The Festival of the Birds won’t go off this year as organizers decide where to take the event next, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be a major birding event around Erie this spring.

Birds and Vines, based out of Pymatuning State Park, is scheduled for April 16-18. Participants will tour four state parks –  Pymatuning, Goddard, Oil Creek and Presque Isle – in a search for newly arrived migratory songbirds, waterfowl and raptors, and also will visit regional wineries, where there’s not only wine to be sampled but prime birding habitat to be explored.

All of the parks are Audubon Important Bird Areas. Tours will start at 6 a.m. each day, with stops at two parks and nearby wineries. Conneaut Cellars Winery, Wilhelm Winery and one or two Erie-area wineries to be determined are on the agenda.

Cost for the program is $65 per person or $120 per couple; it’s designed for adults only. Transportation and some meals are provided. Reservations are required and are limited; registration deadline is April 10.

Cabins at Pymatuning State Park will be available. Organizers recommend staying in cabins since the program will start so early each day. Cabin reservation costs are separate from registration fees. Cabins sleep 6-8 people each.

For information about the program, or to register, call the Pymatuning park office at (724) 932-3142.

Cabin reservations can be made by calling 888-727-2757.

The third in a series of occasional profiles of birdwatchers who are from or spend a lot of time in northwestern Pennsylvania.

Michele Rundquist-Franz

Presque Isle Audubon Society President Michele Franz watches a cardinal feeding near the former Stull Interpretive Center at Presque Isle State Park in Erie on Jan. 25. GREG WOHLFORD/Erie Times-News

Age: 49

Family: married to Jim Franz; daughter, Tami, and 2 grandchildren, Emory, 5 and Kayleigh, 2

Lives in: Harborcreek Township

College: Bachelor of Arts in English, Mercyhurst; Master of Arts in Speech Language Pathology, Edinboro

Profession: Speech therapist with Aegis Therapies at Golden Living Center-Walnut Creek

Originally from: Erie

How I got into birding: I was primarily a backyard birder until I moved to Harborcreek and started seeing birds that were new and interesting to me. A friend of mine, Julie Leonard, introduced me to Jerry McWilliams, birding guru/mentor, and his bird identification classes and from there my interest took off.

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Pymatuning State Park’s annual Eagle Weekend is scheduled for March 22-24.

Register to be part of a guided tour of the greater Pymatuning area to see American bald eagles, eagle nests and other birds. Transportation and some meals are included. Cost is $65 per person or $120 per couple.

Events start March 22 at 6 p.m. and end March 24 at 1 p.m.

For information and to preregister, call the park office at (724) 932-3142.

Overnight accommodations are available in the Jamestown cabins for an extra fee; call 888-727-2757 to make reservations.

The second in a series of occasional profiles of birdwatchers who are from or spend a lot of time in northwestern Pennsylvania.

Bonnie Ginader

Bonnie Ginader/Contributed photo

Family: daughter, Aimee Gevirtz, and son, Geoff Ginader. Four grandchildren, one great-granddaughter.

Lives in: Millcreek Township

College: B.S., mathematics, Grove City College

Profession: Realtor^R, Pennington Lines Real Estate.

Originally from: Erie

Favorite bird: Woodcock

Favorite places to bird in northwestern Pennsylvania: Presque Isle State Park, Erie Bluffs State Park, Siegel Marsh, Pymatuning State Park.

Rarest bird I’ve seen: Piping Plover

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This week’s snow doesn’t do much for our ability (or desire) to get around in northwestern Pennsylvania, but it has created lots of reasons you should consider getting out when it’s safe to do so.

Peek’n Peak has 27 trails and five lifts open as of this morning.

Mount Pleasant of Edinboro has a 6-inch to 16-inch base and is getting snow and making snow.

Wilderness Lodge is gearing up for a great weekend of cross country skiing.

Snowshoe hikes are on for Saturday at Erie Bluffs State Park and Pymatuning State Park and weekdays and snowy Saturdays at Jennings Environmental Education Center in Slippery Rock.

Snowmobile club members from the the McKean Snowriders and Presque Isle Snowmobile Club among others will be looking to get out on the trails.

Ice isn’t safe enough yet for ice fishing, but it won’t be long at this temperature. Here’s a look at some essential ice-fishing gear for the season ahead:

Set out on a First Day Hike Jan. 1 at one of 18 Pennsylvania state parks including Pymatuning, Moraine and Kinzua Bridge.

