Written by Janelle Wicks/Photo by Angie Drake (notyouraverageamerican.com)
This annual event co-hosted by Bird Alliance of Oregon and Friends of Malheur NWR is in its fourth year and a great example of practice makes perfect. Forty people came out to Sod House Ranch the evening of August 31st with folks from all over the including many Harney County residents in attendance. It was great to see children of all ages from 2 to… well over, all enjoying the activities.
The evening starts with a welcome and snacks. The tradition for this event has become root beer floats! After which the crowd gathered with Teresa Wicks, Bird Alliance of Oregon’s Eastern OR Biologist, for a leisurely evening bird walk through the Sod House Ranch complex of historic buildings. Highlights included great horned owls and the nighthawks. The walk concluded as the sun made a spectacular scene of setting over the fields.
In the early dusk everyone gathered their lawn chairs and blankets everyone made their way to the northeast field which had been freshly mowed and bailed. Here is where our headliner of the event, Amy Bilbisi of Oregon Star Safari, had set up her telescope. As we waited for the stars and other celestial bodies to make themselves visible we were treated to nocturnal animal activities lead by an educator from Oregon Museum of Science and Industry!
Settled in and stars out it was finally time for the main event. Amy is a former Interpretive Ranger and brings that level of knowledge, enthusiasm, and professionalism to her programs. She takes the crowd through outer space in a way that feels like a magical journey. Amy’s explanations of how the various bodies of our solar system shift and move in relation to one another thus giving us our unique perspective from Earth is truly awe inspiring.
Previous Malheur After Dark events had been held at Refuge Headquarters and in the months of June or July. Why the change to August? The sun is going down just a tad earlier and the mosquitos were largely absent. Bonus: Malheur NWR’s birthday is August 18th so it was a great opportunity to also talk to a captive audience about the history of the Refuge.
Why Sod House Ranch? This site is only open from August 15th to October 1, 8am – 4pm, each year as the large stand of cottonwood trees on site is critical nesting and roosting habitat for many birds. The open season is after nesting and before winter roosting eagles arrive. Hosting this event at Sod House Ranch is an awesome opportunity to bring people out to this special place during this narrow window of time and after dusk which is when the Refuge closes to the public.
Of course, we won’t say it’s perfect yet, but it was an incredible evening! And we are already looking forward to the new moon of August 2025 and hope to see you there!
Two of our guests at this year’s event were Angie and Scott Drake of the BLOG Not Your Average American. Angie wrote an article about their visit, and we wanted to share it with you as it’s a reflection of the event from a First Time Malheur NWR visitor!
Celebrating Dark Skies at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge | Not Your Average American
Thank you, Angie, for sharing your images and your words with us! See you again soon.
