City of Waynesboro

Purple Gallinule, © Rob Bielawski

Waynesboro, with a population of 21,006 as of 2010, is a small city snuggled at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains and surrounded by Augusta County in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley. The South River, a tributary of the Shenandoah River, flows through the city. Named in 1797 after Revolutionary War hero “Mad” Anthony Wayne, this picturesque city has retained the charm of the valley while embracing modern progress. There is an abundance of shopping, cultural arts, outdoor recreation, and dining options.

There are various locations to find birds in Waynesboro including some small parks. The best park for birding is the 85-acre Ridgeview Park, which is bisected by the South River with a walking bridge connecting each half. The main entrance from S. Magnolia Avenue brings you into the east side of the park, which is dominated by a parking lot, picnic areas, ball fields, swimming pool, playground, amphitheater and tennis courts. However, the best birding is found on the west side of the river by walking over the bridge, along the river and to the various trails that take you through a large wooded area. Here one can find quite a variety of birds including many migrating passerines in the spring and fall as well as six of Virginia’s eight woodpecker species,  along with White-breasted Nuthatch, and Brown Creeper. Other species found here include Wood Duck, Great Blue Heron, Red-shouldered Hawk, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Belted Kingfisher, Great Crested Flycatcher, Golden- and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Cedar Waxwing, Pine Siskin, Brown Thrasher, and a variety of sparrows, warblers and vireos.

There are a few other parks that are worth visiting. Coyner Springs Park (145 acres) is home to numerous wildlife such as Red-tailed Hawks, blackbirds, sparrows, woodpeckers, squirrels, foxes, and deer. It offers a picnic area, several nature trails, a leash-free dog park, a disc golf course, and is a great place for kite flying. North Park (14 acres) and Basic Park (18 acres) are on the west end of town, are bordered by the South River, and offer picnicking, ball fields and a playground. Constitution Park also lies on the South River next to the Main Street bridge and is a popular location for concerts, festivals, car shows, and other events. Its open area with mixed hardwoods next to the river offers a variety of bird species such as ducks, geese, Great Blue Herons, Warbling Vireos, Eastern Bluebirds, House Wrens, and even an Osprey or Bald Eagle passing through. Rife Park, a small, intimate park perched on the bank of the South River next to the Waynesboro Bridge, has picnic tables and large, mature trees that can yield plenty of breeding and wintering birds. Loth Spring is located just off of Arch Avenue behind the YMCA and is a natural spring pond with watercress and cattails that harbor good birds such as Green Herons, Great Blue Herons, Wood Ducks, Belted Kingfishers, Tree and Barn Swallows, and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. In May and June 2014, a rare Purple Gallinule spent some time here showing off to birders and non-birders alike!

The new South River Greenway Trail runs just under a mile alongside the South River, beginning at Constitution Park and ending at Loth Spring. The paved trail is an easy walk that offers many opportunities to find birds in the river, trees, and fields. Here you’re sure to see Great Blue Herons, Brown Thrashers, Northern Cardinals, various ducks and geese, kinglets, woodpeckers, sparrows, and a good chance at finding an Osprey with a recently-caught fish. The easiest place to park is at Constitution Park.

In addition to the parks and trails above, there are a couple of nice ponds along Ivy Street at the intersection with Claybrook Drive on the north side of town. This is a residential area, but these ponds often hold interesting waterfowl in the winter and spring such as Snow Geese, Trumpeter Swans, Northern Shovelers, American Wigeon, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Redhead, scaup, Bufflehead, Great Blue Herons, Red-shouldered Hawks, as well as woodpeckers and sparrows. It's best to park along the curb of Claybrook Drive. Locals avoid parking on Ivy Street.

It is also worth visiting the ponds on the property of the InVista plant at any time of year. This is private property with photography prohibited, but parking alongside Lyndhurst Road next to Rife Park and walking to the ponds from there and staying on the sidewalk is permitted. This property is across the river from Loth Spring. Because these ponds are spring fed and do not freeze in the winter, they can hold surprising species of waterfowl and waders such as American Coots, Hooded Mergansers, Black-crowned Night-Herons, Great Blue Herons, Green Herons, Bufflehead, Northern Shovelers, and Pied-billed Grebes. Be sure to walk along the South River for additional waterfowl during winter, and the open areas and sycamore trees nearby often hold Eastern Phoebes, warblers, orioles, finches, sparrows, and other birds during seasonally.

The two rarest birds that have visited Waynesboro were a Greater Flamingo in August 1969 (just ahead of Hurricane Camille) and a Wood Stork in August 1985.

As the City of Waynesboro sits entirely surrounded by Augusta County, we recommend that the visiting birder also view the Augusta page to learn about other nearby birding opportunities.

Hotspots

Stakeout Hotspots

Accessibility and Surroundings

Waynesboro sits right off of I-64, while Rt 250 passes through from east to west, and Rt 340 passes through north to south.

Amenities

There are plenty of restaurants and hotels in Waynesboro if you are visiting from out of town. Nearby wineries, breweries, and cideries always provide a nice place to wet your whistle. Any beer enthusiasts will not want to miss Basic City Beer Co., located downtown.

Christmas Bird Counts

The Waynesboro CBC is centered at Sherando and covers most of Waynesboro, part of Augusta County, and part of neighboring Nelson County. The CBC is sponsored by the Augusta Bird Club. Contact cristacabe@gmail.com for further information.

Sources