I’m so confused. A few days ago, we were surrounded by Fall colors and temperatures. A two hour hour drive North to Fairbanks put us back in the middle of summer with bright sunny skies, lush greenery and temperatures in the 70’s. Go figure. But, we are loving it and it was perfect weather to spend the weekend at the Sandhill Crane Festival.
Did you know that the Sandhill Cranes have been migrating for 9 million years? Really. No kidding. I didn’t know that until this weekend. And, one of their stopovers is in Fairbanks. The locals celebrate the event by putting on the annual festival.
left: A future birder?
The Creamer’s Dairy (that really was the owner’s name, don’t you just love it) was the oldest and largest dairy in Alaska. In 1967, Charles and Anna Creamer, who were getting old, needed to sell the business. Since the birds had been using the dairy as a feeding ground during their migration, the Creamers really wanted it to be maintained as a bird sanctuary instead of it going to development. So, the people of Fairbanks raised the earnest money needed to make the purchase happen. With additional state funding, the 250 acre farm was purchased.
right: An evening lecture under a brilliant sky.
The Creamers Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge is now run by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the purchase of adjacent lands has increased the refuge to 2000 acres. The refuge and it’s fields of barley attracts not only Sandhill cranes but also Canada Geese, Pintails, Plovers, shovelers and mallards.
left: A budding photographer?
The three day event included lectures, workshops, kids activities and of course, bird watching. And, if you got bored watching the birds you could always watch the strange birds watching the birds as the event attracted all kinds.
The cranes, as all birds, are streamlined and graceful when flying but look like an incoming load of dangling laundry when they land. We got a chuckle out of the way they would bend their wings and hang their legs down in an awkward decent or as the Lil’ Dudes says “they put their landing feet down”.
left: The Lil’ Dude paints a card.
As always, I felt ill prepared carrying my dinky camera lens to such an event especially when I went to the photography workshop and was surrounded by cannon sized Canons. But, I still had fun and was able to get a few decent shots.
left and below: Looking for bugs that the birds eat.
The Dudes kept busy making plaster casts of bird feet, painting cards, folding origami cranes and going on guided nature walks and bug hunts.
There are trails and even a viewing platform among the fields, forests and ponds on the property and the birds can be viewed from every angle. We managed to walk along most of them during the beautiful weekend. As we drove into town, the day before, we heard a DJ on the radio refer to the weather as “indian summer”. I didn’t know there could actually be an “indian summer” in the summer? Hmmmm. But, I guess we are on Alaska time.
The Refuge has strong support from the community as well as a large volunteer organization. They also offer programs, classes and guided nature walks throughout the year.
right: ” Stinky” was part of a Falconry demonstration.
It was inspiring to see an event that has blossomed from a community’s support of their local wildlife. They finished up the festival with a good ‘ole fashioned ice cream social and we came away from the weekend having learned a few things about birds. But, if we were really paying attention, we should take a hint from the crane’s 9 million years of experience and start heading South!
“A small group of thoughtful people could change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead
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