The Festival of Hawks starts up this weekend at the Holiday Beach Conservation Area in Amherstburg.
Thousands of birds will be migrating back to the area — attracting thousands of birders.
"Last year we had up to 2,000 people come out," says Alex Denonville, event planner with the Essex Region Conservation Authority. "We have people from all over North America coming to see this. Last year I talked to some people from Ohio and Minnesota that had come specifically to the area to see the hawk migration."
Denonville says the festival isn't just for the birding experts.
"We want the festival to appeal to birders, but we also want to make it accessible for people who have never experienced something like this," says Denonville.
It costs $15 per vehicle to attend the event with programming scheduled from 9am to 3pm both Saturday and Sunday. Programming includes a photography workshop, a scavenger hunt for the kids and hawk experts allowing you to get up close and personal with the birds of prey.
Denonville says the migration itself can be a sight to behold.
"Thousands of hawks will be gathered in a group in the sky and basically riding thermals up in the air, so you'll see basically a column of birds in the air," says Denonville. "It can be hundreds, it can be thousands and in some situations it's even tens of thousands."
The Festival of Hawks runs Saturday and Sunday as well as the following weekend on September 17 and 18.
Click here for more on the Festival of Hawks.
