Feathers Over Freeport Birding Festival

Saturday, May 30, 2026
Bradbury Mountain State Park
8:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Bradbury Mountain State Park
528 Hallowell Road, Pownal, Maine 04069 / (207) 688-4712

8 - 10 am - Bird Walk: Join us for a walk in the woods to seek out spring migrants and woodland residents. All birding levels welcome. Bring your own binoculars. Several binoculars will be on hand to borrow. Meet at the Group Picnic Shelter.

10 am - 3 pm - Educational Displays: Get bird posters, while they last, courtesy of the Maine Wildlife Park and Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Learn what other Maine State Parks have to offer! Located in the Day Use Area.

10 - 11 am- Bird Walk for Children: Birding is cool! Birding is fun! Imagine something you can do anywhere. You hear a bird, tilt your head to listen, and are able to name the species just from the sound or a quick glimpse. Your friends will be impressed! Join a naturalist on this beginning bird walk designed just for kids (children must be accompanied by parents or adults over 18). We will help you learn some of the basics of identifying birds. Meet at the Group Picnic Shelter.

10 am - 3 pm - Birding Fun & Games: Build a bird house or make a backyard bird feeder while supplies last. On-going hands-on activities and crafts designed for children and families of beginning birders will be available. Program led by the Bureau of Parks and Lands staff and volunteers. Located in the Group Day Use Area and the Playground.

1pm  - 2:00 pm Biomimicry led by the Chewonki Foundation: Many of the engineering challenges facing humans today are similar to difficulties that exist in the natural world. Plants and animals have evolved through generations of successes and failures resulting in remarkable adaptations to overcome these challenges. Join us as we explore the ways engineers have taken advantage of nature’s bright ideas through biomimicry. And meet some live animals that help us draw comparisons between human-made products and animal adaptations.  As we look for creative solutions to future problems, perhaps we can find inspiration by observing nature in our own backyard! Located at the Group Picnic Shelter.

1 - 2:30 pm - Vernal Pool Exploration - Wading into the Woodland Waters: Vernal pools are temporary water bodies which fill from snowmelt and spring rains and provide breeding habitat for amphibians including wood frogs, several species of mole salamanders and invertebrates such as fairy shrimp. Vernal pools make up an important base of the food web and provide a vast amount of biomass to the landscape. Join Park Ranger Brenna Hartmann to journey through this wonderful and incredibly important wetland habitat. We will learn how to identify a vernal pool and the critters that live in them. Be prepared for wet conditions and wear appropriate footwear for a hike of about 1.4-miles round-trip. Meet at the Group Picnic Shelter.

2:30 - 3:00 - Bird Call Contest: Get ready to show off your best bird mimicry skills by joining in our bird calls contest. All bird calls must be made without the help of any devices. Our judges will decide the winners and award prizes. All ages welcome! Start practicing now! Contestants please meet 10 minutes ahead of the program to sign-in to participate. Audience and contestants, please meet near the pavillion at the Bird Call Contest sign. Bring a folding chair or blanket if you want to be seated.

3 - 4:00 pm - Owls of Maine: Habits and Adaptations of Maine’s Native Owls Presented by the Chewonki Foundation: A live owl is the highlights of this program, which introduces participants to the owls native to Maine and New England.  Beginning with slides and sounds, participants will learn the identifying characteristics and calls of each owl.  Then, using talons, wings, and skulls, we explore the adaptations of these silent nocturnal hunters. This program ends with an intimate and detailed look at an owl, bringing these creatures of the night into the light!  Meet at the group Pavilion.  Bring a folding chair or blanket if you want to be seated.

Sunday, May 31, 2026
Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park
10:00 AM to 2:00 PM

Wolfe’s Neck Woods State Park
426 Wolfe’s Neck Road Freeport, Maine 04032 / (207) 865-4465

10 am - 2 pm - Educational Displays: Get bird posters, while they last, courtesy of the Maine Wildlife Park and Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Learn what other Maine State Parks have to offer! Located in the field near the Group Picnic Shelter.

10 - 11 am - Bird Walk for Children: Birding is cool! Birding is fun! Imagine something you can do anywhere. You hear a bird, tilt your head to listen, and can name the species just from the sound or a quick glimpse. Your friends will be impressed! Join a naturalist on this beginning bird walk designed just for kids (children must be accompanied by parents or adults over 18). We will help you learn some of the basics of identifying birds. Meet at the Group Picnic Shelter.

10 am - 2 pm - Birding Fun & Games: Build a bird house or make a backyard bird feeder while supplies last. On-going hands-on activities and crafts designed for children and families will be available. Program led by Bureau of Parks and Lands staff and volunteers. Located in the field near the Group Picnic Shelter.

10 am - 2 pm - Osprey Watch:  Get a close look at nesting ospreys through our spotting scope. Stop by for a quick look or stay to ask questions and learn about their life story. Presented by park staff and volunteers. Meet at the Osprey Sign across from Googins Island via either the White Pines Trail or Casco Bay Trail.

11 am - 12 pm - Spring Wildflower Walk: Join park staff for a one-hour stroll to look at and identify common spring wildflowers of Wolfe’s Neck Woods State Park.  Meet at the Group Picnic Shelter.

12 - 1 pm - Animal Tracks: This is a fun activity for kids as they will learn about animal tracking and how to identify tracks, then be able to make a plaster cast of animal tracks to take home. Meet at the Group Picnic Shelter.

1 - 2 pm - Castlebay:  Musical performance by the duo Castlebay.

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