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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 16, 2004)
CAMPUS AREA DELIVERY TAKE OUT ★ EAT HERE BY JAMES JOHNSTON SERVING DELICIOUS NEW YORK PIZZA BY THE SLICE AND BY THE WHOLE PIZZA PIE 11:30AM-MIDNIGHT MON-SAT ★ 3:30PM-MIDNIGHT SUNDAY $ 2.00 OFF COUPONS GOOD UNTIL DECEMBER 30, 2004 ANY 18” LARGE OR 16” MEDIUM PIZZA PLUS 2 FREE 20oz. SODAS ® 1 FREE 12 OZ. SODA 1211 ALDER ON CAMPUS NEXT TO SACRED HEART HOSPITAL JAMES JOHNSTON 686-9598 10¢ OFF PLUS A SLICE Seals at Strawberry Hill wayside Wild in the Winter December is a great time to watch wildlife. W e humans may feel a little chilly from time to time during the west- ern Oregon winter, but the Willamette Valley is the bird equivalent of the Bahamas for hundreds of species that migrate here from their summer homes in the far north. One species that is quite rare and very un- usual in its extremely limited range is the Canadian dusky goose. The dusky goose winters almost exclusively in the Willamette Valley and nests in the summer only in Alaska’s Copper River Delta. Dusky goose populations plummeted after a double whammy of habitat contraction. First, the once extensive Willamette Valley wetlands Reservoir (accessed off Clear Lake Road just past the airport) you can often see large num- bers of bald eagles during December and January. A little closer to home, you can see large numbers of cormorants roosting in cotton- woods during the late afternoon and evening at Delta Ponds, on the east side of the Willamette River about a quarter of a mile downstream from the Valley River shopping mall. There are good views from the north- west corner of the VRC parking lot. Another good evening roosting spot for cormorants is along the riverbank in Island Park in Springfield. Lane County is not just for the birds. On Connecting Eugene Lane County is not just for the birds. On the coast, gray whales can be seen fairly close to shore on their way to calving grounds in Baja from their summer feeding grounds in the Arctic Ocean. with six trains and seven thruway buses, were paved over or converted to agriculture. Then, the devastating 1964 Alaska earth- quake uplifted large sections of the Copper River Delta, turning marshy foraging grounds into dry land. One of the last productive habitats for the geese is found just about 30 minutes north of Eugene at the W. Finley Wildlife Refuge. To get there, drive Hwy. 99 north from Eugene. Five miles north of Monroe take a left on McFarland Road at the RFP Family Store and drive a half-mile to a large parking area at McFadden Marsh. This large created wetland is lousy with noisy flocks of geese. If you can’t tell from their brown chests, the duskys can be picked out by the orange collar that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service gives them when they’re young. From the road or from a wildlife blind a short walk from the parking area, you’ll also be able to pick out pintail ducks, wood ducks, mallards, mergansers, cormorants, egrets and magnificent snow-white swans. There’s an- other excellent wildlife viewing area another half mile down McFarland Road. On your way back to Eugene, consider stopping at the Fern Ridge Wildlife Area at the very end of Royal Avenue (take Airport Road from Hwy. 99, hang a left on Greenhill and then a right on Royal). This wind-swept marsh always has lots of red tail hawks and osprey. From here or from the boat launch areas on the north side of Fern Ridge the coast, gray whales can be seen fairly close to shore on their way to calving grounds in Baja from their summer feeding grounds in the Arctic Ocean. You can spot the gray’s dis- tinctive tall geyser of water from high view- points around Cape Perpetua north of Florence. Some 70 percent of the world’s pop- ulation of gray whales will pass by Oregon from Dec. 25 to Jan. 10. On the way to Cape Perpetua you can usually spot sea lions and seals on rocky outcroppings around Strawberry Hill (the Sea Lion Caves, inciden- tally, are well worth the price of admission). If it’s land mammals you want to see, and you’re not afraid to do a fair bit of driving, there are two elk viewing areas that you can almost always see elk from during the month of December. The first is the Long Ranch viewing platform on Highway 20 east of Sweet Home (about six miles east of the small village of Cascadia). Almost 40 elk wintering here. The early morning or late af- ternoon are the best times to see them. An even better bet is the Dean Creek viewing area three miles east of Reedsport on Highway 38. There are several pullouts from which a herd of almost 100 animals can be seen. It may seem cold and wet as you tramp around looking for birds, whales and other animals, but for many of these critters who are used to the Arctic, Lane County’s a regu- lar tropical paradise. ew Amtrak ® connects Eugene to the Pacific Northwest and the rest of America. For reservations visit www.amtrak.com or call 1-800-USA-RAIL Amtrak is a registered service mark of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation. DECEMBER 16, 2004 39
