San Luis National WildLife Refuge

Laura, Zephyr and I took advantage of a crystal-clear and cool winter’s day to visit the new San Luis National Wildlife Refuge visitor center near Los Banos. The refuge first came into existence in the 1960’s and now provides an engineered and irrigated sliver of natural habitat that once existed along the entire stretch of the San Joaquin River prior to farming. We saw tens of thousands of birds and I can’t explain in writing the thrill of hearing a flock take off and land all at once. A better descriptor of what can be found at the refuge is quoted from the SLNWR website: “The San Luis National Wildlife Refuge encompasses over 26,800 acres of wetlands, riparian forests, native grasslands, and vernal pools. A thriving population of the endemic tule elk is showcased by one of three auto tour routes. The Refuge is host to significant assemblages of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects, and plants; some of which, such as the California tiger salamander, the long-horned fairy shrimp, and San Joaquin kit fox, are endangered species.”
The stars of the SLNWR are the gigantic Tule Elk that once numbered over 500,000 in the Valley prior to 1830's. Lucky for us they were near the visitor center parking lot and easy to spot. : san luis national wildlife refuge Zephyr gets a good look at his very first elk. : san luis national wildlife refuge We took a quik stroll through a "nature trail" near the parking lot. Lots of bushes and birds in the bush. : san luis national wildlife refuge The new entrance to the stunning visitor center. : san luis national wildlife refuge
A nice boardwalk takes one through cattails and marshes on the way into the visitor center. : san luis national wildlife refuge RJH9481 : san luis national wildlife refuge The new visitor center is only a few years old is is LEED Platinum Certified - the most environmentally sound building possible. : san luis national wildlife refuge A fitting statue at the entrance. : san luis national wildlife refuge
Greeting visitors is the declawed, indoor-only cat that loves the warmth of the big screen TV. : san luis national wildlife refuge Quail near a feeder. : san luis national wildlife refuge Zephyr touches beaver and river otter pelts very gently. : san luis national wildlife refuge Zephyr really enjoyed touching the eggs of different birds. : san luis national wildlife refuge
Z points out the gigantic Tule Elk mounted on the wall. : san luis national wildlife refuge There were excellent hands-on exhibits throughout the museum. The uplands are situated above the wetlands below. : san luis national wildlife refuge The San Joaquin NWR is managed by the SLNWR, thus restoration efforts at the SJ are highlighted in the museum. Our WildLink students have contributed to this success! : san luis national wildlife refuge Zephyr found the salmon. Perhaps 50 years from now big runs will be restored? Or, if several university studies are correct, the valley chinook runs will be extinct within 90 years. : san luis national wildlife refuge
This was a cool 3 minute presentation on how the SLNWR came into being. : san luis national wildlife refuge The Platinum certification of the building. I'd display it proudly too. : san luis national wildlife refuge After spending some time at the visitor center we headed out to Sousa Marsh where a great trail and thousands of birds awaited our presence. : san luis national wildlife refuge The water in the wetlands are fed, ironically, from irrigation canals. The addition of irrigation to the area was the piece of the puzzle that allowed agriculture to take-off and reclaim the wetlands for farmlands. : san luis national wildlife refuge
Birds everywhere! : san luis national wildlife refuge Zephyr looking good! : san luis national wildlife refuge I'd say Z is ready for a hike with mom and dad. : san luis national wildlife refuge The trail signage has improved since the first time I visited in college. : san luis national wildlife refuge
This stately tree is a nice sentinel for the Sousa Marsh Trail. : san luis national wildlife refuge Zephyr found a hiking stick. : san luis national wildlife refuge My botany is terrible, but I will say this "tree" is a major success stroy. The girdle that it is popping out of was used to protect it when it was a sappling planted by volunteers several years ago. : san luis national wildlife refuge No longer a hiking trail, the Nature Trail at Sousa's Marsh is about 1.3 miles as a loop : san luis national wildlife refuge
Pretty contrasts. : san luis national wildlife refuge The California Waterfowl Association installed this box for wood ducks. : san luis national wildlife refuge A place to reflect. : san luis national wildlife refuge Zephyr walked about 1/3 of a mile before tuckering out. Not bad for 22 months! : san luis national wildlife refuge
Laura got to tote Zephyr in the backpack for a bit of the hike to the observation platform. This was the first time I didn't have to lug him around... until we left the platform. : san luis national wildlife refuge A view of the trail/road/levee. : san luis national wildlife refuge I have no idea what kind of birds these were, but boy, did they take-off in flocks. : san luis national wildlife refuge The platform with a huge flock taking off in the background. They sounded like a jet engine. : san luis national wildlife refuge
The wetland view from the observation platform. : san luis national wildlife refuge Zephyr and Laura check out the view. We could observe well over several thousand birds. : san luis national wildlife refuge The spotting scope was old, but it helped-out our viewing since someone left the binoculars in the car - Zephyr! : san luis national wildlife refuge Mmm, lunch. : san luis national wildlife refuge
RJH9585 : san luis national wildlife refuge RJH9595 : san luis national wildlife refuge The Island Canal - the main source of water for the modern wetlands that are precisely controlled by floodgates, etc. Ironically, the San Joaquin River channel is just beyond the left levee about 200 yards. But it rarely has water these days. : san luis national wildlife refuge Ducks everywhere! : san luis national wildlife refuge
The trail back to the car was covered in green that was encouraged by the early December deluge. : san luis national wildlife refuge RJH9623 : san luis national wildlife refuge RJH9624 : san luis national wildlife refuge I thought this reflection (turned vertical) looked like a bull skull. : san luis national wildlife refuge