2025, Apr 28 - May 3: Registration is Closed
2026 Registration Opens in October
1) Log in or create a user account. 2) Read the details below to find "Click Here to Register."
Spend six or three days on daily nature excursions, enjoy meals with longtime and new friends, and presentations packed with knowledge, interest and fun.
Seats are limited.
All packages include daily field trips, field trip transportation from Burnwood, meals, presentations, happy hour appetizers and drinks, and a t-shirt.
Optional lodging packages begin the night before your first field trip and include the night of your last field trip. See Lodging descriptions. Additional details are provided in April.
Field trips are limited to ~twelve seats, plus guides.
Package options are All week 6 days Monday through Saturday; Half week 3 days Monday to Wednesday or Thursday to Saturday; with or without lodging.
Trips fill on a first-come basis. Registration forms are manually updated. Occasionally, an influx of registrations cause trips to fill faster than site updates can occur, then Rachel communicates adjustments individually. A trip that cannot be selected has been filled and closed.
Skip to FAQ. Skip to Registration. Skip to Deposit & Payments.
FAQ
Logged-in birding-wv site users: create a User Account and log-in prior to completing a registration. Logged-in users can find their submitted registration and PayPal invoice link on their My Profile - My Registration page. The only information required for a User Account is your name and email address. Save your log-in information!
Registration form navigation: Desktops and laptops have easier navigation than phones. When you click "Submit My Registration," wait for the "Your Registration is Submitted" screen. Don't navigate away or close it until you see "Your Registration is Submitted." It may take a solid minute for the system to save your selections. Be patient.
Thursday sometimes appears as a Monday-Wednesday option, but is not part of the Monday-Wednesday package.
Confirmation & Invoice: Upon successfully submitting a registration, a confirmation note opens: "Your Registration is Submitted." Within minutes, you receive a confirmation email. Check your spam folder and make birding-wv.com a trusted sender. A PayPal invoice usually arrives to your inbox within 72 hours; logged in users on birding-wv.com find their submitted registration and PayPal link in My Profile - My Registration.
Field Trip Transportation is provided from Burnwood. Trips depart from and return to the Burnwood breakfast location. Birders must transport themselves between Burnwood and their lodging.
Lodging packages include a special rate agreement with our partners and we handle the reservations for you. Lodging check-in is the afternoon before your first field trip and check-out is the morning following your last field trip. Additional days may be requested but depend upon provider availability; communicate this directly with Rachel. Other details are provided in April. Review lodging options.
Festival Event Check-In by Your First Field Trip
If your first field trip is:
Monday (All-week and First-Half-week)- meet Sunday at Burnwood for a casual cookout welcome, between 6 PM and 8 PM.
Thursday (First-Timer, Second-Half-Week)- meet Thursday for Birding by Butt at Opossum Creek Retreat; coffee is ready at 6 AM, breakfast at 8 AM, outings begin at 9 AM.
Thursday (Returning, Second-Half-Week)- choose any field trip; by your selection we'll either see you at the Meadows before 9 AM for Birding by Butt, or at Burnwood at 6 AM for any other trip.
Additional check-in details are provided in April and include the name of the person with whom you check-in and receive your check-in items.
Items provided upon check-in include a printed checklist, personal itinerary, name tag, and t-shirt.
Deposit is made from links in your Registration Confirmation email, or the "Make Payment" button on this page, or by postal mail. A non-refundable deposit of 15% of your total is required to hold your reservation. Other payments may be made at any time; are refundable (minus PayPal fees) until March 1.
Payments are preferred directly to your PayPal invoice. Or write checks payable to "New River Birding & Nature Festival" with "NRBNF" on the memo line, and mail to 310 West Oyler Ave, Oak Hill, WV, 25901. Total balance due by April 1. Details are provided in your registration confirmation email.
A PayPal account is not required when you use your credit or debit card. You enter the amount you wish to remit.
To help our nonprofit handle PayPal fees, add 1.99% plus $0.49 per your payment transactions.
2025 REGISTRATION IS CLOSED - 2026 registration opens in October '25
Opossum Creek Retreat Cabins
Available first to veteran supporters of NRBNF programs and the non-profit Fayette County Education Fund, Inc.
All week: 1 person $3368. 2 people $4789. 3 people $6210. 4 people $7632.
Adventures on the Gorge Cabins
All week: 1 person $3138. 2 people $4559. 3 people $5981. 4 people $7402.
Half week: 1 person $1664. 2 people $2571. 3 people $3085. 4 people $3992.
Hawks Nest Lodge
All week: 1 person: $2484. 2 people $3905.
Half week: 1 person $1278. 2 people: $2215.
No Lodging
All week: 1 person $1895. 2 people $3316. 3 people $4738. 4 people $6159.
Half week: 1 person $948. 2 people $1895. 3 people $2369. 4 people $3316.
Health Safety
+ cdc.gov Travelers' Health
+ Anyone who develops symptoms during Festival week must self-isolate and text/call a Festival Host.
+ Nearby CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, Walmart, Urgent Care, MedExpress.
