I'm not sure what Mr. Rossford is talking about. Blendon Woods is, and to my knowledge always has been, very accommodating and welcoming to birders, especially those new to birding. The staff I've dealt with are courteous and the naturalists, especially Bruce Simpson, will go out of their way to direct you to a good bird. So, out-of-town birders, please ignore this odd post and continue to visit this lovely and very birdy metropark. I think that as long as you stay out of areas that are reserved for group picnics and stick to the trails, you'll never have a problem. Yesterday at Blendon, I had great looks at a Swainson's Thrush on the trail out to Thoreau Lake - it kept walking down the trail in front of me. I never truly appreciated how small a thrush this species is until yesterday. I only spent about a half-hour, but had a good walk with a beginning birder and we saw/heard some Yellow-rumped Warblers, Hooded Warbler, Redstart, Hooded Warbler, Yellow Warbler, and Northern Parula. I ran into one of the naturalists coming into work on my way out, and was not "harassed and hazed" but greeted with a smile. Good birding, Andy Sewell Columbus, Ohio. ________________________________ This mailbox protected from junk email by MailFrontier Desktop from MailFrontier, Inc. http://info.mailfrontier.com -----Original Message----- From: Ohio birds [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Duane Rossford Sent: Wednesday, May 07, 2008 10:11 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: [Ohio-birds] Blendon Woods... NO!!!!!!! Birders, Do all you can to avoid going to Blendon Woods!!!!!!!!!!!!! The rangers and staff have been instructed to harass, haze, and otherwise driver birders from the park. They are only interested in renting out their high value picnic areas and will threaten you with fines and arrest if they find you birding in the park. Make sure you communicate this with any out of town birders that you may know who were considering a trip to the State of Ohio for birding. Do not go to Blendon Woods for any reason. ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask] ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]