Sandhill Crane Tour

Experience the amazing sights and sounds as these enormous birds return to the marsh to roost each evening. It is amazing and memorable.

About this Event

Tours meet 90 minutes before sunset at the reserve on the South Site (directions below) where docents will meet you to guide you through the experience. Tours involve very little walking, so you may want to bring a camp chair if you would like to sit and view the birds. It is recommended that you dress warmly, especially during winter, as it can be damp and chilly. You should bring binoculars and/or spotting scopes for up-close viewing, but you can easily enjoy the cranes with unaided eyes and ears. You may want to bring a light snack and water for your tour.

Portable toilets are on site, including one which is ADA-compliant.

Guides may take tour groups down Woodbridge Road via car caravan to see cranes and other wildlife using the grain fields and marshes along the road. Your docent is trained in crane ecology, the area’s natural history, and the Reserve’s habitat management. Tours usually conclude a half hour after sunset with the anticipated fly-in of the cranes at the North Site, where a viewing shelter allows us to be hidden from the incoming birds.

Cranes will be the focus of our tours as they may be observed here under most but not all conditions; however, we will also scout for other birds that use the reserve during the winter months.

*PLEASE NOTE: A CDFW Lands Pass or a current fishing or hunting license in possession is required of each tour participant, age 16+. Tour docents will be checking for land passes or valid licenses at the time of tour participation. Full tour access is not allowed without the presentation of the document. For additional information, visit: https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Regions/3/Crane-Tour