NEWS RELEASE, PLACED BY BARBARA ROHDE 775-728-4579 HOME OR 775-728-4460
EASY BIRDING IN NEVADA’S EASTERN REGION STATE PARKS
Eastern Nevada is a surprising part of the state. Starting from Las Vegas, going north on Interstate 15, you would
never guess that 2-1/2 hours away, you could be in lush oasis settings, or verdant farming valleys. The Mojave Desert
fades away just north of Alamo on U.S. Highway 93, as you climb in elevation from the Pahranagat Valley. Before you
leave this valley, though, be sure to stop by Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge, which is located just along the
highway. The graded gravel road that winds along the cottonwood-lined shoreline of Upper Pahranagat Lake is old
Highway 93, abandoned when the new highway cut through the desert above. A viewing platform on the dam provides
good viewing for birds, with a universal access trail from the handicapped parking space. However, from your own
vehicle, you can get a glimpse of Great Blue Herons, a variety of ducks and many other seasonal migrants. In the
winter, watch for swans, in the spring look for cormorants, in the fall watch for pelicans. Pahranagat National Wildlife
Refuge is five miles south of Alamo, which has three motels and several restaurants. A nice RV park with trailer
hookups is located another 12 miles north, in Ash Springs. Surrounded by native ash trees and cottonwoods, you can
do some fine viewing from your own RV in this little oasis.
Another hour’s drive will bring you to Caliente, an old railroad town that has motels, two RV parks, restaurants and
bars, grocery store, gas station, banks and a laundromat. You can use Caliente as a hub to make day trips out to the
six State Parks within 50 miles of the town, and make your first stop at Kershaw-Ryan State Park, just two miles south
of town. The Samuel Kershaw family established their small orchard and ranch in this spring-fed canyon, in 1870. By
1904, they were ready to sell out, to the James Ryan family. In 1934, the Ryans donated “Kershaw Garden” to the
State of Nevada to be used as a park. Wild Grapevines festoon the cliffs, and cottonwood, locust and Gambel’s Oak
trees augment the few remaining apple and pear trees from the Kershaw family’s days in the canyon. Paved or
hardened walkways make it easy to access the group picnic shelters, though the lower group area (by the day use
restroom) is the best spot to watch for bird-life. Early in the morning is the best time of day; by 10:00 on a hot summer’s
day, the park fills with families who come to enjoy the wading pool by the upper group area. Spotted towhees, lazuli
buntings, four to six species of warblers, chukar partridge and Gambel quail are reliable summer residents.
The drive down Rainbow Canyon, State Route 317, is one of the most scenic drives in eastern Nevada, and has
been nominated for national Scenic Byway status. Meadow Valley Wash flows intermittently between high igneous rock
cliffs, with beavers building ponds along the wash in many places. The beaver depend on the native cottonwood and
coyote willow trees, and the willows may provide a safe harbor for the Southwest Willow Flycatcher. At the end of the
paved road, Bradshaw’s “End of the Rainbow” Apple Orchard has “you-pick” apples in August and September,
organically grown (no pesticides). Deer and wild horses roam through the orchard, picking up the fallen apples,
competing with robins for the honor. Across the railroad tracks, to the east, is one of the newest State Park units, the
Elgin One-room Schoolhouse State Historic Site. Built in 1922 by a member of the Bradshaw Family, the school
was used until 1967, then reverted to private ownership. The Bradshaw family and friends renovated the school from
1998-2000, then turned it over to the Nevada State Parks for operation in 2004. Listen for the call of Gambel Quail or
Chukars as you sit beneath the old cottonwood tree on a hot summer’s day, or possibly the call of a Cactus wren that
might be nesting in a nearby cholla cactus.
From Caliente, north on U.S. Highway 93, four more State Parks await exploration. Beaver Dam is the most remote of
all of Nevada’s parks, lying 28 miles east of Highway 93 on a graded gravel road. Handicapped-accessible campsites
have been provided, though the park itself is difficult for wheelchair access, being located in a deep canyon bottom.
However, sitting at your (handicapped-accessible) picnic table by the pinyon pine and juniper trees, you can listen to
and see flocks of Western Scrub and Pinyon jays working the forests, and nuthatches and chickadees call to each
other. Wild Turkeys were “planted” at Beaver Dam in the late 1990’s, and have spread throughout the Clover
Mountains which form the west walls of the park. Great Blue Herons and Black-crowned Night Herons wade along
Beaver Dam Wash, vying for the trout fingerlings stocked by the Nevada Department of Wildlife for fishermen. True to
the name, beaver live and build their dams in the stream.
For a less strenuous adventure, continue north on U.S. Highway 93. Fifteen miles north of Caliente, Cathedral Gorge
State Park straddles the highway for two miles. At the southern boundary of the park, and adjacent to the highway, is
an undiscovered gem for birdwatchers: the Nevada State Parks Regional Information Center. Native trees and
shrubs were planted when this facility was built in 1996, and birds not often found in the surrounding high desert
(sagebrush/saltbush) habitat flock to the site. On two September days, one birder identified six species of warblers,
pine siskins and American goldfinches, along with the white-crowned sparrows who were just returning for the winter.
