Othello Sandhill Crane Festival

Sandhill Crane Festival banner, originally uploaded by stevevoght.

Last weekend we trekked over the mountain passes (on the two of the very few days in the past month that they've been reasonably clear!) and headed to central Washington to attend the Othello Sandhill Crane Festival.

Every year in late March, tens of thousands of Sandhill Cranes stop in the fields around Othello to feast on waste corn and grasses before continuing their trip from central California up to northern Canada and Alaska, where they nest and breed.

Although that area of the Columbia basin only averages eight inches of rain per year, it drizzled for most of the trip (resulting in lousy light for photography), but we still saw several fields filled with cranes and geese, and also some other new species, including Burrowing Owls. On the way home we made a few side-trips, as well.

Check out the entire set here.