Brick Pond Wetlands Preserve

Quick Bits

Main Activities - Hike
Distance - ~1 mile of trails, 30 acres.
Quiet - some street noise
Surface - well maintained dirt, wet at times.
Elevation - very flat
Pets - no pets allowed
Address - E. Front Street, Owego, NY

Click image for PDF from WCEC website.

In a Nutshell

Brick Pond Wetlands Preserve in Owego, while small, is a rich in environmental diversity. The water level is managed by a family of beavers and a man-made spillway. Along with the beavers, birds, reptiles, and amphibians are abundant here. There are blinds for photography and bird watching along with some short hiking trails.

Location and Parking

There is a small parking area on East Front Street. Additional parking on the street. There is an entrance by the parking area, and then another one entrance about 500 feet west on East Front Street.

More details

Brick Pond Wetlands Preserve is managed by Waterman Conservation Education Center. This preserve sits in the town of Owego. The wetlands of which the Brick Pond is part of is left from a time when the Susquehanna River changed course. The land once owned by the Hollenbeck family which used the rich supply of clay to make bricks, hence the name. The wetlands today are fed by the Hollenbeck Creek. The pond formed by a combination of engineers from the resident beaver colony as well as man-made structures to help regulate the water. A culvert carries the water from the west end spillway to the Susquehanna River.

Trails encircle the pond. Though as of July August 2023 a portion of the East Berm trail is underwater. The Waterman organization hopes to remedy that. Another part of the Pond Loop (yellow trail) is on Front Street. There is a tremendous amount of wildlife and plants to explore in this small preserve. The beaver lodge is clearly visible from the south side of the pond. Two bird blinds are also on that side of pond accessible from the Pond Loop Trail. For a small change of pace, you can also explore the Woods Trail (red) where you might even find fragments of old bricks. Railroad tracks run parallel to the area on the southside of the pond.

Apart from the occassional train, the street noise is relatively low for being as close to town as it is.

Link for Scenic Chronicles images.