Winter waterfowl visible from the Boardwalk and other vantage points include both dabbling and diving ducks, swans, with 29 species reported, including all three mergansers and salt-water species such as White-winged Scoter and Long-tailed Duck. This is probably the most reliable spot in Prince George’s County for Common Goldeneye. Loons and grebes area also readily found in season. Come back in summer to look for terns. Breeding birds at the Boardwalk area include Red-headed Woodpecker, which can often found along the side trails from the Boardwalk, wher hey lead into wet woodland habitat. Also be alert for Red-headed Woodpeckers flying over the open marsh on the inland side of the Boardwalk.

An Ash-throated Flycatcher made an appearance at National Colonial Farm in December 2021, angering into early January of 2022, and was observed by many birders from near and far.

Wharf Road, in addition to providing waterfowl views equivalent to, or better than, those at the Boardwalk, also offers good passerine birding during spring and fall migration; park at the fishing area at Farmington Landing and walk back along the road. Some breeding specialties along Wharf Road include  Eastern Screech-Owl, Willow Flycatcher, Warbling Vireo, Scarlet Tanager, and Blue Grosbeak.

Grassland birds  such as Bobolink, Eastern Meadowlark, and Grasshopper Sparrow may occur along the entrance roads to the National Colonial Farm and the Boardwalk. Prairie Warbler and Yellow-breasted Chat will be in the shrubby areas.

At Marshall Hall, besides looking for waterfowl in winter and terns in summer, be sure to walk around the scrubby areas near the Marshall Hall historic home ruins, checking for passerines in the shrubs and in the trees along the historic entrance lane.

Piscataway Park is home to bald eagles, beavers, deer, foxes, ospreys, and many other species. To complement the surroundings, the park has, in addition to a public fishing pier and two boardwalks over fresh water tidal wetlands, a variety of nature trails, meadows, and woodland areas. The Park is also home to National Colonial Farm.

Piscataway (National) Park, a facility of the National Park Service, lies along three miles of the south bank of the Potomac River and its tributary, Piscataway Creek, in southern Prince George’s County, covering about 750 acres. Although the official name is simply Piscataway Park, we have included National in the title here to distinguish it from the nearby Piscataway MOS Sanctuary and the county-owned Piscataway Creek Stream Valley Park system. Piscataway Park is co-administered by the non-profit Accokeek Foundation.

Piscataway Park is probably the best site in Prince George’s County for winter waterfowl and gulls. Here the Potomac River runs east to west, so views across the river are in favorable light all day. The river is fully one mile wide and a scope is essential. (Listers should note that the entire river up to the Virginia shore lies within Maryland).

Piscataway Park can be accessed through four separate points: on the west end at National Colonial Farm (a re-created colonial-era farm); at the parking lot for the boardwalk at Accokeek Creek along the Potomac shore; at the end of Wharf Road, where a fishing area at Farmington Landing provides a panoramic view of the Piscataway Creek estuary; and at the Marshall Hall Boat Ramp, located just across the county line in Charles County.

Many birders choose to work from east to west when visiting Piscataway Park, so the first stop will be at Wharf Road/Farmington Landing. Use your scope to scan the water for waterfowl and gulls in winter and terns in summer. In spring, early summer, and fall, walk back on Wharf Road from the fishing area to check the woodlands and brushy areas, which are very good for migrant passerines and for nesting species such as Scarlet Tanager, Wood Thrush, and Northern Parula.

The next stop will be the Boardwalk at Accokeek Creek, accessed from Bryan Point Road; look for a gravel lane on the right (north) side of the road, at a break in a post-and-rail fence. Drive down the lane to a parking area, checking the shrubby fields and second-growth woodlands as you go. Prairie Warblers breed here. After parking your car, proceed onto the gravel foot-trail which will soon bring you to a wooden boardwalk along the shore of the Potomac and adjacent to the Accokeek Creek marsh on the inland side. The boardwalk is about 0.2 miles long, and beyond the boardwalk, a natural-surface trail continues along the shore of the Potomac, all the way to Mockley Point at the mouth of Piscataway Creek, another 3/4 of a mile. The marsh may hold rails and other wetland birds; the wooded borders of the boardwalk and trail are good for migrant passerines. Red-headed Woodpeckers breed near the marsh. A couple of small side trails (see detail map in the park map link at left) extend south near the marsh and near the parking lot.

The third stop is at the National Colonial Farm, which is a reconstruction of a colonial-era farm with live heritage-breed farm animals and educational exhibits. There are also some scattered pollinator gardens on the grounds. You will want to walk the short trail from the parking lot past the Visitor Center to access the fishing pier that extends well into the river. There is a fine network of trails along the shore and throughout the Colonial Farm; the woodlands and brushy areas are good for migrants in spring and fall. See the Accokeek Foundation website for trail descriptions. The grass pastures and fields near the entrance road may hold breeding Bobolinks, Grasshopper Sparrows and Eastern Meadowlarks in spring and summer. Do not enter any of the fenced fields or farm animal enclosures.

The fourth and last stop will be at Marshall Hall Boat Ramp, just a short drive over the county line in Charles County. Here, the boat ramp and pier area gives another fine view of the Potomac River, and is especially good in winter when waterfowl abound. This spot can also be good for terns in summer.  The shrubby areas and the trees near the ruins of the historic home can be good for passerines.

Wheelchair Accessibility:

The Boardwalk at Accokeek Creek is wheel-chair accessible, but the trail beyond the Boardwalk is natural-surfaced and too irregular for a wheelchair. The fishing pier at the National Colonial Farm, the fishing area at Wharf Road/Farmington Landing, and the boat ramp area at Marshall Hall are all wheelchair-accessible and offer excellent barrier-free viewing. The foot-trails at the National Colonial Farm are not, for the most part, wheelchair-accessible.

Parking:

Designated gravel lots at the National Colonial Farm, the Boardwalk at Accokeek Creek, and the Farmington Landing fishing area at the end of Wharf Road. Large paved lot at the Marshall Hall Boat Ramp. Do not attempt to park along the roadsides on any of the public roads in the area; there is no shoulder and too much traffic.