that is also very interesting. Birding is usually a bit slower to the north though. Most of my West Virgina birding has been done on private land that I have permission to bird on. Depending on where you are, you may find either Carolina Chickadee or Black-capped Chickadee. It should be fun trying to tell them apart. I've been finding Ruby-crowned Kinglets lately, a few warblers, Yellow-rumped should be showing up soon, and Lincoln's Sparrow and White-throated Sparrow are showing up. I had my first Dark-eyed Junco the other day. If you get really bored, a drive to the Snicker's Gap Hawk Watch is not out of the question. It's about 30 minutes to Winchester, then take Rt 7 east towards Berryville. Probably less than an hour from Berkley Springs. The hawk watch is in a Park and Ride on the right at the top of the hill right after you cross the river. Have a good time. Please don't reply to this email address. It's work. Use dariuse@abs.net instead. Darius Ecker (dariuse@abs.net) Columbia, Maryland.