When the draining of Willamette Valley wetlands led to a decline of dusky Canada goose populations in the 1960s, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service used money from the sale of duck hunter stamps to convert this 8-square-mile farm into a bird-friendly patchwork of ponds, woodlands, and farmfields.

Several easy loop trails allow hikers to enjoy this rural birdland. Here too is the 1855 farmhouse of John Fiechter, a German whose success in the California gold rush financed a Greek Revival clapboard classic. Opposite the refuge headquarters, the restored home is open periodically for special events.

Drive Highway . . .

This chapter is an excerpt from 100 Hikes : Oregon Coast