Pack Monadnock Raptor Migration Observatory

at Miller State Park in Peterborough

Center Activities

About the Observatory

New Hampshire Audubon's Pack Monadnock Raptor Migration Observatory, located on the summit of Pack Monadnock in Miller State Park in Peterborough, is open and staffed every day from September 1 to October 31 (barring foul weather). Everyone is welcome to visit the Observatory to watch for and learn about migrating hawks. The State Park is open from dawn to dusk seven days a week. Please note that there is a fee to enter Miller State Park. This project is made possible through the cooperation of the New Hampshire Division of Parks and Recreation, with funding provided by The Monadnock Community Foundation, The Samuel P. Hunt Foundation, The Putnam Foundation and individual donors.

Why Visit?

Pack Monadnock is the best location in the state to see large numbers of migrating hawks in the fall. The auto road to the summit parking lot in Miller State Park allows almost anyone to reach the observatory and experience this spectacle first-hand. A short, improved trail leads from the parking lot to the site of the observatory where there is a stable outdoor observation platform with rock benches. Large interpretive panels describe the project and provide visitors with a full-color key to identifying the raptors of New England. The best days for viewing are warm and sunny, with winds from the northwest, especially during September.

Each year, a N.H. Audubon seasonal biologist/interpreter documents hourly weather data, and counts and identifies all the raptors that pass by the mountain during each hour. Data gathered at the observatory is entered into a national database administered by the Hawk Migration Association of North America (HMANA). The biologist is also available to speak with visitors about the project and help them to view and identify raptors.

About Raptors

Diurnal raptors are birds of prey that are sometimes referred to simply as "hawks." They include eagles, falcons, ospreys, kites and harriers as well as hawks. Among thirty-two species that occur regularly in North America, at least twenty are migratory; they move seasonally to exploit food resources. As many as sixteen species can be seen from the Observatory. They range in size from the diminutive American kestrel (not much bigger than a robin) to the massive bald eagle with a wingspan of more than six and a half feet.

Many of these birds travel long distances from their breeding sites to wintering areas; some migrating from Canada to South America. During these annual migrations they often gather in huge numbers in passage along coastlines and mountain ridges where geography and local weather interact to bring them together. At these special places, all across North America, biologists, citizen scientists, birdwatchers, and the interested public also gather to identify and count these raptors or simply to enjoy one of nature's most magnificent spectacles.

Learn about N.H. Audubon's raptor research.

Directions

• From Manchester, the Seacoast, Nashua, Concord, and other points north and east, head west on NH-101 (from NH-101 in Manchester or NH-101 in Nashua) past Milford towards Peterborough. Keep an eye out for Temple Mountain. Miller State Park is just beyond this to the right. Once there, you can take the access road to the summit, where the raptor observatory is located. 

• From Keene and Peterborough, take NH-101 East past Peterborough. Miller State Park is to the left near the top of the steep rise. If you’ve reached Temple Mountain you’ve gone too far. Once there, you can take the access road to the summit, where the raptor observatory is located.