Tehama - The Magazine

8 TEHAMA - THE MAGAZINE, October 2014 Make sure to give yourself a couple of hours to really enjoy this unique experience. An auto tour route is like being in a movable blind. While in your vehicle drive along and find a spot to pull to the side, but be sure to stay on the road since the shoulders can be soft during the rainy season, even when it is not raining. Roll down your windows and listen to the sounds outside. The longer you stay the closer the birds and other wildlife will come. A couple of tips if you plan to take photographs from your vehicle. Turn off your engine; the vibration of your vehicle will cause camera shake and blurry pictures. Roll down all your windows so you don't get distortion from you vehicle's glass. Take a bean bag along to brace your camera on the edge of your vehicle window and lastly fold the vehicle's side view mirrors in to give you a bigger viewing area. If you are lucky enough to have a non-photographer spouse or friend driving, remind him or her to drive slow, and try sitting in the back seat since you never know what side of the vehicle the wildlife will appear on. Stopping at the platforms is a must. Not only are they a great place to stop and have lunch, but there are many photo opportunities at each of them. At the Sacramento main platform be sure to look along the logs in the unit just south of the parking area. Western pond turtles are often found sunning themselves in this area. At the Colusa platform, black neck stilts and other shore birds come in close to feed just below the platform. This is also the best viewing area for White Front and Ross' geese. In December between 10 and 11 a.m. flocks fly in providing photographers with their best chance for in flight shots.

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