The Pymatuning event for hikers 5 and older is 2 miles. Register by calling (724) 932-2142. Meet at the park visitor center at 10 a.m.

The Moraine hike is along a 4.6-mile stretch of the North Country Scenic Trail. It’s rated moderate to difficult and is for hikers 8 and older. Meet at 1:30 p.m. at the bike rental building on the north shore. Registration is not required.

The Kinzua Bridge hike will cover 1.5 miles and is for participants 5 and older. Meet at 1 p.m. at the park pavilion. Registration is not required.

Dress for the weather and pack water. The programs will be canceled in the event of severe weather.

Other parks that are participating.

Northwestern Pennsylvania emerged relatively unscathed from Sandy’s appearance earlier this week, although creeks aren’t necessarily fishable after all of the rain we’ve received since Monday.

What Sandy did leave behind is a bonanza for birders. Birders’ reports to ebird show seabirds and shorebirds that were caught up in Sandy’s heavy winds were dropped like Dorothy and Toto on area waterways.

Surf scoter, black scoter, semipalmated plover, red-necked phalarope and red phalarope were spotted at Woodcock Creek Lake, Crawford County. And a Pomarine jaeger was identified at Clark Island, in Pymatuning State Park. Black scoter and long-tailed duck sightings also were reported at Presque Isle State Park.

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, which runs ebird, suggests being on the lookout for uncommon pelagics and passerines all weekend throughout the Great Lakes and Northeast.

Evening grosbeaks also are being seen routinely in Erie, Crawford and Warren counties.

Let us know if you see any uncommon birds in your travels.

The Pymatuning Lake Association Kids Free Fishing Derby is scheduled for Aug. 4-5 at the association pavilion at the Espyville Boat Launch, Pymatuning State Park.

Registration runs 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 4 and 8-11 a.m. Aug. 5, or mail your form by July 30 to the address below. Entry is free. Each entrant will receive a starter bucket full of goodies during registration.

Prizes will be awarded Aug. 5 after 2 p.m. in seven categories: bass, crappie, perch, bluegill, walleye, carp and catfish. All fish must be checked in by 1 p.m. that day. There are divisions for children ages 2-5, 6-10 and 11-15.

For information, contact Chuck Lederer at (724) 927-9122, ledererchuck1@yahoo.com or by mail at 7664 S. Lake Road, Jamestown, PA 16134.

Pymatuning State Park in Crawford County, Chapman State Park in Warren County and Cook Forest and Clear Creek state parks in Clarion and Jefferson counties are among 19 parks in the Pennsylvania system offering cut-rate camping to first-time campers.

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and Gander Mountain are teaming up to offer gear and a reservation for two nights at a participating state park for just $20. The program runs from Memorial Day weekend through the summer.

“You can’t beat this offer as far as the cost; the opportunity to enjoy many other activities at our state parks such as hiking and fishing; and a park staffer will even help you set up camp,” DCNR secretary Richard Allan said.

Other participating parks are Black Moshannon, Centre County; Caledonia, Franklin County; Colonel Denning, Cumberland County; Gifford Pinchot, York County; Hills Creek, Tioga County; Keystone, Westmoreland County; Lackawanna, Lackawanna County; Laurel Hill, Somerset County; Little Pine, Lycoming County; Locust Lake, Schuylkill County; Ole Bull, Potter County; Parker Dam, Clearfield County; Promised Land, Pike County; R.B. Winter, Union County; Ryerson Station, Greene County; and Sinnemahoning, Cameron and Potter counties.

Make reservations by calling a park office directly.

The gear provided for use by Gander Mountain and DCNR is a four-person tent; rain tarp; four sleeping pads; four camp chairs; flashlight; lantern; camp stove; and four hot dog/marshmallow sticks. The gear must be returned upon departure.

Participants will need to bring their own food, cooking utensils and bedding. Suggested packing lists will be provided.

In 2011, the program’s first year, the DCNR said there were 180 reservations made, and more than half of those who took a survey saying they had never before visited a Pennsylvania state park.

The Pymatuning Wildlife Learning Center will open for the season April 7.

The center, at 12590 Hartstown Road, Linesville, Crawford County, will be open Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. through the third week in September. It will be closed April 8 for the Easter holiday.