willcox playa wildlife area

I have been to the area twice to watch the Sandhill Cranes. The area where they visit over the winter months is quite large and there are several good areas to view them. Please note that reviews for several different viewing locations have been posted together under this heading. The actual "Willcox Playa Wildlife Area" is about 10-15 miles south of Willcox on Kansas Settlement Rd. I have not personally spotted any cranes there (I was there in early December). Nor did I see any cranes at Cochise Lake in the town of Willcox on Rex Allen Jr. Drive, although there were a lot of other waterfowl and it's a scenic spot with viewing scopes easily accessed by car. I visited Cochise Lake once in early December and once in late February. In early December I found thousands of cranes at Apache Station Wildlife Area off US 191 (8.5 miles south of I-10, turn down dirt road across from very visible Apache Station Power Plant) and at Whitewater Draw in McNeal (off Coffman Rd southwest of Elfrida). In late February at Apache Station, I only saw a few cranes fly over at sunset. Be advised that Apache Station and Whitewater Draw are about 40 miles apart. Willcox is about 50 miles from Whitewater Draw and about 20 miles from Apache Station. Apache Station has wheelchair access (ramp and paved trail), viewing platform and scopes, and a restroom. Whitewater Draw has dirt paths, viewing platforms and a restroom. More detailed information about where to see the cranes and when to go is on the Wings Over Willcox website. I have also found the staff of the Willcox Chamber of Commerce to be very helpful; you might check with them before you go as they can tell you where you are most likely to spot cranes.

This is one of the places where the Sandhill Cranes roost, but not always and you need to walk the path to get to see them if they are there. This year we found them at WhiteWater Draw and Cochise Lake. We arrived at the AEPCO viewing are by the power plant at 5:30 AM before sunrise and were rewarded with the site of thousands of cranes crossing the sky from up by the lake over to the draw. We drove around during the rest of the day and didn't spot any large groups but an hour or so before sunset we watched several hundred around WhiteWater Draw. The birds don't all take off at once or land at once usually but you can see small groups and with a telephoto lens and tripod get the best pics although we shot ours with a point and shoot camera. The Wings of Willcox is not worth any of the tour prices, you can see everything yourself and save the driving around in a van all day drudgery.

I invested a morning checking this place out. There were signs of wildlife, but little to be seen. The main draw is a lake area where sandhill cranes, at some point used to come at night. There were none there, nor did I observe any leaving and I was there before sunrise. In truth, there was a sign posted, not far into the trail stating the cranes may not be at the lake and it seemed a bit faded, like it had been there awhile. The location maybe good for wildlife, but it wasn't the morning I was there.

Willcox goes all out for the annual Wings over Willcox Festival (end of January) with many tours and events listed on the website. Also lots of great information and maps. We couldn't go until the day after the festival ended and enjoyed a quiet Monday day trip. Actually, I would go so far as to say an experience of a lifetime for me. We are not birders and clearly many species went unnoticed by us, but even a non-birder will be blown away by the sandhill cranes. They winter here from northern climes from about September through March. We were so fortunate to stop at Cochise Lake first and were loving the tranquility, watching the ducks (apparently Northern Shoveler and Ruddy Duck as identified by a friend in my photos later). Then noticed a flock of cranes circling and landing in a field in the near distance. Drove down a side road off the road to the lake (Rex Allen), parallel to the golf course, and were rewarded with a wonderful vista of cranes and ducks. There are viewing platforms with bolted on magnifying viewers at both stops. We had a great map of viewing sites all along Kansas Settlement Road and stopped at some of those next, but did not see any more cranes, although enjoyed the drive.The Willcox Playa Wildlife Area is about a 2 1/2 mile round trip easy hike. Next time we will try the AEPCO area. Willcox has all of the amenities but nothing out around the playa that we saw, so bring water and use the restroom beforehand. These are dirt roads but not bad.

Any birdwatcher travelling in SE Arizona should spare some time to stop at easily-accessed Cochise Lake in Willcox (>5 minuites from I-10). It doesn't take long to bird this site, and saving the last hour before sunset is sufficient to cover it fairly thoroughly. Depending on the time of year (migration periods most productive) you will find a variety of ducks, grebes, shorebirds, waders, and even passerines (be sure to chek near the back edge of the golfcourse). We had everything from Marbled Godwits to a MacGillivray's Warbler in a salt cedar. Vermilion Flycather is common around the golfcourse. Dozens of White-faced Ibis glowed in the setting sun. Then stay in Willcox and you are well-positioned to visit the Chiricahuas or Huachuca Mountains. And while you are there, have a hearty and delicious dinner at Salsa Fiesta.

In and around Willcox, AZ are several wonderful locations to see and photograph wildlife and birds. They are the Willcox Playa Wildlife Area, Cochise Lake Birding Area, and the AEPCO (Arizona Electric Power Cooperative). I went there to photograph the Sandhill Cranes (30,000 of them) that spend the winter there. I first went to Cochise Lake, before sunrise, because I heard they take off to feed about 15 minutes before the sun rises. While I missed any Sandhill Cranes, I did photograph a spectacular sunrise with ducks in the lake, then while driving to the AEPCO area, I saw thousands of Sandhill Cranes in loose formations in the sky. It was really spectacular as the sun was still rising. So go to the AEPCO area first, before sunrise, to see the takeoff and some that hang out on the little pond. Photographers should bring telephoto lens and tripods. Bird Watchers will definitely need their binoculars. You can hike the Willcox Playa Area anytime. There's also a Festival in January called Wings Over Willcox.