The Dunlora section of the Rivanna trail is one of Albemarle County’s finest locations to observe migrant passerines, with extensive brushy fields, edges, and riparian woods to walk through. Fall offers a wide variety of sparrows, with this being one of the more reliable locations for Lincoln’s. Many species of warblers and other neotropical migrants can also be found throughout, though the woods at the north end of Dunlora Farm Road are one of the best areas, and look great for a Mourning or Connecticut. The vine-y tangles and overgrown fields are a great place to look for Empidonax flycatchers in migration. The riparian woods are home to Barred Owls, Wood Thrushes, and Acadian Flycatchers in the breeding season, and Blue Grosbeaks nest in the shrubby fields. Species of note recorded here include Sedge Wren, Yellow-bellied, Alder and Olive-sided Flycatchers, Redhead, and breeding Common Mergansers. The trails can be accessed from a parking area on Dunlora Farm Road by the Dunlora community garden and soccer field (see map). This is marked “residents only”, but as is typical for these locations, birders have been accessing the trails here for years without any issues. This section of the Rivanna Trail can also be accessed by walking north along the Pen Park section of the trail until you cross into Albemarle County from the Charlottesville city limits.
eBird Hotspot: Rivanna Trail - Dunlora
—Drew Chaney, February 2023