Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Aleutian cackling geese numbered fewer than 800 birds in 1974. By 2020 the count was more than 120,000, and their spring flights over South Humboldt Bay are the refuge's signature spectacle. Established in 1971, the refuge covers close to 5,000 acres of salt marsh, mudflat, freshwater wetland and coastal dune across several units, among them Salmon Creek, Hookton Slough, Lanphere Dunes and Ma-le'l Dunes.

Leave the dog at home. Dogs are prohibited refuge-wide, leashed or not, because USFWS says their presence scares wildlife away. There are exactly two exceptions: certified service animals, and retrieval dogs on designated days in designated areas during waterfowl hunting season. This catches people out constantly, since BLM land minutes away allows dogs — including the BLM half of Ma-le'l Dunes, which shares a boundary with the refuge's own Ma-le'l Dunes Unit.

The prohibited list runs longer than that. No bicycling, no horseback riding, no jogging or running except on the paved entrance road, no drones or kite-flying, no fires or fireworks, no overnight parking or camping, and no collecting plants, feathers, antlers or objects of antiquity.

Two trails carry most visitors. The Shorebird Loop is 1.7 miles round trip on level gravel from the Richard J. Guadagno Visitor Center, with an observation gazebo, a wetland deck, an elevated platform, benches and interpretive panels, and it takes about 45 minutes. Hookton Slough runs roughly 1.5 miles one way, about 3 miles out and back, following the western bank of the slough to a vista point and a non-motorized boat launch.

Come November through March for waterbirds and raptors, March to late April for shorebirds. For the South Bay, aim for within one to two hours either side of high tide, when the mudflats go under and the birds push in close to the trail.