We traveled to Central Washington State in the spring to hike a series of trails in “Washington Desert Lands.”   One of the places we camped was at Potholes Reservoir, close to a number of areas protected as wildlife refuges.  The Columbia Wildlife Refuges cover 30 000 acres, with rugged cliffs, lakes, marshlands, and sagebrush grasslands.    The whole area is dry, but the Columbia River dams, diversions, reservoirs, and wetlands bring water to croplands and to wildlife areas.

We hiked designated trails in the wetlands, hiked up some of the rocky hills, and traversed the grasslands between the lakes for 2 days.   Over the year 100 000 ducks and other wildfowl visit the many lakes, ponds, and marshlands.    We saw many birds as we hiked and enjoyed the peace of the area.

The weather was a bit grey those days, but we took a few photos and a selection is shared here.

The album can also be seen at this link – Columbia Wildlife Refuge

More information can be found on this US Fish and Wildlife Service website – Columbia National Wildlife Refuge.