My wife and I will be spending October 11-17 visiting the Malheur and Klamath refuges. We've never been to either, so would appreciate any advice on where to spend our time.
Alan,
I haven't ever photographed at Klamath but I have done a lot of photography at the Sacramento NWR Complex and the photography blinds are outstanding. It has become so popular at Sacramento that they now use a lottery style system. So i would suggest looking into blind usage while you are at klamath. Here is the link
Hi Alan. I would spend time at Lower Klamath refuge and Tule Lake in the Klamath area (actually in CA). Tule Lake had photo blinds at one time (back in the day!!) 20 years ago. I would inquire about them at the headquarters. As for Malheur, I'm not sure? I do think that your are going to be there a bit early in the season for the waterfowl and raptors though? Good luck!
Chris: We are planning to leave home (near SJ) Friday afternoon, spend the night in Marysville, then visit Gray Lodge State WA early Saturday morning before driving to Burns. I've not heard of the Sacramento NWR Complex before. Do you know how those refuges compare to Gray Lodge?
Dan: From what I have found so far, this should be a good week at both for southbound migrants, but early for wintering raptors. We don't have a choice of dates though, my employer is forcing everybody to take that week off.
Alan,
Gray Lodge has much better pedestrian access in the form of trails that Sacramento does not. The trails at Sacramento in my experience have never been of much value. The trails at Graylodge have been superb as there is one that goes right down the middle of the refuge and is great for the evening lift off of geese. The photo blind at Graylodge needs a lot of work as it is way, way too high above the water for any kind of waterfowl work.
Malheur and Klamath in October
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