Every year at this time, thousands of bird-watchers flock to Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area to view tens of thousands of migrating Snow Geese and Tundra Swans. These migratory waterfowl winter in the Chesapeake Bay region and migrate north in the spring to nesting grounds in in the arctic region of northern Canada. They tend to move through quickly in late fall, but on their return trip north they stop over at Middle Creek for several weeks in late February and early March. Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area is operated by the Pennsylvania Game Commission and provides Habitat for a variety of waterfowl, songbirds, a nesting pair of Bald Eagles, and a host of other wildlife. This year there is estimated to be 65,000 Snow Geese and 2,400 Tundra Swans. The prime viewing area is at Willow Point, which is accessible by the short, paved Willow Point Trail. Geese can also be viewed along the driving tour route that is open starting on March 1. The Visitors Center at Middle Creek offers a great collection of mounted wildlife, a touch-n-feel bin and activities for kids, as well as other educational exhibits and song-bird viewing. An extensive network of hiking trails of various difficulty levels is available at Middle Creek and the surrounding game lands.
Middle Creek is located right over the hill from Furnace Hills B&B. It’s a scenic 5 minute drive or a nice hike on the Horseshoe Trail to get from here to there. The overlook on the Millstone trail (accessible from a spur off of the Horseshoe Trail) is less than a 1/2 hour hike from FHB&B and offers a view of the lake. When the geese are here, they can be heard all the way at the overlook on top of the hill. Of course the Geese and Swans give us frequent flyovers here at the B&B, so our deck can be a great viewing location if the timing is right!
