HAMBURG
FERRY ACCESS
Edge
Wade, 2018
24.68
acres Pike Co. DeLorme 33, 9-G
GPS
39.2281611,-90.7275555
MDC
owned; for information call: 573-248-2530
This access to the Mississippi River is within the National Audubon Society’s Lincoln Alluvial Complex Important Bird Area.
Directions: From Elsberry at the junction of MO 79 and Rt.
P, go east on Rt. P 5.60 miles. The
access property begins at Pike County Rd. 203, where Rt. P ends and the road
surface becomes concrete.
ADA
Information: Birding can
be done from or near a car along the slightly elevated concrete road and in the
large concrete parking area. The privy
is accessible.
When to
Visit/Species to Expect: Reports from only 12 trip dates are available at this writing. Mid to late December visits show an excellent mix ranging from Snow Goose, Canvasback, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, and Hooded and Common Merganser, through Northern Harrier, Cooper’s Hawk and Bald Eagle, Barred Owl, 6 species of woodpecker, Brown Creeper, Winter Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, American Tree, Field, Fox, White-crowned, Song and Swamp Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, and Eurasian Tree Sparrow.
June
and July reports show Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Great-crested
Flycatcher, American and Fish Crow, Northern Rough-winged and Cliff Swallow,
Northern Parula, Prothonotary Warbler, Yellow Warbler and Common Yellowthroat
among the summer residents/probable breeders.
On
a mid-September trip, a Spotted Sandpiper was tail-bobbing on the boat ramp.
The
recorded trips certainly indicate that a visit here in winter is a good bet for
some fine birding. The swamp, woods and river are so easily seen from the road
and parking lot that birding the access will surely add many species if done in
other seasons.
Features
of interest to birders: The elevated
concrete road provides a good vantage point to look and listen into the swamp
on both sides on the way into the access/boat ramp lot. The lot, itself, is large and is a good place
for birding the swamp and forest on the edges.
From
the lot, the half-mile of Mississippi River is wide-open for viewing. Looking downstream, one can imagine the river
as Mark Twain saw it.
Toilets: 1 privy
Camping: None
Hazards/Limitations: Flooding may limit access and/or leave debris and
mud on the concrete area.
Nearby
Birding Sites: Prairie
Slough CA, B.K. Leach CA, Clarence Cannon NWR, Upper Mississippi CA (multiple
sites), Cuivre River SP.
