Sandhill Crane Fest Setting Sail from Tower Park Marina. (photo: USFWS)

by Jackie Hagen & Chris Vallee, Stockton FWO
Birding enthusiasts were able to get an eye full during the 12^th Annual Sandhill Crane Festival in Lodi, Calif., November 7–9, 2008.  

Jackie Hagen and Chris Vallee, both Small Craft Operators for the Stockton Fish and Wildlife Office, operated two birding tour boats on Saturday and Sunday at the Festival.  Over the two days, 160 birders arrived at Tower Park Marina and donned life vests for a two hour cruise up the south fork of the Mokelumne River.  Some of the birds viewed were sandhill cranes, sora rails, American bitterns, a Pacific loon, and various species of geese, egrets, herons and raptors.

The Sandhill Crane Festival is a three day, community-driven event that celebrates the dramatic return of the sandhill cranes to the Central Valley and the Delta.  This was the third year that the Service participated in the event, and we hope to continue our support of this local festival.