Bedford County

Vesper Sparrow, © Matt Anthony — **Vesper Sparrow**, © Matt Anthony

The county of Bedford was formed in 1753 from what was, at that point, Lunenburg County. By 1786 the borders of the county were formed into the shape we know today. Relatively little about the county has changed other than the town of Bedford becoming an independent city in 1968 only to revert to a town and rejoin the rest of the county in 2013 due to financial issues.

The county is the state’s 5th largest by area. Geographically, it is split between two major regions, the Blue Ridge Mountains and Piedmont. Route 460, which runs east-west across the county, splits it into two halves. Most of the area north of 460 is a part of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, and its tributaries flow towards the James River. South of 460 the water flows into the Roanoke River and into the Albemarle Sound in coastal North Carolina. Route 460 also splits Bedford by two predominant forest types. The Chesapeake Bay watershed is dominated by pretty standard oak-hickory forests interspersed with urban development due to its proximity to Lynchburg. South of 460, the forest gains a more open understory and the makeup is mostly oaks and pines. The land in the southern portion of the county used to be more agricultural but over the years, forests have reclaimed this land. Brown-headed Nuthatches have recolonized these areas and are growing in numbers with each passing year. Campbell County and Lynchburg City border Bedford to the east and are entirely within the Piedmont region. Hotspots in Bedford’s Piedmont include the Claytor Nature Center of the University of Lynchburg, Montvale Park, and Poplar Forest. The Claytor Nature Center hosts a bounty of trails that crisscross a vast array of habitats from streamside forests along the Big Otter River, marshland, and long-grassed meadows. Montvale Park also boasts a vast assortment of trails that are great just about any time of the year. Poplar Forest, a former home of Thomas Jefferson, contains a patchwork of overgrown meadows split by creekside thickets that are great for sparrows in the fall and winter.

To the west, there are the Blue Ridge Mountains that straddle the county’s borders with Rockbridge, Botetourt, and Roanoke. These ancient limestone mountains were once the tallest in North America but with age and weathering they have shrunk to a shadow of their former selves. The mountains in Bedford rise to hold a few remnant Red Spruce on Apple Orchard mountain and play host to many unique wildflower populations. Hotspots on the Blue Ridge Parkway include Petites Gap, Radar Road, Overstreet Road, the Peaks of Otter Recreation Area, and the Harvey’s Knob hawkwatch. The Petites Gap parking lot is good for both spring and fall migrants. Radar Road is known statewide for its spring migrants and the high elevation breeding populations of Canada Warbler and Veery. Every day from early September to mid-November there are hawk counts held on the Botetourt and Bedford sides of Harvey’s knob. Overstreet Road is Bedford’s response to Botetourt’s Warbler Road, with a variety of nesting warbler species from Kentucky Warblers at its base to Blackburnians at its apex.

The James River defines the Bedford-Amherst border to the north. The portion of the river that runs through the mountains is wide, shallow, and rocky. In the summer, Common Mergansers forage with their young in the white water and rocky pools of the James. The mergansers can be seen from the Snowden Dam Overlook eBird hotspot. As the river enters the Piedmont it becomes slower and deeper and here Yellow-throated, Parula, Yellow, and the occasional Prothonotary Warbler sing from the sycamores and willows on the river’s edge. Hotspots here include the Appalachian Trail Footbridge, Blue Ridge Parkway Footbridge, and Georgia-Pacific Settling Ponds. The footbridge under the Blue Ridge Parkway is the county's only spot for breeding Cliff Swallow. During northern cold snaps the Georgia-Pacific Settling Ponds offer warm open water for migrating and local waterfowl. These ponds have historically hosted breeding Pied-billed Grebe, Sora, and Least Bittern.

Smith Mountain Lake (SML) defines most of the border on the southern end of Bedford county. When the lake was being created it flooded out many towns and settlements in the Roanoke River floodplain. Now striped bass and channel catfish swim where cow pastures used to be and the lake has become a hot destination for sports fishermen. Fishermen aren’t the only ones attracted to the lake's fish as cormorants, herons, and osprey nest on many of the islands. In the winter Bonaparte’s Gulls, Horned Grebes, and Common Loons forage in the lake’s coves looking for easy-to-catch bass and sunfish. The go-to hotspot at SML is Smith Mountain Lake State Park, which is festooned with pine forests hosting Brown-headed Nuthatches and coves sheltering a variety of water birds.

Bedford is more than just boundaries. The interior hills and farmland contain a scattering of hotspots, parks, and preserves. Staff from the University of Lynchburg manage a maze of successive gradients that are great for migrants and breeding species at Claytor Nature Center. Out towards Lynchburg there are hotspots such as Everett Lake that will hold waterfowl in the winter and out towards Roanoke there’s Montvale Park, a great spot for migrant songbirds. It is because Bedford has so many hotspots and natural areas that it is considered one of the most productive birding counties here in the Piedmont.

—Logan Anderson

Hotspots

Stakeout Hotspots

The following hotspots should only be used to input historical records pertaining to a specific staked out rarity, as indicated in the hotspots names.

stakeout Calliope Hummingbird, Sandown Circle (2008-2009)

Accessibility & Surroundings

The only major road that runs through Bedford County is Route 460. 460 bisects Bedford into roughly two equal halves and ensures birders easy access to most hotspots in the county. Route 501 runs along the James River in the northern part of the city. 501 runs from Lynchburg up to Buena Vista and Lexington. If you’re looking for a more scenic route, the Blue Ridge Parkway crisscrosses the main spine of the Blue Ridge Mountains and offers beautiful views of both Bedford and Botetourt.

Bedford is bordered by Amherst County to the north, Rockbridge, Botetourt, and Roanoke Counties to the west, Franklin County to the south, and Campbell and Lynchburg to the east.

Amenities & Recommendations

Although general stores and towns are few and far between, Bedford has some golden spots that are a must hit for birders coming through the county. Most of Bedford’s infrastructure can be found around Lynchburg, Smith Mountain Lake, and the Blue Ridge parkway.

After a long walk at the Claytor Nature Center, you may want to make a trip over to the town of Bedford and have a meal at Fishers Restaurant or Forks Country Restaurant for some good local, southern food. If you’re really in need of a hotel then stop by the Peaks of Otter Lodge and Restaurant. This lodge has beautiful views of Abbott Lake and the three pinnacles that make up the Peaks of Otter. Birding the James River can make you feel cold and wind burnt after a long morning. The H & H Food Market is one of the only local hangouts in Big Island and it’s a great spot to grab a quick bite to eat after birding the James.

For those of you who love breweries, Bedford is home to Beale’s Brewery. Beale’s has a great menu and a great selection of beers. The restaurant is named after a famous treasure that is said to be buried somewhere in the county.

Christmas Bird Counts

The Lynchburg Bird Club holds the Lynchburg Christmas Bird Count with the University of Lynchburg at the circle’s center. A portion of the CBC is held within Bedford in the area surrounding Poplar Forest. The Lynchburg compiler is John Styrsky and he can be reached at styrsky.j@lynchburg.edu.

The Lynchburg and Roanoke Bird Clubs host a joint spring count around the Peaks of Otter. This event is known as Big Spring Day and it resembles a CBC in the way it is structured. Bob Epperson does a lot of work with this event and he can be reached at ecoland@bellsouth.net.