Field Trips

New to Birding?
Check out this great brochure on getting started in this wonderful activity.

Wednesday Morning Birding

Our PRAS Wednesday Morning Birding resumed on April 9th. This is the 14th year Kris and Craig Rash have led the weekly outings during spring and fall migrations. They have been looking forward to this all winter, so please come out and join them as we rediscover the magic of our feathered friends’ long journey north. 

Birders of all levels of experience are encouraged to participate. Binoculars are provided, if needed. 

All outings begin at 8:30 AM unless otherwise noted. Cancellations will be emailed to you by 6:30 AM the morning of the event. Go to the About Us page and scroll down to find the link to subscribe to our email list.

April 30   8:30 am Cedar Falls, George Wyth State Park from Airport Blvd. Enter George Wyth Memorial Blvd. east entrance and meet at kiosk.

May 07 8:30 am  Greenbelt Lake (aka Martin Lake) Waterloo  Meet in the parking lot off Martin Rd. which is off Martin Road off Highway 63. GPS point: https://goo.gl/maps/fmJddNHJy7RAgjnC6

May 14   8:30 am  Hartman Reserve lower level Cedar Falls   Drive to Lookout Park and access Park Drive.  Continue to lower-level parking lot parking area. Here is the GPS point for the parking area: https://goo.gl/maps/ngamVSpBWuSTgvuh9  

May 21 8:30 am    Cedar Valley Nature Trail  Gilbertville  Meet at the depot west of Gilbertville off Washburn Road. GPS point: https://goo.gl/maps/q9pSn2UEVw4zVAwP7

May 28   8:30 am   Washington Union Access North of Cedar Falls at Cedar-Wapsi Road (C-57). Parking lot is located on south side of road just before crossing the Cedar River Bridge. GPS point: https://goo.gl/maps/m1bfb7SbtSbvWEZT7

World Migratory Bird Day Field Trip
Saturday, May 10th at Sweet Marsh PRAS's only Bird-A-Thon Event for 2025 Use this link to print a pledge form or make an online donation. Any and all contributions are appreciated!

To celebrate World Migratory Bird Day Prairie Rapids Audubon Society will be holding their annual field trip at Sweet Marsh on Saturday, May 10, 2025.  We will meet at 7:30 a.m. at the south entrance of the marsh GPS point: Sweet Marsh South Entrance Parking Lot 

Be dressed for the weather, come rain or shine.  If you choose to join us for lunch, we will meet at the Panther Lanes in Tripoli around 12:00 located at 502 7th Ave. SW next to Casey's.  You may come for lunch and bird in the afternoon if that suits your schedule better.

World Migratory Bird Day occurs every year during spring and fall migrations to draw our attention to the needs of our avian populations around the world.  Each year has a theme and this year is no different.  Focusing our attention on how we coexist with our feathered friends the theme this year is "Shared Spaces, Creating Bird-Friendly Cities and Communities". (We may be ahead of the game as Waterloo, Cedar Falls, Denver and Tripoli are already Bird Friendly Iowa communities and Bremer is a Bird Friendly Iowa county!)

This will be our only Bird-A-Thon Day this year rather than a weeklong (or more) event so if you're planning your contributions to PRAS depending on the number of species sighted, do so accordingly.  The list will be posted on Facebook and sent on Mailchimp. We will plan other ways to donate later in the year.

PRAS Field Trip Locations

If we don't have a specific field trip scheduled, feel free to go and explore on your own at these locations that we typically visit during our group field trips. If you want to lead a field trip, email Craig and Kris Rash and we will help get the word out. We are always looking for people to share their favorite spots.

Beaver Valley Wetlands Refuge. West of Cedar Falls. Meet in parking lot off N. Union Road and Beaver Valley Road. GPS point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/b4dAQxd6LuD82xtV9

Big Woods Lake. Cedar Falls. Meet in the parking lot at the Big Woods Lake South Entrance. GPS point: https://goo.gl/maps/cAmP4Ex55jABkjKy9

Cedar Hills Sand Prairie. West of Cedar Falls. GPS point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/nZyoYCtG6s9UGwU26

Cedar Valley Nature Trail. Gilbertville. Meet at the depot west of Gilbertville off Washburn Road. GPS point: https://goo.gl/maps/q9pSn2UEVw4zVAwP7

Greenbelt Lake (aka Martin Lake). Waterloo. Meet in the parking lot off Martin Rd, which is off Highway 63. GPS point: https://goo.gl/maps/fmJddNHJy7RAgjnC6

Hartman Reserve lower level. Cedar Falls. Drive to Lookout Park and access Park Drive. Continue to the lower-level parking area. Here is the GPS point for the parking area: https://goo.gl/maps/ngamVSpBWuSTgvuh9

Hickory Hills. South of Waterloo on County Rd. V37 aka Dysart Road. Meet at the archery parking lot on the west side of Hickory Hills. GPS point: https://goo.gl/maps/qTVUyG8sYhkkYJja6

McFarlane Park. East of LaPorte City. Park near the picnic shelter. GPS point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/npTWSe2cM7nq3sny6

Prairie Lakes Cedar Falls Visitors Center. Cedar Falls. Meet at parking lot off Hudson Road. GPS point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/WqdgnbpMHorKmsh4A

Riverview Recreation Area - Harold Getty Lake. Waterloo. At the stoplight follow Mitchell Street about 0.25 miles east of Highway 218 to the parking lot. GPS point: https://goo.gl/maps/wcFiqZj8LbpHYbCeA

Robertson Bird Sanctuary. Waterloo. Pull into parking lot on the left (south side of the road).  GPS point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/zkvN5oaYzsTUVPg69

Sweet Marsh. Bremer County. GPS Point: Sweet Marsh South Entrance Parking Lot From Tripoli, IA go east for 2.1 miles on 7th Ave SE (Co Rd 93) which will turn into 165th St. Turn north onto the gravel Sweet Marsh access road that is immediately after the road for the trailhead for the Sweetwater Creek bike trail.

Washington Union Access. North of Cedar Falls at Cedar-Wapsi Road (C-57). Parking lot is located on south side of road just before crossing the Cedar River Bridge. GPS point: https://goo.gl/maps/m1bfb7SbtSbvWEZT7