The hawkwatch is located at the western edge of Bedford County and the eastern edge of Somerset County (Shade Township) on the Allegheny Front, at an elevation of 2780 feet, north of Rt30 (north of where the old Ship Hotel or Noah's Ark use to be). The county line passes near the hawkwatch, just west of the Front. The Allegheny Front is a prominent scarp that is the eastern edge of the Allegheny Plateau. To the east is the Valley and Ridge physiographic province of Pennsylvania.
From Rt30 at Reels Corners take Rt160 north 4 miles into Central City, passing Thunder Valley Raceway on the left. (At Rt30 a road sign points north to Windber (not Central City), near Indian Lake Christian Center. Reels Corners is toward the eastern end of Long View, a four to five mile straight stretch of Rt30.)
Entering Central City Rt160 makes a sharp right at a BP Gas Station. Where Rt160N makes a sharp left in Central City instead go straight onto LAMBERT ST (SR1018). Go VERY SLOW -- watch out for a **ROUGH** railroad crossing.
LAMBERT ST becomes SHAFFER MOUNTAIN RD (SR1018) outside Central City.
1.4 mile out of Central City bear right at a Y intersection onto LAMBERT MT RD (SR1035).
On LAMBERT MT RD go 2.9 mile, thru State Game Lands (SGL) 228, to a small 4-way intersection (Daley on topo maps) where LAMBERT MT RD intersects FLEEGLE RD (TR817). Go straight thru the intersection, staying on LAMBERT MT RD, which becomes a gravel & dirt road. There is a cemetery (Daley Cemetery) on the right. Go 0.5 mile to a blue gate on the right. Turn right at the blue gate & go 0.25 mile to the hawk watch parking area. There are aluminum falcon symbols along either side of this dirt road. If the gate is closed find a place to park near the gate, & walk the 0.25 mile to the hawkwatch. This dirt road from the blue gate ends at the hawkwatch.
FLEEGLE RD (TR817), 4.5 mile from the cemetery to Rt30, is a rough, windy, rocky, narrow dirt road that meets Rt30 just west of the old Ship Hotel (burned to the ground in Oct. 2001), on a step of the ridge. Use Fleegle Road if you are game for a rough ride.
The best days for seeing migrating hawks at Allegheny Front is with the wind out of the east; when a high pressure system is to the north and/or a low pressure system is to the south. Good winds at the Front are in the southwest quadrant of a high pressure system, and the northeast quadrant of a low pressure system. Low cloud cover, but not so low that it fogs the Front, keeps the hawks flying lower making for closer flight paths for viewing. Another good time, though rare, to be at the Front is in autumn the day after the remnants of a hurricane or tropical depression passes over Pennsylvania from the south or mid-Atlantic coast. Large low pressure systems from the south or mid-atlantic block the southward movement of migrating birds. The migrants pause and their numbers build north of the system, waiting for the system to pass. Once the system passes to the north/northeast the stalled migrants surge southward in larger than usual numbers. It can be dramatic. September 20 2003, after the remnants of hurricane Isabel passed western PA (landfall was in NC), 833 hawks were counted passing the Front. In September of 1999 Tropical Depression Dennis (Aug. 28 to Sept. 6) and the remnants of Hurricane Floyd (Sept. 14 to 18) effected the state. On Sept. 19, in the aftermath of Floyd, some 658 hawks were seen passing the Front.
On September 12, 2004 a total of 3,031 raptors (9 species) were counted flying by Allegheny Front; 2,986 were Broad-winged Hawk. A single kettle of Broad-winged Hawks was estimated at 500.
Allegheny Front Hawk Watch gets a good number of Golden Eagles that pass southward in November & early December. On November 23 2003, 51 Golden Eagles were observed passing the front on their way south, exceeding what had been a single day record of 33. Three days prior to this, on November 20 2003, 51 Golden Eagles were observed passing the Franklin Mountain Hawkwatch 350~ miles to the northeast in southcentral New York state. On Monday, November 14 2005 , 45 Golden Eagles were observed passing the Alleghent Front Hawk Watch. Forty of the eagles passed between 1 and 4 PM. This passage of Golden Eagles was anticipated as 71 Golden Eagles were reported passing three days earlier at the Franklin Mountain Hawkwatch Friday, November 11 2005. On Nov. 18 & 20, 2006 Franklin Mtn had 33 & 22 Golden Eagles respectively. On Nov. 21 & 22, 2006 Allegheny Front had 22 & 38 Golden Eagles respectively. The Franklin Mtn Hawk Watch is northeast of Allegheny Front Hawk Watch. The distance from Oneonta (near Franklin Mtn), NY to Central City (near Allegheny Front), Somerset County, PA is 361 road miles. Franklin Mountain is just south of the city of Oneonta. The Susquehanna River passes between Oneonta and Franklin Mtn. The elevation of Franklin Mtn is 2160+ ft, the hawk watch is probably around 2012 ft el. The Susquehanna River at Oneonta crosses the 1060 ft elevation contour line on a topo map. A flight path from Franklin Mtn, passing Allegheny Front, would follow rivers and the Ridge and Valley geographic province of PA.
National Aviary Golden Eagle research and tracking: trackPA || eaglePA
Allegheny Plateau Audubon Society maintain and operate the Allegheny Front Hawk Watch
Seasonal data for hawk watch sites:
Hawkcount!
Hawk Migration Association of North America
Hawkcount! - Allegheny Front Month Summary || Hawkcount! - Allegheny Front Site Profile
Hawkcount! - Franklin Mt. Month Summary
Archives of Birdhawk at Listserv.Arizona.Edu
Weather at Allegheny Front Hawk Watch:
Central City, PA 15926 - weather conditions & forecast
Local weather forecast for Central City, PA 15926
US Current Surface Winds | Surface Winds - Current Streamlines Contour Plot | US Current Weather
Click here for a quadrangle topographic image. The hawkwatch is located on the right-hand side of the map, east of Daley and south of the cemetery.
Click here for maps of Somerset County
Terraserver Aerial photo and Topographic map | Topographic map of hawkwatch area