# Hawk Mountain — the autumn raptor count on the Kittatinny Ridge at the first refuge for birds of prey Canonical: https://sockmonkey.com/places/hawk-mountain (this is a plain-text copy of that page) Source: https://sockmonkey.com/places/hawk-mountain Publisher: SockMonkey.com (https://sockmonkey.com) Part of: The Field Guide - https://sockmonkey.com/places/ Cite as: SockMonkey.com - sockmonkey.com Last reviewed: 30 October 2026 - **Where:** Kittatinny Ridge, Pennsylvania - **Coordinates:** 40.64° N, 75.99° W (the lookouts, approx.) - **Founded:** 1934, by Rosalie Edge;, about 2,600 acres today - **Autumn count:** 15 August to 15 December;, average about 18,000 raptors - **Autumn 2026:** 17,421 raptors counted, to 28 October (sanctuary) - **Best visited:** September for broad-wings;, late October for variety - **Advisory:** United States, (no State Department level) ## The short answer Hawk Mountain Sanctuary is a raptor sanctuary on the Kittatinny Ridge in Pennsylvania, owned and run by the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Association, a private, member-supported non-profit; it says plainly that it is not a state or national park. It protects about 2,600 acres, has more than 9,000 members and more than 60,000 visitors a year, and keeps more than 8 miles of trails. Two lookouts face the migration. South Lookout is 175 yards from the entrance gate on a groomed path that motorised wheelchairs can use, and an accessible alternative, the Silhouette Trail, is 900 feet long with a grade no steeper than 8.3 per cent. North Lookout is reached by the Lookout Trail, with a vertical rise of 300 feet, and is a pile of large boulders that takes some rock scrambling to cross. Migrating raptors can be seen from mid-August to mid-December in autumn and from April to mid-May in spring, the sanctuary says. ## Why it's worth knowing A refuge that began as a shooting ground. The sanctuary tells its own history this way. In 1929 the Pennsylvania Game Commission put a five-dollar bounty on the goshawk. Two years later Richard Pough, an amateur ornithologist in Philadelphia, heard of the place locals called Hawk Mountain, found gunners shooting hundreds of passing hawks for sport, and went back to photograph the carcasses on the forest floor. His photographs reached Rosalie Edge, a New York conservation activist, who came in 1934, leased 1,400 acres and installed a warden, Maurice Broun, with his wife and partner in bird conservation, Irma Broun. The shooting stopped immediately, and the next year she opened the sanctuary to the public. She later bought the land and deeded it to the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Association, incorporated as a non-profit in 1938. Broun began the count in 1934, and the sanctuary’s published records run from that season to this one. A count anyone can watch. Over the four months from 15 August to 15 December the autumn count averages about 18,000 raptors, the sanctuary says, with usual one-day peaks of more than 3,000 birds in September during the broad-winged hawk migration. Flights are best one to two days after a cold front, on north-west winds that press the birds against the ridge and its updrafts, and the greatest variety of species comes in late October. Most migrants pass between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.; on calm, sunny days the birds ride thermals higher and farther from the lookouts in the middle of the day, so mid-to-late morning and mid-to-late afternoon are often better. By 28 October 2026 the season’s tally stood at 17,421 raptors, 11,712 of them broad-winged hawks, with a best day of 2,953. Spring is quieter: the 2026 spring watch closed on 15 May with 658 raptors, 30 per cent below the ten-year average. ## The field notes ### September’s broad-wings The broad-winged hawk carries the autumn count. In the 2026 season to 28 October the sanctuary’s table listed 11,712 broad-winged hawks out of 17,421 raptors, and its highest daily count, 2,953 birds, matched the September peaks it describes as usual. The same table shows how varied the rest of the flight is: 3,028 sharp-shinned hawks, 488 red-tailed hawks, 445 bald eagles, 360 Cooper’s hawks, 359 turkey vultures, 342 American kestrels, 276 ospreys, 156 merlins, 100 northern harriers and 67 peregrine falcons, among others. ### Eagles late in the season The sanctuary says the best variety of raptors passes in late October, and the count runs on to 15 December. On 28 October 2026 the counters noted a good day for red-tailed hawks and a golden eagle that moved past the lookout at midday and