Staff have put up bird feeders to further entice feathered visitors, and paved pathways through the courtyard of the
facility provide easy access for wheelchairs.
Cathedral Gorge itself has hundred-foot cliffs surrounding a narrow, dry valley. Several kinds of swallows swoop
through the cliffs during the summer, along with rock wrens, barn and great horned owls that nest in the nooks and
alcoves of the mud-stone cliff walls. Elm, locust, Russian olive and ash trees planted at the campground attract a
variety of songbirds during the year, including migrant Western tanagers, Cedar Waxwings, orioles and Western
kingbirds. Say’s phoebes are common in the area, and actually nest by the campground restroom. Sapsuckers and
flickers “work over” the elm trees, and Common and lesser nighthawks rest on their branches during the day.
Twenty-two miles north and east from Cathedral Gorge, Echo Canyon State Park is a shorebird’s dream. A dam on
Meadow Valley Wash backs up sixty-five acres of water, in the springtime after the snow runoff. During the spring
migration, cormorants, pelicans, terns, gulls, avocets, and many other migrant species take refuge for a day or two on
their flight north. The lake level gradually declines through the summer and fall, which attract many shorebirds and
ducks. Loons have been heard during summer months, though it is often hard to distinguish whether you are seeing a
Western grebe or a Common loon on the far shore of the lake. You can drive your vehicle along most portions of the
shoreline, to make it easier to get a closer glimpse. Cliff swallows and golden eagles nest in the upper Echo canyon,
while vireos and bushtits may ply the sagebrush around the campground. Long-term campers (two-week stay limit) are
rewarded with orioles and several varieties of hummingbirds when they put out feeders, and the birds have come to
depend on campers when the wildflowers fade away in June.
Ten miles east, Spring Valley State Park has a sixty-acre reservoir that stays full year-round, surrounded by
pinyon/juniper woodland. Scrub and Pinyon jays also live here, and black phoebes may be seen below the dam during
the summer months. In the marshy wetlands where Meadow Valley Wash enters the lake, egrets and herons may be
seen probing the waters and Kingfishers may sit on a fencepost awaiting their turn to catch small fry (German brown
trout spawn in the lake and the creek). Again, you can drive along the lake, and see most of these birds. Cliff swallows
build their mud nests and golden and bald eagles build their nests in the high cliffs above the lake. Two miles north of
the reservoir, out in the sagebrush-rimmed pasture areas, Sage grouse have a lek where they strut and “boom” in the
spring. This may be the furthest south population of sage grouse, according to one bird expert (Bob Barnes). Come
autumn, you may hear Elk bugling in these same pastures.
Many more adventures lie further north on Highway 93, in two other State Parks close to Ely, and at Great Basin
National Park. Great Basin is 35 miles east of the junction of Highway 93 with U.S. Highways 6 and 50, and well worth
the diversion. The park is located in the south Snake Range, a heavily wooded former National Forest recreation area.
Ponderosa pines, spruces, firs, aspens and even stands of bristlecone pines grow along creeks and alpine lakes.
Expect a variety of birdlife, as the park ranges from an elevation of 5,000 feet in the valley to 13,063 ft. at the top of
Wheeler Peak. Trails lead to groves of Bristlecone pines and alpine lakes, but are not accessible by wheelchair.
However, a universal access trail at Wheeler Peak campground (9.900 ft. elevation) will allow the less-able to enjoy
the forest during the hot summer months. By October, snow forces the closure of this road, and you will have to
content yourself with sitting along Lower Lehman Creek at one of the handicapped campsites, to listen for the hermit
thrush, chickadees, and nuthatches. Deer are so unafraid of people that they may come into your campsite to nibble
on foliage of trees and shrubs along the creek.
Closer to Ely, Cave Lake State Park is situated at 7,300 ft. elevation, wooded by pinyon pines, junipers, chokecherry
and aspens. Add American Magpies into the mixture of woodland birds here, as the Magpies do not venture much
further south. The park is open year-around, and trails along the lake provide fishing access. By the end of December,
however, expect to be fishing through holes in the ice: the lake freezes 12 to 18 inches thick for several months,
offering one of the few ice fishing experiences in Nevada.
Ward Charcoal Ovens State Historic Park is across the valley and south from the turnoff to Cave Lake. While it is
not as “friendly” to wheelchair access, some birding can be done from the car as you drive on the graded gravel roads
of the park. Expect to see the same woodland birds as at Cave Lake, and a variety of hawks. Watch for pronghorn
antelope on the valley floor, and elk and deer in the pinyon and juniper woodland. One handicapped campsite is
available in the small campground, which has drinking water only during summer months, and chemical toilets.
“Get Primitive” is the slogan of the Lincoln County Chamber of Commerce, and you should come prepared for
adventure. No chain motels or restaurants exist in Lincoln County, though White Pine County (Ely) cannot make the
same claim. Some stores or restaurants may be closed on Sundays as local residents go to church. You will find
friendly local residents who may point you toward their favorite wildlife-viewing areas, sometimes right in their own town,
such as the duck pond in downtown Ely, or Meadow Valley Wash bisecting the town of Caliente. Want more
details? Call the Nevada State Parks Regional Information Center 775-728-4460, or the
White Pine County Chamber of Commerce 775-289-8877.