Greenwich
Audubon Center is located
off of Route 433 in Greenwich, CT
in a residential but rural part of
town.
The large parcel of land
that makes up the center provides
a great escape from the hustle and
bustle of lower Fairfield County
and even folks from very rural
sections would be impressed with
the peace and tranquility offered
here.
Greenwich Audubon Center
provides the perfect habitat for
birds and small animals and the
design of the trails and various
viewing areas make it easy for you
to encounter these creatures.
This place exists because of
the generosity and hard work of
certain individuals.
It's a great place to bring
young children as there are many
activities, a small
museum/bookstore, and the trail
system has educational elements.
I happened to hike on December 4th
with near record breaking
temperatures (64 degrees) and
actually had to take off a
sweatshirt because I was getting
too hot...not bad for December!
The warm summer day allowed
me to criss cross and navigate
nearly the entire trail system and
along the way I encountered some
great scenery and lively
performances from the local
"residents".
The trail system here is
straightforward and easy to
traverse.
There is a large loop with
connecting trails that branch out
in various directions.
The trails will take you
through the woods, to swampy
areas, around a lake, through an
open meadow, over streams, and
across some rocky terrain.
All hikers will easily
notice clear plastic tubing with
pieces of paper in them.
These have educational
literature in them and the clear
plastic keeps the info clean and
dry in addition to making it easy
to read what's inside.
Stop and read these
interesting tidbits as they are
sure to educate you about the
environment you're experiencing.
You'll get a little history
on stonewalls, what type of tree
you're gawking at, or the types of
animals you may be seeing.
The workers and volunteers at the
Audubon Center have built
footbridges and viewing stations
at various points which allow you
to get up close and personal.
Along the eastern side of
the Mead Lake loop I stopped in at
a spot called Birdland and climbed
up a viewing station.
Inside here you're hidden
from the birds and animals and no
sooner did I sit down and look out
the open window, I saw four wood
ducks cooly paddling along the
stream.
It was like being in a small movie
theater as the four cruised along
the twists and turns of the
stream...all I needed was some
classical music to really set the
scene.
After climbing down the viewing
station I hiked through the woods
and up into a meadow.
There are a couple of houses
and a main road on the far side of
this trail as it loops back to the
station which may or may not take
away from you're feeling of
solitude.
But the solitude is broken
for only a short bit and I
actually experienced the best part
of my hike in this section.
As I made my way back to the
Center I took a short walk up a
side trail to photograph some pine
trees.
In the woods I heard quite a
racket and looked to see what I
thought was a couple of dogs with
their owner.
Further investigation
through the treeline revealed what
was really going on.
A group of at least
30 wild turkeys were making there
way up a densely wooded hillside
and rummaging through the leaves
for nuts dropped from trees.
I personally had never seen
quite that many together and there
could have been up to 50 in all!
I watched them for a few minutes
and enjoyed seeing how they
interacted in such a large group.
(Wild turkeys have always reminded
me of prehistoric creatures and I
have a healthy respect for them
since being harassed by a large
tom years ago...yes, that's
embarrassing to admit :)
Believe me...these are not the
knuckleheads they're portrayed to
be in cartoons or on tv. Their
reflexes are ten times faster than
ours and the some toms can stand
four feet and weigh 70 pounds.)
Because they were heading over a
small hill I decided to head up
the path and meet them as they
descended the other side.
I must have gotten to the
other side before they did and as
I walked up a small side trail to
where I thought the turkeys might
be, a buck and two does eating in
the tall grass were startled by my
presence which also startled me
because I had no idea they were
ten feet away from me.
They bounded off into the
woods and were gone in an instant
and the buck actually huffed at me
before he ran for cover.
I was left with my camera on
my way up to my eye with that "oh,
I almost got a great shot!" look
on my face.
I had also back pedaled
about 20 steps into the tall grass
as the buck bounded away and it
wasn't until I calmed down a bit
that I realized I was standing
right next to three man-made
beehives!
The honey bees had been all
stirred up by the does and I found
myself standing five feet away
from a swarming mass.
Thankfully, they were too busy
producing honey to waste their
time attacking me...
The Audubon Center here may not
be huge or give you the feeling
that you're in the middle of
nowhere,
but you'll definitely enjoy the
fresh air and tranquility offered.
And if you're a bird lover,
you'll be in heaven.
Given the fact that the Center is
situated in one of the most
expensive real estate areas in the
world and that the skyline of
Manhattan could be easily seen if
a vantage point of a few hundred
feet could be accessed,
you can't ask for much more than
what Greenwhich Aububon Center has
to offer. It's a great place to
hike. Visit their official website for current information.
Directions: For
Connecticut residents coming from
up north or eastern part of the
state it's best to jump on I-84
west to 6-84 south.
NYC residents or southern
Connecticut visitors should get on
6-84 north.
Both parties should follow
6-84 and get off exit 3, the
Armonk exit.
I went 6-84 south and it was
a left hand turn for me at the end
of the exit 3 ramp to get on Rt.
22
Take Rt. 22 east and you'll
only go 0.2 (two tenths of a mile)
before your next turn so go slow
here and be in the rightside lane
ready for a right hand turn onto
Rt. 433.
At the intersection of 22
and 433 take a right. Go two miles
and on your left will be the
entrance to Greenwhich Audubon
Center.
You can't miss it. You'll be at a
4 stop sign intersection and just
hang an extreme left into the
Center.
Printable
version of the Greenwich
Audubon Center page
If you have any trail updates to
share or have feedback/questions
please click
here to send email or call
203.788.7665
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