Saturday, April 11, 2009

The Columbia National Wildlife Refuge

I found out yesterday my daughter didn't realize we had a wildlife refuge near where I live. Of course, she had already gotten married and started her own family when I moved to Othello. I told her the next time she comes to visit, we will take a drive so she can see the area.
Our refuge is quite unique. Located in the middle of a shrub steppe, semi arid desert, it's a sight to behold. We have wonderful rock formations created 12,000 years ago by the Ice Age Floods.
It's also an agricultural area irrigated by Grand Coulee Dam, so there are many lakes and wetlands created after water came to our desert. Some of the lakes were here before that, but they are now deeper and don't dry up in the summer.
The Columbia National Wildlife Refuge is one of my favorite places to visit. One of my hobbies is wildlife photography. All these photos are mine.
To find out more about the refuge, go to http://www.fws.gov/columbiarefuge/.


2 comments:

Maryannwrites said...

Love the pictures, LuAnn. Happy Spring to you!!!

LuAnn said...

Thanks. I hope to have some time to go for a drive through the refuge tomorrow. Depends on the weather.