perched briefly near Owls Head; eleven golden eagles had passed that season by then. Strong north-west winds bring migrants close to watchers at North Lookout, the sanctuary explains, because the birds use the updrafts the deflected wind creates to save energy; on steady south or south-west winds both lookouts can have many sightings as birds follow the ridge’s southern slope. ### Two lookouts and a rough way down An observer-interpreter is stationed at South Lookout every day from September to early November. The sanctuary’s trails are rocky and ungraded, except the walk to South Lookout. The Skyline Trail follows the spine of the Kittatinny east over North Lookout and East Rocks, a good place to watch migration, to meet the Appalachian Trail 2.5 miles away; it includes four-point rock scrambling and, just off North Lookout, a 30-foot vertical descent, and the sanctuary recommends it only for experienced hikers. The trails are open in winter but are not maintained for it. ### From one ridge to others Hawk Mountain trains conservationists from abroad, and the sanctuary says its graduates have helped set up places with a similar origin story elsewhere, trading damaging raptor hunting for eco-tourism, naming Batumi in the Republic of Georgia. It announced on 15 October 2026 that it will demolish its ageing Visitor Center in spring 2027 and build a new Visitor Center and Center for Global Raptor Conservation, with a projected opening in fall 2028; the sanctuary will stay open throughout, with a temporary visitor service area. **The Relic** The River of Rocks. Below South Lookout at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary lies the River of Rocks, which the sanctuary describes as an Ice-Age boulder field: a long stream of grey boulders lying in the valley between the ridges, with no water to be seen on it. The River of Rocks Trail, marked with red blazes, leaves the Lookout Trail just before South Lookout after 0.3 miles, drops 600 feet and loops around the boulder fields; the sanctuary warns that it is very rough and rocky, that unmarked paths cross it, and that the loop takes three to four hours. ## Getting there How to get there. The sanctuary offers no public transport and says there is no nearby bus company; its staff cannot give visitors rides, so arrive with your own transport arranged. Visitors enter at the trailhead entrance across Hawk Mountain Road from the Visitor Center. The sanctuary’s pages name no airport, and we name none. When to go. The autumn count runs from 15 August to 15 December, with September’s broad-winged hawk peak and the widest variety in late October; spring migration runs from April to mid-May. Go one or two days after a cold front, on a north-west wind, and stay into the afternoon. In 2026 the sanctuary’s deer-hunting closures shut all trails on 28 and 29 November, 5 and 6 December, and 12 and 13 December, and leave only the Lookout Trail open from 30 November to 4 December, from 7 to 11 December, and from 4 to 24 January 2027. What to arrange ahead. The Visitor Center and trails are open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the sanctuary closes on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, and at 1 p.m. on the day before Thanksgiving and on New Year’s Eve. Non-members pay a trail fee at the Visitor Center or buy a ticket online and bring a printed copy: 10 dollars for adults, 7 for seniors over 65, 5 for children aged 6 to 12, and free for children 5 and under and for members. Trail fees, the sanctuary says, fund its research, training, education and trail upkeep, and walkers who enter the trails without paying are trespassing. Access. No pets are allowed on the trails, even on a leash; service animals are welcome. Firearms, smoking, radios, alcohol, hammocks, bicycles, drones, camping and fires are not allowed. There are no rubbish bins: carry everything out. Stay on the trails, keep voices low at the lookouts, never cross safety rails, and allow time to get back before the trails close at dusk. Safety. The State Department’s travel advisories cover other countries, so none applies here. The hazards are the ridge’s own: rocky, ungraded trails, a boulder scramble at North Lookout, and ice in winter, when the sanctuary advises cleats and poles. A self-service first-aid area is at the Visitor Center, and staff and volunteers on the trails carry basic kits. ## Common questions #### When is the best time to see hawks at Hawk Mountain? Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania says raptors migrate past from mid-August to mid-December in autumn and from April to mid-May in spring. September brings the broad-winged hawk peak, with one-day counts of more than 3,000, and late October brings the widest variety, golden eagles included. #### How many raptors pass Hawk Mountain each autumn? The autumn count at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, kept from 15 August to 15 December, averages about 18,000 raptors, the sanctuary says. In 2026 its counters had recorded 17,421 by 28 October, 11,712 of them broad-winged hawks, with a best single day of 2,953 birds. #### Why was Hawk Mountain Sanctuary founded? Hawk Mountain Sanctuary was founded in 1934 to stop the shooting of migrating hawks on Pennsylvania’s Kittatinny Ridge. After Richard Pough photographed hawks killed there for sport, Rosalie Edge leased 1,400 acres, installed the warden Maurice Broun and ended the shooting; the sanctuary calls itself the world’s first refuge for birds of prey. #### Is Hawk Mountain a state park? No. Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania is not part of any state or national park. It is owned and run by the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Association, a private, member-supported non-profit incorporated in 1938, and its trail fees and membership dues fund its raptor research, training, education and trails. #### How much does it cost to visit Hawk Mountain? Hawk Mountain Sanctuary’s trail fee in 2026 was 10 dollars for adults, 7 dollars for seniors over 65 and 5 dollars for children aged 6 to 12; children 5 and under and members enter free. The Visitor Center and trails are open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with holiday closings. #### How hard is the walk to North Lookout at Hawk Mountain? The Lookout Trail to North Lookout at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary climbs 300 feet over rocky, ungraded ground, and the lookout itself is a field of large boulders that needs some scrambling. South Lookout, 175 yards from the entrance gate, is reached on a groomed path that wheelchairs can use. #### Can I bring my dog to Hawk Mountain? No. Hawk Mountain Sanctuary allows no pets on its trails, even on a leash; service animals for visitors with disabilities are permitted. The sanctuary points dog walkers to the Appalachian Trail, which crosses Hawk Mountain Road about 1.5 miles east of the Visitor Center. #### What weather is best for watching hawks at Hawk Mountain? Hawk Mountain Sanctuary says the best autumn flights come one to two days after a cold front passes through the north-eastern United States, when winds swing to the north-west. Strong north-west winds push migrating raptors close to North Lookout as they ride the updrafts along the Kittatinny Ridge. What to pack: the Road trips kit ## Related places Acadia National Parkabout 760 km away · both tagged hiking The Platte Riverboth tagged birdwatching · same region High Islandboth tagged birdwatching · same region The Lower Rio Grande Valleyboth tagged birdwatching · same region Niagara Fallsabout 370 km away · same region Notes on sources. Hawk Mountain Sanctuary’s own pages (hawkmountain.org), read directly on 29 October 2026, supplied: from the about page and the who-we-are page, the founding in 1934, Rosalie Edge, the 1,400 and 2,600 acres, the 60,000 visitors and 9,000 members, the Game Commission’s 1929 goshawk bounty, Richard Pough and his photographs, Maurice and Irma Broun, the end of the shooting, the opening, the 1938 incorporation, the 8 miles of trails and the trainees and Batumi; from the Autumn Hawk Migration page, the count’s start in 1934 and its claim to be the longest-running in the world, the 15 August to 15 December season, the 18,000 average, the September peaks, the weather and the hours; from the hawk count page, the 2026 figures to 28 October and that day’s note; from the news pages, the 2026 spring total and the new Visitor Center (15 October 2026); from the frequently asked questions, the wind and the not-a-state-park answer; from the admission and hours, rules and trail descriptions pages, the hours, closures, fees, deer-hunting dates, transport, rules, the lookouts, the Silhouette, Skyline and River of Rocks trails and the River of Rocks itself. Hawk Mountain is a private non-profit, and its pages are the managing body’s own; no state or federal page was used. The sanctuary’s history page at an older address answered 404. No airport is named because the sanctuary names none. The coordinates are our reading of the lookouts’ position. Checked 29 October 2026. Written and fact-checked by SockMonkey.com. Last reviewed 30 October 2026.