Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area — Attraction in Clay Township

I went here on Good Friday since I had off from work and it was a beautiful day. I parked in Lancaster County in the lot on Mountain Spring Rd. It’s a small lot but there were only a few cars there. I did the loop counter clock wise, starting along the creek. Since I always prefer trails along water, I loved this part of the loop. I took the blue Explorer trail which leads towards the reservoir. I stopped by the small museum and sat outside which backs to the reservoir. There were only a handful of people there. I wish I would have known about this place when my kids were small, they would have enjoyed it. It’s interactive learning. I also walked the conservation trail. Then I connected to the loop again and went back to the parking lot via the Elders Run trail. This trail is not as exciting, although there are a few old foundations right off the trail. Parts of the trails are muddy but there are wooden platforms and log rounds to step on. I don’t go to this part of the county often, I didn’t realize...

Middle Creek is a great place for bird-watching despite the foolishness of the people who run it. As you can see from the photographs there is some sort of renovation going on to the visitor center. Since the visitor center has been closed for over a year-and-a-half why on Earth are they doing any kind of renovations to begin with? You can't go in now; you couldn't go in for the last year-and-a-half; and presumably after the renovations are done you still won't be able to go in. Dumb! That being said Middle Creek is probably the single best place in Lancaster County to bird. There are certainly other places that are excellent and I don't mean to demean them by saying this. But in terms of diverse habitat I think Middle Creek wins hands down. There is ample parking, excellent trails and a wide variety of flora and fauna. Worth a visit.

However, the Visitor Center is closed still (at least on weekends) with no place to use bathroom...

I visited a couple weeks ago to see the annual migration of the snow geese (March). This is a fabulous sight. Stop by just before the sun goes down and the birds, who have been foraging in nearby fields, come flying back to the Middle Creek lake by the hundreds. Take binoculars. The day I went, it was around 3 PM and there were about 60,000 geese spread out along the North East lake shore (upwards of 200,000 can sometimes be seen). There is a path you can walk down to get a good vantage point. There is limited access to the lake shore and limited parking along the lake shore. There is a visitors center on a low Western hill overlooking the lake with better parking. Lots of folks parked on the shoulder of the road including at least one tour bus. Lots of tripods and expensive telephoto lenses. Snow geese are majestic creatures - all white with black wing tips. Lots of other birds (ducks) can be...