Visiting the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area

Mid August is not a very popular time to visit this stunning area. It's miles of open desert and canyon lands, and today the sun was beating down. But this week is when we have an opportunity, so we headed out to Kuna, a town southeast of Boise. We were expecting to find a visitor center there. We called the BLM number only to learn that the visitor center is in Boise and closed today, so we just headed south to Dedication Point. We stopped along the way at a group of information signs. Later we came upon a memorial to two volunteer firefighters who were killed fighting a wildfire nearby.

We drove past Initial Point without stopping, since it's a ways off the road and we didn't figure a survey marker would be all that interesting. At Dedication Point we walked on the interpretive loop trail. Signs showed the various raptors to be seen in this area. Ken saw one (unidentified) and we both saw a group of what we take to be Northern Harriers from the dark wing tips and spread flight feathers. We didn't see any Paiute ground squirrels (a staple food source for the raptors). They may have been estivating, or just hiding out in their holes from the midday heat.

(Of course the time to see both raptors and squirrels is in the spring, when the birds come here to raise their young.)

At the edge of the canyon there is a nice stone wall protecting people from falling. The view of the Snake River and the canyon is spectacular. We had expected to be able to hike down into the canyon, but that is not possible at Dedication Point. We walked out to the north on a trail along the canyon in the desert. It was HOT, HOT, HOT and dry, so we didn't hike very far before we had finished off half our water and had to turn back.

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From the BLM website:

The deep canyon of the Snake River, with its crags and crevices and thermal updrafts, is home to the greatest concentration of nesting birds of prey in North America – and perhaps, the world. The BLM’s mission at the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area (NCA) is to preserve this remarkable wildlife habitat, while providing for other compatible uses of the land. Some 800 pairs of hawks, owls, eagles and falcons come each spring to mate and raise their young. The NCA is "nature in the rough," with few public facilities. However, the birds and their unique environment offer rich rewards to those willing to experience the NCA on its own terms and who have patience to fit into the natural rhythms of life in this special place.