This past weekend was New Jersey Audubon’s fall birding festival in Cape May, and I helped out on a few walks, though with other leaders who are better birders than I, so I didn’t have much to add. It was wonderful to be out early on Friday and Sunday, though, with nice weather and lots of birds around. The lighthouse never looked more dramatic than on Friday morning at sunrise!

In fact, I didn’t take many pictures, as I was busy enjoying the birds with my binoculars most of the time, but here’s a shot from the Hawk Watch platform at the opposite edge of the Cape May Point State Park parking lot from the lighthouse, where watchers and official counters were enjoying hawks, eagles, ducks, geese, and some small birds as well.

These American Coots on Bunker Pond next to the Hawk Watch were enjoying some breakfast of pond weed.

On the park trails, Sweet Gum leaves were a rainbow of colors, and the trees held more small birds like Yellow-rumped Warblers and Ruby-Crowned Kinglets, but none close enough to photograph.

Sunday’s walk a half dozen miles up the Delaware Bay shore at Cox Hall Creek Wildlife Management Area was equally fun, and we enjoyed lots more birds there, like Bald Eagles, Eastern Bluebirds, and many others.

As usual, I was only able to get a good photo of a reliable Great Blue Heron as it posed in a pond for us. A good time was had by all!