Ranch outside Burns, Oregon
Copyright © 1996, Don Baccus
Copyright © 1995, Don Baccus
All images copyright © 1995, Don Baccus
Burns, Oregon, is a small town of several thousand residents. Most visitors to the area arrive from the west on State Highway 20 and pass through town to the intersection with State Highway 205, which leads southward towards the Malheur Refuge.
Along with being a logical place to buy gas and groceries, the ranches which border the town are full of birds during spring and early summer.
The Sylvies River flows from the mountains north of southwards past Burns into Malheur Lake. In the spring, melting snow greatly increases the river's flow, and it floods the hay fields which lie south of town. These flooded fields are home to large numbers of birds, including waterfowl, common snipe, sandhill crane, black-necked stilt, yellow-headed blackbird, and many other specis.
When I travel to the area from Portland, Oregon, I like to time my trip so I arrive in Burns in an hour or so before sundown. At this time of day, birds are extremely active, the light is beautiful, and traffic is light.
This is an outstanding place to view and photograph birds from your vehicle. Several roads, bordered by flooded fields, traverse the area. While many birds can be seen on the drive south along highway 205 to the Malheur Refuge, narrow shoulders and traffic makes birding difficult. I recommend exploring some of the side roads, such as Lottery Lane which leads from 205 west to the old, and now blessedly defunct, timber mill which can be seen in the distance. There are also a couple of rarely-traveled gravel roads in the area, along which one can park and photograph nearby birds.
Near the mill you'll find the Burns sewage ponds, which, though useless to the photographer, contains a wide variety of waterfowl. Though not known for rare birds, I have seen a Sabine's gull here.
The railroad which used to lead to the mill has been torn out, and the bed crosses 205 just south of Lottery Lane. I enjoy hiking along the right-of-way and birding the fields on foot.
