Redwood Region Audubon Society

Birding Hotspots

Elk Head and College Cove

By: David Fix

Elk Head is a wooded promontory in Trinidad State Beach. To reach Elk Head, exit Hwy 101 at Trinidad and take a right turn (north) onto Patricks Point Drive (in front of the gas station). At 0.5 miles, turn left (west) onto Anderson Lane. When it ends, turn right onto Stagecoach Road and drive just over a tenth of a mile up a rise to a gap in the trees on the left. Follow the dirt road to the parking area. Lock the vehicle and hide valuables; break-ins have occurred here.

At the west end of the right-hand or more northerly parking lot, follow a well-used trail toward the ocean, pausing to inspect chickadee-and-kinglet flocks for unusual migrants as well as routine Humboldt County forest birds. Vagrant-hunting is nearly as productive in May and June--even into July--as it is in fall, although each year is different. At the terminus of the point, one has a nice view of the ocean, as well as of College Cove to the south. In spring and summer, a few Tufted Puffins might be seen with a scope at burrow entrances on Green Rock, the farthest sea stack to the northwest, in EARLY morning. Though reported annually, puffins are not a sure thing on a given visit.

Northern Pygmy-Owl and Gray Jay have been found at Elk Head a few times, and Ruffed Grouse, though exceptional, has been reported. Pileated Woodpecker, Red-breasted Sapsucker, and Red Crossbill are frequent, and Band-tailed Pigeons are routine and variably common from March to October. Keep an eye on the sky in late May and early June for possible Black Swifts. Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Yellow-throated Vireo, multiple Red-eyed Vireos, and Blue-winged Warbler are among the vagrants that have been found here.

Redwood Region Audubon Society
P.O. Box 1054, Eureka, CA 95502
Last updated February 1999