A scope is vital to scan the birds out on the water of the lake.

Enter the park from Maple Street. After going past the ball fields, the Children's Nature Play area and the restroom facilities, you will enter the mesquite scrub surrounding the lake.

Take a right to head towards the dam area and the boat launch. Scan this area for loons, gulls, terns and other waterfowl.

Return back along the road the way you came and slowly make your way south. You can drive into the pull throughs off the main road. But, be careful because some of the side roads have very deep holes where low clearance vehicles might bottom out. After a rain, these mudholes might make the side roads impassable. 

Look for ducks, grebes, coots in the small inlets. Shorebirds might be found in some of the sandier inner coves. 

As you drive the road to its far southern terminus, watch and listen for woodland species in the mesquite scrub. 

After returning to Maple Street, turn right and head south. At the intersection with Carriage Hills, Maple Street curves slightly to the left. You may pull off to the right at this point at an area extremely close to the southern end (inlet end) of the lake. This is a good spot for scanning for more waterfowl and possibly shorebirds.

Turn right again on Maple Street, go to the dead end and take another right on E. Beltway South (Hwy. 797). After just a short westward travel on Beltway South, there will be a parking area on the right. If time permits, you may park here and walk to the far southern end of the lake to get a closer look at the birds congregating in the shallowed and more heavily vegetated area. 

The park is on the eastern side of the lake which means morning birding would be best for viewing birds on the water. In the afternoon, one is looking into the west sun.

Waterfowl, shorebirds, woodland species.

Kirby Lake is a 740-acre man-made reservoir located on the south side of Abilene, Texas, just east of Highway 83, in the northeastern portion of Taylor County.

Kirby Lake is within the Brazos River Basin, meaning that Cedar Creek, which feeds Kirby Lake, eventually feeds into the Brazos River.Kirby Lake is in the Red Prairies portion of the Central Great Plains ecoregion.

The City of Abilene manages Kirby Lake.

There is an ADA approved trail which starts and ends near the Children's Nature Play area.