Birdwatching in Vermont, pp. 53-54.

Birding in Shelburne by Bruce MacPherson and Chip Wright, Green Mountain Audubon Society

Within walking distance of Shelburne Bay is tremendous bird diversity. More than 200 species have been encountered here in recent years. Waterfowl, waders, shorebirds, and swallows attend the bay itself. A nearby river march is heron heaven. And a bayside park can harbor songbirds from spring through the fall.

People have been living on the shores of Shelburne Bay for centuries. The long arm of Shelburne Point provides shelter from strong winds blowing from the south and west. The bay’s calm surface was an important factor when the 120-mile Lake Champlain was used as a “water highway,” before the advent of the railroad, automobile, and airplane. Early European settlers found evidence of a Native settlement–a cleared field, flints, and arrowheads–at the mouth of the LaPlatte River, across from the boat launch area. Today you can discover how natural and human processes have made Shelburne Bay one of the most unique environments in the Champlain Basin.