A Long Walk at the Salton Sea
Join Us for a Virtual Birding Journey
If you are trapped home like us, now is the best time to virtually visit Salton Sea — one of the most famous birding hotspots in Southern California — through some nice photos we took during our trip there in early March 2020.
The Salton Sea has been on our list for a while, but it was not until our planned trip to Big Island, Hawaii got canceled due to the growing coronavirus concerns had we decide to visit there instead. Salton Sea State Recreation Area — the famous SoCal birding spot in Imperial Valley, California is reasonable close to us (about a three-hour drive from LA). It is also the largest lake in California that provides valuable water source to birds in the desert climate. Moreover, we have heard great things about the Salton Sea from many excellent birders from Audubon societies that we bird with. We have heard exciting stories about the place, like how thousands of Sandhill Cranes flew overhead during sunset, and have been thinking about going there sooner than later. “Now is the time!” we thought.
Bottom line up front: the Sea didn’t disappoint us at all. It was a pity we did not see Sandhill Cranes, but there were numerous amazing birds that are less common in the Los Angeles area. The birds we met there were quite friendly and we were able to have some nice close-ups when approaching them with caution. We hope you would enjoy our photos!
Stop 1. Salt Creek Beach
The first stop we made was at the Salt Creek Beach Campground on the east side of the Sea. Since we drove from LA before sunrise, the drive there was rather smooth without much traffic. As the sun started to smile at the peaceful fields around the Sea, birds began to dance in the warmth, and we were ready to admire their beauty. By the way, if you plan to be there in the future, the Salton Sea Visitor Center is also nearby and might worth a visit. Since it was not open yet, so we went straight to the beach.
Initially, the beach was very quiet. We saw a solitary Black-bellied Plover in non-breading from and there was a lonely Willet walking and feeding, but nothing else.
But very shortly, we spotted large flocks of shorebirds, dabbling ducks, and egrets at the north end of the beach. A lot of our birding experience is like this — we rarely walk straight into groups of active birds, but the birds are there, we just need to look around.
After a 20-minute hike, a handful of Black-necked Stilts were hanging out with several Western and Least Sandpipers. They were all feeding on the lakeshore and the Sandpipers were playing with the waves, jumping up and down whenever the waves came close. American Avocets were sleeping on a sandbank little further north, with their heads comfortably tucked. We spent a great amount of time with them, taking photos and trying to get closer without disturbing them.
We ended up spending about two hours hiking along the lakeshore at Salt Creek Beach. It had rained for a few days before we were there so the trails were rather muddy (watch your step!). On our way back to our car, we saw two gorgeous turkey vultures hovering right above us. The sun was too bright for taking a picture, but the encounter marks a great end to our first stop.
Stop 2. Sonny Bono Salton Sea NWR
Before heading to our hotel, we decided to drop by Sonny Bono Salton Sea NWR Visitor Center, and that was absolutely the right call! The Visitor Center has a decent set of feeders that attract local birds. By the feeders, we saw some perching Eurasian Collared-Doves. We were also entertained by all the Gambel’s Quails running around with Common Ground Doves for water. Abert’s Towhees jumping up and down for food, looking for seeds scattered on the ground. All these birds we haven’t got a chance to see before.
Later, the staff at the Visitor Center gave us some exciting information — there is a family of Burrowing Owls living right next to the overflow parking lot, in a water pipe above the ground. We’ve never seen ANY owls since we moved to California! Without prior experience, identifying Burrowing Owls can be challenging. Once you actually see one, however, you would realize how ubiquitous they are in this area.
The next morning before dawn, we came back to Sonny Bono NWR again to hike the Rock Hill Trail. And it amazed us once again. But we will leave this adventure to another post soon (promised!).
For now, it is time for us to hear from you: What is your most memorable experience at the Salton Sea, or similar places where you live? We hope you enjoyed this post and hopefully see you around!
