This is our 27th annual Othello Sandhill Crane Festival!! Founded in 1998, the Othello Sandhill Crane Festival highlights the spring return of Sandhill Cranes to the greater Othello area and the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge. Lectures will be delivered on Friday night and all-day Saturday. Tours will be offered on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Our festival will remain at both of our venues this year to continue improving room size, audience capacity, and space. 

Schedule of Events

SATURDAY, MARCH 22, 2025 - Morning Schedule

07:00 AM - 08:30 AM - Field Trip:Crane Viewing Tour - $25.00 - Loading from the front of Church

07:30 AM - 09:00 AM - Field Trip:Crane Viewing Tour - $25.00 - Loading from the front of Church  

08:00 AM - 09:30 AM - Field Trip:Crane Viewing Tour - $25.00 - Loading from the front of Church  

08:30 AM - 10:00 AM - Field Trip:Crane Viewing Tour - $25.00 - Loading from the front of Church       

08:30 AM - 12:30 AM - Activity: Needle Felting Class/Make a Sandhill Crane - $85.00 - Elizabeth McClure (Green Room)      

08:30 AM - 10:30 AM - Field Trip: Guided Wetlands Walk - $25.00 - Elsa Toskey/Alexander Pavlinovic      

08:45 AM - 12:30 AM - Field Trip: Biking for Cranes Tour - $25.00 - Pete Perez /Starts at Church        

09:00 AM - 10:00 AM - Lecture: Sandhill Cranes of the Pacific Flyway - Gary Ivey (Red Room)     

?09:00 AM - 10:00 AM - Lecture: Flora and Fauna of the Columbia Basin - Dinah Rouleau/Kaley Wisher(BlueRoom)      

09:00 AM - 10:00 AM - Lecture: Sparrows...not just Little Brown Birds - Heidi Newsome (Purple Room) 

10:00 AM - 11:00 AM - HIKE: I Spy...Learning to Read Tracks & Animal Signs - $25.00 - Sarah Overby (Potholes State Park)         

10:15 AM - 11:15 AM - Lecture: Changing Times of WA White Birds of Winter - Martha Jordan (Red Room)         

10:15 AM - 11:15 AM - Lecture: The Art of Photographing Birds - Karen Ulvestad (Blue Room)

10:15 AM - 11:15 AM - Lecture: Coulees, Canyons, & Valleys, Oh My! - Lloyd Stoess (Purple Room)

10:15 AM - 11:15 AM - Lecture: Congruence with Sandhill Cranes of the Pacific Flyway - Robert Steelquist (Brown Room)

11:00 AM - 02:00 PM - Field Trip: Spotting Scope at Marsh Unit #1 - Randy Hill (Marsh Unit #1)

11:00 AM - 01:30 PM - Field Trip: Potholes Reservoir Boat Birding Tour - $90.00 - Nathan LaFrance (Mar Don)

11:30 AM - 12:30 PM - Lecture: Burrowing Owls of Eastern Washington - Jason Fidorra (Red Room)

11:30 AM - 12:30 PM - Lecture: Bringing Back the Trumpeter Swan - Gary Ivey (Blue Room)

11:30 AM - 12:30 PM - Lecture: Beekeeping 101, What to expect When you're Inspecting - Riley Reed (Brown Room)

SEE page 2, new drop down, for all the afternoon sessions. 

NOTE. Bagged Lunches (Vegetarian, Turkey or Ham) $20.00 pickup at check-in at the Church

SATURDAY, MARCH 22, 2025 - AFTERNOON SCHEDULE

01:00 PM- 02:00 PM - Field Trip: Othello Community Museum Tour - Eric Morgan (Museum)  

01:00 PM- 02:00 PM - Lecture: Birds & Wildlife of the 8th Continent: Madagascar - Jason Fidorra (Red Room)

01:00 PM- 02:00 PM - Lecture: What can Birders do for Northern Leopard Frogs? - Trevor Force (Blue Room)  

01:00 PM- 02:00 PM - Lecture: Coyote Canyon: A Mammoth Burial in Ice Age Floods Sediments - Gary Kleinknecht (Purple Room)  

01:00 PM- 02:00 PM - Lecture: Shrub Steppe, Wildlife Conservation, & Clean Energy - Kim Thorburn (Brown Room)  

02:00 PM- 04:30 PM - Field Trip: Potholes Reservoir Boat Birding Tour - $90.00 - Nathan LaFrance/Heidi Newsome (MarDon)  

02:00 PM- 05:00 PM - Field Trip: Rowley & Hawkins Fruit Farm Tour - $35.00 - Mark Rowley (Meet at Church)  

02:15 PM- 03:15 PM - Lecture: Grasses & Bird Habitat - Mike Neff (Red Room)     

02:15 PM- 03:15 PM - Lecture: Use Your Photographs for Conservation & Research - Diana McPherson (Blue Room) 

02:15 PM- 03:15 PM - Lecture: Grand Coulee. A Great Erosion Story - Ken Lacy (Purple Room)  

02:15 PM- 03:15 PM - Lecture: Brush Strokes...The Colorful Story of Lichen - Sarah Overby (Brown Room)  

02:30 PM- 04:00 PM - Hike: Flora & Fauna of the Columbia Basin - $25.00 - Kaley Wisher/Dinah Rouleau (Winchester Wasteway)  

03:00 PM- 04:30 PM - Field Trip: WSU Bee Research Facility Tour - $25.00 - Riley Reed (WSU Bee Facility)  

03:00 PM- 05:00 PM - Field Trip: Beginners Bird Photography in the Field - $35.00 - Karen Ulvestad (Church)  

03:30 PM- 04:30 PM - Lecture: Ice Age Floodscapes - Bruce Bjornstad (Red Room)  

03:30 PM- 04:30 PM - Lecture: WSU Raptor Club - WSU Raptor Club (Purple Room)  

05:30 PM- Dark - Field Trip: Crane Viewing Tour - $25.00 - (Load front of Church)

06:00 PM-Dark - Field Trip: Fly In Bus Tour - $25.00 - (Load front of Church)

8:00 PM - Lecture: School Commons-Wild Stories from the History of Bird Migration Research - Rebecca Heisman

FAMILY ACTIVITIES

On Saturday, the Children Committee will have a variety of activities for kids, such as faux binoculars to use for "birding" in the gym by finding pictures of various birds, origami crane mobiles, mask making, and many other activities. 

LOCATION: School Gym /McFarland Middle School 

FEE:  Children under twelve are free with a paid adult. General admission ticket $10.00 gets you into the Festival on Saturday and covers all lectures and events.

SCHEDULE

9:00-3:00-Art Projects / Craft Projects offered:

Binocular build/ Utilize to locate various birds within the gym

Quail Magnet

Origami Crane

Crane Stick puppet

Leaf Caterpillar

9:00-3:00-Face Painting

10:00-2:00-Personalized plaster crane inspired masks

Other Activities:

Othello Community Museum Tour / Tours are scheduled on Friday and Saturday.

Art Walk / Self Guided. Maps available at The Old Hotel.

The Old Hotel Art Gallery (33 E. Larch St). The gallery displays folk art and handicrafts produced by Northwestern artists.

Buy Tickets

Date: March 21-23, 2025