C&O Canal
The C&O Canal runs 184.5 miles from Georgetown in Washington to Cumberland, Maryland. DC Audubon sponsors an annual bird survey of the canal each January. A little over four miles of the canal run through Northwest D.C. The best access points for birding the canal in the District are at Fletcher's Boathouse in Mile 3 and the Chain Bridge in Mile 4. Many great birding spots are farther up the canal in Montgomery County, Maryland, including the Little Falls Dam, Great Falls, Pennyfield Lock, Violette's Lock, and Sycamore Landing. Fletcher's Boathouse has access to the towpath as well as views of the river. At the Chain Bridge, there are a series of ponds in the rock formations below the bridge. You can view these from the bridge's pedestrian walkway. The boundary between Maryland and DC is approximately a half mile north of the Chain Bridge, near the mouth of Little Falls. Use caution when walking the canal on weekends as the miles closest to Washington are used heavily by cyclists.
What to see: Many species, including wood ducks, woodpeckers, and songbirds, breed in this area of the canal. Check the trees at Fletcher's Boathouse for nesting orioles and warbling vireos. Prothonotary and yellow-throated warblers breed in swampy woods along the towpath east and west of the boathouse. In winter, mergansers and other diving ducks may be seen on the river. The Chain Bridge ponds may hold ducks in winter and black-crowned and yellow-crowned night-herons in summer. Look for wood ducks, common and hooded mergansers, and ring-necked ducks. Tundra swans have visited during the summer months. Watch for hawks in the treetops. Indigo buntings and eastern kingbirds breed here.
By public transportation: There is no easy public transportation access to the C&O Canal. The closest is to take the D3, D5, or D6 bus to the intersection of MacArthur Boulevard and Reservoir Road. Walk down Reservoir Road and VERY carefully cross Canal Road to Fletcher's Boathouse. From the boathouse, you can walk a mile north to the Chain Bridge or three miles back into Georgetown. The start of the canal in Georgetown is reachable from the Foggy Bottom station on the Blue and Orange Lines. Walk west on Pennsylvania Avenue and M Street to 30th Street. Turn left and walk along 30th Street to the canal. Birding possibilities in this section are limited, however.
The Google Map below is for Fletcher's Boathouse. Check the pages for individual miles for more access points.
