Holbrook-Palmer Park Description & Information

Holbrook-Palmer Park

Spring Summer Fall Winter

Paved Trail, south side of Holbrook-Palmer Park, May 2009 (Jennifer Rycenga)

Description

Area Habitats
Cultivated Garden, Mixed Woodland, Oak Woodland, Suburban/Urban

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This 22-acre suburban park, in the upscale town of Atherton, merits inclusion for a few reasons. First, it is an accessible oasis of oak habitat, making it a strategic stop for big days and county listers. Second, the relatively tame California Thrasher population here allows birders to enjoy this species at closer range than usual. Third, Holbrook-Palmer Park is ideal for beginning birders and young birders: its wide, paved walking path, open spaces, bluebird nestboxes, and pleasant location make for a fine hour or two of birding exploration without overwhelming the novice.
Once you've arrived at the park, orient yourself. Watkins Avenue runs along the northern boundary; the baseball field and tennis court are on the west end (the railroad tracks are just outside of the park). The best birding happens along the southern and eastern edges of the park. A quiet walk on the paved trail (just under a mile in length, and level, suitable for wheelchair access) that runs along the south could well yield the much-desired California Thrasher, Oak Titmouse, Bewick's Wren, Spotted Towhee, and more. There are Western Bluebird boxes scattered around the park; because they like open territory in which to hawk insects, the open ballfield in the western part of the park will be your best location for them, and for Mourning Dove, House Finch, and Black Phoebe.
As a cursory look at the park's website will tell you, Atherton's only park hosts many functions, including weddings, corporate events, dog walking, classes, and sports. Thus, it is best to visit here on weekdays, and in the morning rather than chancing the busy after-school hours. It is a rare weekend day when there aren't multiple events scheduled here. Even so, the paved walkway is usually under-utilized.

Look For These Birds

Canada Goose, California Quail, Double-crested Cormorant (fly-over), Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night-heron, Turkey Vulture, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, California Gull, Western Gull (numerous gulls fly-over the park), Glaucous-winged Gull, Caspian Tern (fly-over), Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Eurasian-collared Dove, Band-tailed Pigeon (fly-over), Barn Owl, Western Screech-Owl, Anna's Hummingbird, Allen's Hummingbird, Red-breasted Sapsucker, Acorn Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Nuttall's Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Merlin (unusual here), Olive-sided Flycatcher (rare, in migration), Black Phoebe, Pacific-slope Flycatcher (rare here, in migration), Hutton's Vireo, Steller's Jay, California Scrub-Jay, American Crow, Common Raven, Violet-green Swallow, Tree Swallow, Barn Swallow, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Oak Titmouse, Bushtit, Wrentit, Red-breasted Nuthatch (irruptive), White-breasted Nuthatch (fairly common at this location), Pygmy Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Bewick's Wren, Western Bluebird, Hermit Thrush, American Robin, Varied Thrush (rare here, irruptive), Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Northern Mockingbird, California Thrasher, Cedar Waxwing, European Starling, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Townsend's Warbler, Fox Sparrow, Spotted Towhee, California Towhee, White-crowned Sparrow, Golden-crowned Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Brown-headed Cowbird, Bullock's Oriole (uncommon at this location), Western Tanager, House Finch, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow

Rarities Seen Here

In this guide, "rarities" are defined as those species given an County Abundance Code of 4, 5, or 6.
Golden Eagle (2017), White-throated Sparrow (2008, 2009)

Directions

Holbrook-Palmer Park is location at 150 Watkins Avenue in Atherton, between Middlefield and El Camino Real (SR82). From US101, take Marsh Road west to its end at Middlefield. Turn left onto Middlefield, then your next right onto Watkins; the park will be on your right in a few yards. From El Camino Real, Watkins Avenue only goes east; Watkins is located between Fair Oaks Lane and Ravenswood Avenue.

Interactive Map

Red Markers: Parking Area or Trail Head
Hover mouse pointer over marker, or click marker, for pin identification.
Use + or - buttons to change map zoom. Click & Drag to pan.

Fees

The park is free to use during regular hours. There are rental facilities for receptions, etc., on the property; contact the district office for information on these.

Hours

Monday-Friday, 7:30 am to sunset; Saturday, Sunday and Holidays, 8:30 am to sunset. Other hours are available by permit.

Hazards

This is a very civilized park, but also, therefore, a noisy one. It is frequented by dogs, children, tennis players, and, on the east boundary, the busy Caltrains railroad tracks. When there is a wedding or another formal occasion, please be respectful of their needs and their space. There are some ticks around, but they are likely to be the larger dog ticks rather than the more dangerous small deer ticks.

Facilities

There are restrooms available, plus many recycling bins for your glass, plastic and aluminum. Parking can get tight when there is an event scheduled.

Accessibility

Accessibility information is currently not available for this location.

Contact

The park phone number is 650-752-0534.

Avian Research Status

Holbrook Palmer Park (with no hyphen) is a HotSpot in eBird, with some improvement in data coverage since 2010, but still showing only seventy-two species represented in eleven time quadrants. The hotspot location page is here.

The iNaturalist place marker was just added in 2020, and needs to be populated with more data.

There is a section of the park dedicated to the study of Dutch Elm disease. The City of Atherton prides itself on its urban forest, and has taken steps to repair the losses caused by Dutch elm disease. See the Atherton Tree Committee page for more information.

Sequoia Audubon Society has led but one field trip, in 2012. This is a fine location for a "mini" field trip, and thus a great starter location for new field trip leaders!