Spring
Columbia National Wildlife Refuge is a great place to visit any time of the year, but nothing compares to spring. The refuge turns green for a few short months. Fishing returns. Temperatures are perfect for visiting. But it's the explosion of wildlife that truly defines the season and the refuge. Waterfowl by the thousands—tens of thousands—stop by on their great migrations to breeding grounds in Alaska and Canada. Others, like some shorebirds, may be pushing on even further to the countries of the Arctic Circle and need food and rest to continue. While on a shorter, but still epic migration, thousands of lesser Sandhill cranes poke through last year's agricultural fields for leftover grains and protein-rich insects. The cranes, ducks and geese crowd the same fields, creating tornados of flight and noise when they take off together. Less obvious and less awe-inspiring, but more colorful, warblers and finches and kinglets flit along the riparian corridors as they, too, make their way to nesting grounds. Don't miss the show.