About the Area
The various trailheads offer different birding opportunities, so be sure to try them all. The Cosmo Park trail section is a graveled trail that runs for 1.5 miles through the woodlands in the north section of Como Park until it reaches the N Creasy Spring Rd trailhead. Just before the trail enters the woodland, there is some open grassland and brushy areas where you can pick up American woodcock, white-throated sparrow, brown thrasher, and eastern towhee. Look for hairy, downy, and pileated woodpeckers in the woodlands. When the trail begins to parallel Bear Creek, you can find Louisiana waterthrush, red-shouldered hawk, and green heron. There is a nice boardwalk set into a steep hillside between the Creasy Spring Rd trailhead and the Garth Nature Area trailhead. Listen for migrant vireos, wood warblers, and others in this wooded hillside.
A scenic bridge over Bear Creek just before the Garth Nature Area provides a beautiful look at the creek itself, and is another great spot for thrushes, herons, and the occasional hawk or vulture. The emergent vegetation at the Garth Nature Area attracts sora, Virginia rail, and American bittern. Looking out across the open water, you might see pied-billed grebe, American coot, and wood ducks. Canada geese and great blue heron are also common in these wetlands.
The trailhead at Albert-Oakland park leads through the playfields and disc-golf course and before reaching the woodlands around Bear Creek. As you walk through the park, you’ll be able to pick up most common backyard birds, including dark-eyed junco, northern cardinal, chickadee, tufted titmouse, blue jay, and the occasional migrant. The riparian woodland attracts migrating orioles, thrushes, vireos, and wood warblers. Most of these areas don’t have many eBird checklists, if any, so be sure to submit yours.
There are several trailheads for the Bear Creek Trail, but here we list the four main parking lots. Click on the name to bring up a Google map with directions.
1. Cosmo Park: located on the north end of Cosmo Park, access near the outdoor hockey rink and skateboard park or where Parkside Dr terminates at the trailhead.
2. Creasy Springs Rd: located on N Creasy Springs Rd, just north of the large quarry but before you cross Bear Creek itself.
3. Garth Nature Area: the trail is accessed from the parking lot for the Garth Nature Area, which is on N Garth Ave, after you cross Bear Creek, but before you come to the roundabout.
4. Albert-Oakland Park: the trail can be accessed from two parking lots at Albert-Oakland, the main parking lot off of Blue Ridge Rd, or the second parking lot on Edris Dr. off of Oakland Gravel Rd.
Dining and lodging accommodations can be found in nearby Columbia. While Columbia offers the typical chain restaurants, there are many local favorites as well. For its size, Columbia hosts many art museums and theaters, adding a splash of culture to central Missouri. Residents will also be familiar with the MKT bike trail, a spur of the larger Katy Trail, which allows foot and bike traffic across the city. Many beautiful parks are scattered throughout the city, which offer birding opportunities in their own right.