Life in Blythe – Part 3 and Cibola National Wildlife Refuge

We have started to get out and about since Kathy continues to get better. We decided to go birding and went down to Cibola National Wildlife Refuge.  Cibola National Wildlife Refuge is in Arizona, about 30 miles south of Blythe. Their website says they have over 288 species of birds, but we didn’t find it very birdy. Most of the geese had already started north; we saw a huge flock of Canada Geese fly over I-10 as we headed for the refuge. Around the ponds we did see 50 or so Canada Geese. There were hundreds of Sandhill Cranes still around. There were also hundreds of Pintail Ducks in a pond near the visitor center. However, our “bird of the day” was a very cooperative Willow Flycatcher. 

We were surprised that with the Colorado River running through the refuge how dry and scrubby the vegetation was. Usually National Wildlife Refuges have very good gravel roads. Unfortunately Cibola has the worst roads we have every experienced at any National Wildlife Refuge and VERY POOR signage. Even if our one ton Chevy dually pickup has four-wheel drive, it is not a good choice for off-roading on narrow sandy roads!

Kathy was seen again by her surgeon this past week and he says that she is healing very well and is good to go. So, this Saturday we will be leaving Blythe. Our first stop will be back at Quartzsite. Some of our Montana Owner friends have returned to Quartzsite for few days, so we are planning to pick up where we left off, going back out to boondock in the desert.