Hi, While making last minute preparations for Saturday's "Birds, Beavers and Butterflies Nature Festival in the meadow, I was thrilled to hear a Whip-poor-will call several times just at dusk. I believe it was somewhere along the Corbett Creek Valley along the northeast edge of the meadow. I was at the south bench (dedicated to Edge Pegg) overlooking the valley when the bird called. A Least Flycatcher gave a short burst of song earlier in the day. About 6:00 p.m. as we were eating supper, Margaret caught a glimpse of a bird larger than a gull which had the size and shape of a Gannet flying eastward along the shore. After several days of easterly winds plus a hurricane, it may be worth keeping a lookout for strays along the north shore of Lake Ontario. Yesterday in the meadow I found another migrant new to the Thickson's Woods Nature Reserve, a Red Bat. To reach Thickson's Woods exit from 401 to Thickson Road South in Whitby. Proceed south past Wentworth Street to the Waterfront Trail. Turn left, turn around and park on the north side of the road. Enter the woods on a path from the south side, about 200 metres east of Thickson Road. Follow the trails through the woods, some of which access the Lake Ontario shore. To view the beaver pond and Corbett Creek Marsh continue east about 100 metres past the entrance to the woods. The meadow is across the Waterfront Trail immediately north of the woods. The entrance is directly across the waterfront trail from the entrance to the woods. To view a map, visit the Thickson's Woods website at http://www.thicksonswoods.com To reach the south bench along Corbett Creek, follow the path going northeast from the entrance to the meadow, turn left on the path along the top of the valley about 100 metres to a path leading to a valley overlook just to the right of a large old apple tree pitted with sapsucker drillings. Dennis Barry & Margaret Carney Thickson's Point, 338 Crystal Beach Blvd. Whitby, ON L1N 9Z7 (905) 725-2116 dbarry@interlinks.net mcarney@interlinks.net