15. Hope Valley area. Bounded by count circle and NC 751 (Hope Valley Rd.) on east, NC 54 on south, east side of New Hope Creek on west, and 15-501 on northwest. Notes: This area does not include New Hope Creek itself, but does include the eastern half of the New Hope Creek impoundment. See NC 54 impoundments for some ideas on where to go.
Best spots to cover from long-time counter Bob Chase:
More tips from Chuck Byrd for both areas 15 and 18:
In areas 15 and 18, there is a lot of the same. Better spots are around Marydell Lake and in the wetlands by New Hope Creek north of NC 54. The ball fields at Jordan High School sometimes yield killdeer, and one finds starlings, mourning doves, and an occasional rock pigeon there as well. East of New Hope Creek on Old Chapel Hill Road, both north and south of CH Road has the usual forest passerines. There is a place to pull off the road and park on the south side, just before the New Hope Creek bridge. There are also sometimes sparrows in the housing development called Everwood (where the developers clear cut before starting to build. Is this intentionally ironic or just stupid?) on the south side of NC 54 just before the area referenced above.
It might be worth scanning the driving range on the east of Garrett Road just before 15-501.
The bushes in the Harris Teeter parking lot next to the CVS drive-through window usually has house sparrows – not an easy species to find in these territories. This is on MLK.
751 through Hope Valley has the suburban stuff, and there are a few small ponds off to the east of HV Road. I also find good passerines in the bushes on the playground between Hope Valley School and Dixon Road.
Revised 21 December 2011 cwcook@duke.edu