MMS Projects: This year, Ridgefield NWR received MMS funds to replace a dilapidated Ford Bronco. By working with San Diego NWR, Ridgefield NWR was able to purchase their 2003 Dodge Dakota Extended Cab for $17,417.45, plus an additional $850 to have the truck shipped to Washington. This was a considerable savings compared to purchasing a new vehicle through the normal process.

Visitation on the Rise: 2004 brought 138,959 recreational visitors to Ridgefield NWR. The refuge anticipates that this number will continue to grow as the local community and the Portland metropolitan area (pop. 2 million) continue to expand. With several new housing and business developments slated to break ground within the local community in the next year, the refuge anticipates ever increasing numbers of first time visitors. Refuge staff have been considering ways to accommodate the likely increase in visitation and will be involved in a Public Use Review in the near future.

YCC, Volunteers, and Staff Impact Invasives: During 2004 refuge staff, volunteers and YCC participants fought back against the ever encroaching invasive vegetation on Ridgefield NWR. Reed canary grass, cheatgrass, Canada thistle, tansy ragwort, Himalayan blackberry, yellow flag iris and ricefield bulrush were just a few of the invasive exotic plants that were impacted. Six YCC students and two dozen volunteers helped the refuge staff to hand pull over 100,000 ricefield bulrush plants before the plants were able to drop seed. The refuge will continue to focus on containing this exotic bulrush within its boundaries. The refuge's Endangered howelia plants were given a new lease on life when reed canary grass was hand pulled from some of the only ponds where howelia is known to exist in Southwest Washington.

Plankhouse: A refuge vision that began 3 years ago is nearing completion. The project which began as an attempt to construct a replica chinookean plankhouse will be open to the public by the end of March. This plankhouse will be representative of the structures that Lewis and Clark observed during their visit to Cathlapotle nearly 200 years ago. Central posts that have been carved by an artisan with expertise in the chinookean style, have been erected and most of the foundation work has been completed. Soon, refuge staff and volunteers will begin work on the interior of the building by laying the floor and constructing benches, fire pits and entrance ramps. Then work will begin on the exterior, where hand-split planks will be secured to the walls and landscaping will be completed. Refuge staff, volunteers, the Lewis and Clark BiCentennial Committee, and the modern day Chinook tribe have been working together to create a plankhouse that will be as authentic as possible. Some modern innovations must be used to alleviate safety concerns and provide disability access. Much of The Cathlapotle Plankhouse Project has been funded by grants and private donation. The completion of the Plankhouse Project will be a major step in interpreting the cultural resources of this refuge.

One-of-a-Kind Volunteers: Given the chance to work on a one-of-a-kind project, it was not hard to attract people to volunteer on the refuge's Cathlapotle Plankhouse Project. During FY04, the project kept 75 volunteers busy peeling bark and preparing logs to produce planks for the replica cedar plankhouse being built on Ridgefield NWR. Overall, the volunteers contributed a total of 1,791 hours of their time to this project and look forward to sharing the story behind the refuges rich natural and cultural resources.

Tribal Partnership: The Service finalized a MOU between the Cowlitz Indian Tribe and Ridgefield NWR to define how they will work together in matters related to the Tribe's representation in cultural interpretative programs and visitor facilities on the refuge.

Refuge Week Wonders: National Wildlife Refuge Week was celebrated at Ridgefield NWR during BirdFest 2004. The festival was a draw for nearly 2,000 visitors who participated in kayak tours, guided tours to view sandhill cranes and other birds, special presentation and programs, live bird shows, and cultural activities related to the archaeological site preserved on the refuge. Hosted by the Friends of Ridgefield NWR, fundraising efforts during BirdFest secured nearly $10,000 for next year's event and for a special refuge habitat project.

Hunting: During the 2003/2004 waterfowl hunting season 1758 hunters took advantage of 21 hunting blinds during the 44 day season. These hunters retrieved a total of 2372 ducks, 14 of which were taken on Youth Hunt day. Unfortunately, the dusky Canada goose limit was reached only nine days into the goose hunting season. Only 94 geese, in total, were taken from the refuge which means that just about one in every 9 geese shot this season, was a dusky Canada goose. Hunter volunteers performed necessary maintenance on hunt area facilities to help close down the hunt area in the spring and open it again in the fall. They also helped repair damage from a tornado last September.

Although the 2004/2005 hunting season is still in full swing, 1168 hunters have already taken home 285 geese and 1843 ducks. At the hunters? request, the refuge also made some changes to its fully accessible blind. The blind now seats two wheel chair bound hunters and their hunting partners. A volunteer day will be planned for late winter or early spring to remove shotgun shells and other trash from blinds and remove hunt area signs.

Refuge Wildlife: During the mid-winter waterfowl count, over 6515 ducks and 5398 geese were observed in the Lower Columbia River. This survey is conducted each year in January. The annual dusky Canada goose survey, conducted in December 2004, recorded 544 dusky geese on refuge. Surveys conducted in Oregon and Washington in 2004 showed a small increase in the number of sandhill cranes in the Lower Columbia River. 941 cranes were counted on Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge alone. Five bald eagle nests that are located on, or bordering, the refuge were active this season. Out of these five nests, 8 birds fledged, and one other downy young was observed. The fledging status of the downy young was never confirmed.

Tornado Gives Refuge a Wild Ride: During September 2004, a tornado touched down on the River ?S? unit of Ridgefield NWR. The tornado destroyed two portable restrooms, one hunt blind, 350 linear feet of pipe, several culverts, and seriously damaged the hunter check station, biological office trailer, old shop facility, and several other structures. The shop building and biological office trailer were being used as a workshop and office for the Cathlapotle Plankhouse volunteers and program supervisor. The staff fielded close to a dozen reporters, assessed the damage, and immediately began making alternate arrangements for the Plankhouse Project. Volunteers worked diligently to clean-up debris left behind by the tornado and repair the hunt check station roof and replace the disabled accessible hunting blind. Even though a person was inside the biological trailer when it was lifted by the tornado, luckily no one was injured. Thanks to the dedicated staff and volunteers the Plankhouse Project and Hunting Program were able to continue without a hitch.

After a season plagued with wild weather, Congress passed an FY 2004 emergency supplemental appropriations bill that included $40.6 million in funding for weather beaten refuges. Ridgefield NWR was allocated $306,200 to repair tornado damage. Refuge staff is currently discussing creative ways to replace/repair the tornado damaged buildings and make the area more useful to wildlife. One idea is to combine the hunter check station and visitor contact stations into one building and return most of the area to habitat for wildlife.