Cooper Marsh Conservation Area, South Glengarry

Cooper Marsh Conservation Area, just east of Cornwall, offers great bird-watching opportunities from its one-kilometre accessible boardwalk, multiple viewing platforms and blinds, and 11 kilometres hiking trails. This area on the north shore of Lake Saint Francis, part of the St. Lawrence River, has been designated a Class 1 provincially significant wetland.

As well as some 200 species of birds—including green herons, wood ducks, sandhill cranes and American bitterns—you might also spot some of the many reptiles and amphibians that flourish in this wetland preserve. (Keep your distance from the snapping turtles!) And while wetland birds are understandably the prime attraction here, keen-eyed birders have also seen various species of owls, hawks, finches, vireos, hummingbirds and other birds. Don’t miss the songbird and butterfly meadow, if land-based birds are your thing.

Photo of a wood duck by Alex Makarov on Unsplash.

If you go to Cooper Marsh Conservation Area

Cooper Marsh Conservation Area is located at 20020 County Road 2 in South Glengarry. It’s 126km southeast of Parliament Hill.

The visitors’ centre is generally open from spring through fall, and you can borrow binoculars, insect collection kits and guidebooks there for free. The conservation area hosts lots of educational events, including guided walks in the summer; you can also download a self-guided tour map. The trails are open year round, but note that dogs, bikes and motorized vehicles are not permitted on them. A picnic area and restrooms are available. Admission is free.

Looking for something else to see and do in the area? Here are a few options.

• St. Raphael’s Ruins National Historic Site, Williamstown
• Glengarry Fine Cheese, Lancaster
• Priest’s Mill Arts Centre, Alexandria

You can also check the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry’s tourism website.

Looking for more tips on things to see and do in and around Ottawa? Subscribe to my free weekly newsletter or order a copy of my book, Ottawa Road Trips: Your 100-km Getaway Guide.

As the owner of Ottawa Road Trips, I acknowledge that I live on, work in and travel through the unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg Nation. I am grateful to have the opportunity to be present on this land. Ottawa Road Trips supports Water First, a non-profit organization that helps address water challenges in Indigenous communities in Canada through education, training and meaningful collaboration.