We left from Citrus Heights, a suburb of Sacramento, between the city and Roseville. A dry, typical end-of-summer day for California’s interior – meaning it was pushing 80 degrees by 10AM. Cruising up Rte. 5 through the heartland of California really brings home the fact that CA produces more that 13% of the nation’s total of fruit and vegetables (as of 2015), and why many growers are hollering for more water. Our first stop was for lunch at a place off the highway called, unfortunately, the Olive Pit (who doesn’t want to eat in the pit?). Pretty good burgers, and a wonderful condiment bar, plus a truly awesome array of every style of olive you could imagine (chocolate stuffed, anyone?)
We
tooled on to a place I’ve wanted to see for some time: The Sacramento National WildlifeRefuge, 70 miles north of Sacramento. The six-mile drive on the Refuge roads is
worth a detour, even if sitting among a gazillion honking geese isn’t on your
bucket list. Recent midwinter counts have shown that 5-6 million ducks and geese
winter in the Central Valley. This accounts for 60% of wintering waterfowl in
the Pacific Flyway: more geese, songbirds, ducks and other birds than you’d see
in a lifetime. This is a popular stop for migrations in fall and spring, and we
hit it at an ideal time. The refuge supports over 250 species
of birds; most notable are the huge wintering concentrations (November -
January) of 500,000 to 750,000 ducks and 200,000 geese. Raptor numbers swell as
the waterfowl numbers increase, including bald eagles and peregrine falcons (we
saw both – first ever sighting of a bald eagle, up close and personal).
Waterfowl viewing is good between October and March. Shorebird numbers peak in
the spring and fall, while some waterfowl and numerous migratory songbird species
nest here during the summer.
A Refuge is NOT a sanctuary. We were
alarmed to hear gunshots from across one of the viewing ponds: Hunting is considered
an important wildlife management tool (the refuge calls it “a healthy,
traditional outdoor pastime, deeply rooted in America’s heritage…. and in some
instances…necessary for sound wildlife management”). Hunting on this
and other refuges is heavily regulated and there are specific permits, fees,
and restrictions in place. Still, an urge to duck among ducks was not out of
place.
Sacramento
National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1937 with funds from the
Emergency Conservation Fund Act of 1933 to provide refuge and breeding habitat
for migratory birds, endangered, threatened, or sensitive species and other
wildlife (and alleviate crop depredation by those pesky critters). The area of
the refuge used to be a vacant, windswept plain; from 1937-1942, men from the
Civilian Conservation Corps constructed levees, water control structures, and
delivery ditches to create and sustain wetlands across the majority of the
refuge.
It’s a great
place to visit…but we had miles to go.
