Bird-watchers on prowl as migrations continue

The weather is getting colder and that means it’s peak season for bird-watchers. Various ducks, grebes, loons, gulls and eagles are either coming here or passing through on their migration.

Fayetteville: The Northwest Arkansas Audubon Society plans a field trip to look for waterfowl at 9 a.m. Saturday at Lake Fayetteville.

Participants should meet on the parking lot at the northern end of the dam, which is near the turnoff to College Avenue just past the Lewis & Clark Outfitters store in Fayetteville. After a little watching from the dam, the party will move to the observation deck near the environmental study center.

All are welcome, and binoculars, scopes and warm clothing are encouraged. Weather won’t be a factor because, as organizer Joe Neal says, “We never cancel anything.”

For more information, call (479) 521-1858.

That afternoon, the Northwest Arkansas Land Trust will present another bird-watching opportunity at “The Big Sit.” The Wilson Springs Conservation Area in Fayetteville has a number of microhabitats and attracts many types of birds, including waterfowl and land animals. Visitors are invited to carry camp chairs and wander along the quarter-mile trail. Bird experts will help with identification, and there will be a tent with “goodies” and bird lists.

Neal says, “I expect it to be one of the funnest bird-watching trips I’ve ever been on.” Participation is free. Wilson Springs is south of Sam’s Club. To get there, take the Arkansas 112 exit off Interstate 540, turn south on Shiloh Road and park at the Vold Vision lot.

For more information, call Terri Lane at (479) 601-6646.

Central Arkansas: The Audubon Society of Central Arkansas will do a little bird-watching of its own with a field trip to DeGray Lake Resort State Park in Arkadelphia to look for migrating waterfowl and bald eagles.

A caravan will form at 7:30 a.m. Saturday at the commuter lot at Interstates 430 and 630 off Shackleford Road in Little Rock. Or you can meet them at the state park’s lodge at 8:45. The trip will involve very little walking as the watchers will stop at different vantage points around the lake. No trails. No boats.

Be sure to take water, snacks, lunch and, especially, warm clothing.

Coordinator Karen Holliday warns, “It’s a big lake and if the wind is blowing at all, it can be very cold.”

Participation is free and open to all, members and nonmembers alike.

For more information, call (501) 920-3246 or visit ascabird.org.

Grand Prix wraps up

How often do serious runners get to be serenaded by Elvis? The Spa 10K or 5K is your chance.

Both races begin at the same time, 8 a.m. Nov. 23 in front of the Hot Springs Convention Center, 134 Convention Blvd., Hot Springs. An a cappella group, Cantate, will kick things off with the national anthem.

The 10K is the 20th and final race for the 2013 Arkansas Grand Prix Series. For those who wonder what a Grand Prix Series is, the Arkansas Road Runners Club of America website says it’s “a series of 20 races affiliated with Arkansas running clubs throughout the state.” The races are held in different communities and are of various distances.

Runners earn points for themselves and for their clubs’ teams based upon how well they do in each race.

At the end of the series, the runners and teams with the most points win plaques. There are many age divisions, which means many chances to win a plaque.

To qualify, racers must finish at least five events in the series. In his blog on the Grand Prix website, David Meroney noted that “there are a few runners with four races to their credit who will earn a Grand Prix award if [they] do nothing but just finish the Spa 10K.”

The Grand Prix awards won’t be handed out until February. There is, however, a special awards ceremony for the statewide organization after the Spa 10K.

Members of the state running clubs vote for honors such as “Runner of the Year” and “Most Improved Runner of the Year.” Voting closed on Halloween. The winners will be announced at noon Nov. 23 in the Arlington Resort Hotel’s Spruce Room.

The Grand Prix website warns that the Spa 10K course is challenging. From the Convention Center, it goes into the historic downtown and Bathhouse Row, through neighborhoods and parks. While the first 21/ miles are relatively flat, the course eventually takes runners up and down West Mountain with more than one “monster uphill section,” according to the site arkrrca.com.

Race coordinator Dave MacKenzie warns, “This won’t be your fastest 10K. West Mountain takes care of that.”

It is, however, a scenic course and one that MacKenzie calls “one of the prettiest 10Ks a person can run,” winding as it does through the historic downtown, past the bathhouses, through neighborhoods and over mountains.

And there will be music along the way, particularly at the top of the mountain, to give runners a little boost on the toughest legs of the course. Also look for an Elvis impersonator on the route.

It’s a big event, including preand post-race festivities, and it draws quite a bit of local support. Blue Monkey will provide hot soup at the finish line, and there will be plenty of beverages. As MacKenzie says, “When we get people involved for the first time, they can’t believe an event like this is happening in Hot Springs.”

The website warns that walkers who can’t finish the 10K at a 14:30-minutes-per-mile pace should sign up for the 5K instead. Support for the course ends at 9:30 a.m.

Registration is $25 through Nov. 18, $35 after.

For more information, visit arspapacers.com or call (501) 282-5617.

Squirts

For budding runners whose legs aren’t quite long enough yet for the Spa 10K or 5K, but whose appetites are whetted for running, there’s the Spa Squirt.

This 1K race begins at approximately 9:45 a.m. Nov. 23, after the adult races wrap up. Starting line is on Convention Boulevard in front of Embassy Suites.

The race is for ages 2 to 10, and the children compete in age categories: 2-4, 5-6, 7-8, 9-10. Race director Kellie Glisson says they do get quite a few in the toddler to preschool age division. Last year’s race drew 110 little runners. Registration is $10. For more information, visit arspapacers.com or call (501) 545-6110.