Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge - Siskiyou County, CA
N 41° 56.771 W 121° 33.909
10T E 618932 N 4644796
Established in 1928, Tuleake National Wildlife Refuge encompasses 39,116 acres of mostly open water and croplands.
Waymark Code: WMRYJ4
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 08/22/2016
Views: 1
The Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge is managed by the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex (a grouping of two or more refuges) which is located on the west end of the refuge and along Hill Rd. The Complex also includes five other National Wildlife Refuges: Bear Valley NWR, Upper Klamath NWR, Klamath Marsh NWR,
Lower Klamath NWR, and Clear Lake NWR.
The Refuge website has this to say about its history and mission:
Tule Lake Refuge is located in the fertile and intensely farmed Tule Lake Basin of northeastern California. It was established in 1928 by President Calvin Coolidge as a,“preserve and breeding ground for wild birds and animals.” This 39,116-acre refuge is mostly open water and crop land. Approximately 17,000 acres are leased by potato, onion, horse radish, alfalfa, and cereal grains within the Public Lease Lands program administered by the U.S Bureau of Reclamation. Permit holders farm an additional 1,900 acres in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).The endangered Lost River and shortnose suckers live in or use this refuge.
The Refuge is a significant staging area for migrating waterfowl during spring and fall migrations. It is used primarily by whitefronted, snow, Ross, and cackling Canada geese, all of which nest in the Arctic tundra.Tule Lake hunting opportunities consist of two large marsh units accessible by boats, a spaced-blind hunt in dry fields, and open free-roam areas offering field hunts over harvested grain and smaller marsh units. A 10-mile auto tour route allows for wildlife observation throughout the year.
My posted coordinates place you at the Refuge Complex which contains a nice visitor center to tour inside and view the many stuffed migratory bird species that frequent this area throughout the year. Across the road from the Visitor Center is the Discovery Trail, a great place for visitors to see the Refuge's goal of converting a small area of refuge space into native habitat for many bird species.
There is also a neat little hike visitors can take up Sheepy Ridge Trail behind the visitor center and view the great expanse of Tule Lake Refuge from a lookout made of lava rock in the 1930s by the CCC.
Finally, just a few miles south of the visitor center is a scenic overlook just off Hill Rd that contains three interpretive displays that highlight the volcanic activity, the wildlife and the native American Modoc tribes that once lived here for thousands of years before white settlers arrived. If you look around the area from the scenic lookout parking lot, you'll find a few bedrock Indian mortars (I did). Some great history here.