Friends of Ladd Marsh

06/07/2026

First MAPS banding day of the season. Even though the day was cool, overcast and breezy, we broke all our past records for this period of banding. We caught 38 birds of 14 different species AND we had 2 station firsts - a Cassin’s Vireo and a Violet green Swallow!
Here is the break down: 2 black capped chickadees, 3 Trails flycatchers, 2 violet green swallows, 3 norther rough winged swallows, 1 Cassin’s vireo, 1 Lazuli bunting, 1 western wood peewee, 1 American robin, 9 cedar waxwings, 2 brown headed cowbirds, 2 eastern kingbirds, 3 song sparrows, 2 black headed grosbeaks, and 6 Common yellowthroats.
We hold all federal and state permits to band birds.

06/03/2026

Frist Saturday Bird Walk: June 6; 9:00 AM at Andy’s House at Growiser

Each year as a special treat, FOLM plans a bird walk and wild flower show at Growiser, a nature area on Pumpkin Ridge. Andy Huber has developed a very unique and diverse habitat at Growiser and the hike is definitely worth the effort. Parking is near the house at Growsier and we encourage people to car pool if you can as parking space is limited.

It takes about 45 minutes to drive to Growiser from La Grande and directions for travel can be found at the following link: http://www.growiser.net/directions.html

Do not go the Ladd Marsh HQ as the meet-up place as we will meet at Growiser instead. Plan for a hike on good trails with some uphill work. Bring water, walking shoes and dress for the weather.

From La Grande, OR 97850 22 miles, 40 minutes Exit I-84 at Hwy 82, to Wallowa Lake, it’s the 2nd La Grande Exit, #261 Go northeast on Hwy 82 (Island Ave) to Island City. Stay in left lane. At the...

05/13/2026

The 2026 Ladd Marsh Bird Festival is just days away! Side activities are already happening at Art Center East, with more tomorrow afternoon and evening at the Cook Memorial Library. The main Festival events kick-off Friday, 6:00 pm, at the Union County Senior Center on Cove Avenue in La Grande, OR. Links to Art Center East and Cook Library can be found on the Festival schedule at www.friendsofladdmarsh.org.

As a heads up, online registration for the Festival and Sunday field trips will close tomorrow afternoon at 5:00 pm. If you miss registering online, you can do so Friday evening at the Senior Center or Saturday at the information trailer on Tule Lake Auto Tour. You need to register for the Festival to receive a Festival Passport that grants you access to the Marsh over Festival weekend. Pre-registrants can pick up a packet Friday night at the Senior Center or Saturday at the information trail.

While online field trip registration is closed after tomorrow, you can still sign up for a field trip Friday or Saturday, just know you will need to pay by cash or check because we are not set up to accept in-person credit card purchases.

See you at the Festival!!!

Field trips depart from designated locations as follows. Please plan to be at the meeting places 15 minutes before departure time:

05/06/2026

Friends of Ladd Marsh Events for May:

FOLM has several events this month. The annual Marsh Clean-up Day is this Saturday, May 9th. We meet at the Ladd Marsh Wildlife Management Area HQ on Pierce Road at 9:00 am. We pick up litter on Peach Lane, the Auto Tour at Tule Lake, and check-out the viewing areas for the Ladd Marsh Bird Festival (LMBF). The LMBF is May 14-17. Check out the author presentation at Cook Memorial Library on Thursday evening, May 14 at 5:30 pm. Friday is the big opening event at the Union County Senior Center starting at 6:00 pm. There will be lots of food, merchandise for sale, packets to pick up, and our guest speaker, Jay Withgot, who's presentation title is "Half a century of extraordinary change in Oregon's birdlife, 1975-2025". Saturday the viewing stations around the marsh are open from 6 am until noon and field trips around the region are on Sunday. Art Center East also has a number of activities planned and EOU STEM will be out at Tule Lake on Saturday morning, May 16. You can register in advance through the FOLM website at http://friendsofladdmarsh.org or Friday evening at the Senior Center.

May 9: Ladd Marsh Clean-up Day, 9:00 AM

May 14-17: Ladd Marsh Bird Festival

May 14: Author Presentation at Cook Memorial Library, 5:30 PM

May 15: Opening Event Union County Senion Center, 6:00 PM

May 16: Viewing Stations open at 6:00 AM around Ladd Marsh

Art Center East and EOU STEM will be at Tule Lake, Saturday morning

May 17: Field Trips Around the Region

Directions to Ladd Marsh HQ:

From La Grande: Take the Union Highway (203) to Pierce Road (near B&K Auto Salvage). Turn right (south) on Pierce. Continue for approximately 1.25 miles to HQ on the right.

From Union: Turn left on Pierce Road and continue for approximately 1.25 miles to HQ on the right.

HQ can be reached from I-84: Take exit 268 (Foothill Road) then turn east. At the “T” with pierce Road, turn left (north). Continue about 1.5 miles to HQ on the left.

Field trips depart from designated locations as follows. Please plan to be at the meeting places 15 minutes before departure time:

04/29/2026

May 2, 2026
8:00 AM
LMWA Headquarters

The First Saturday Bird Walk for May is coming up on the 2nd, this Saturday. It is our annual “Big Sit”. We have a place all picked out settle in and let the birds come our way. There will also be the opportunity for those who wish to take a guided stroll through the Marsh from our “sitting spot”. Bring your favorite camp chair/stool/sit pad and a thermos of hot chocolate/tea/coffee (we will provide the pastries). Water fowl, Bittern, geese, cranes, Marsh Wrens, blackbirds, pheasants, and sparrows have been seen in the area. This is a once-a-year treat, so don’t be late. We meet at 8:00 am at the Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area Headquarters on Pierce Road.

Do not forget your ODFW parking permit.

The Ladd Marsh Bird Festival schedule for 2026 is now posted on the website, www.friendsofladdmarsh.org. Free registration for the festival and fee-based field trips remain open until May 14th. All registered participants will receive their LMWA access permit (passport) and group information packet either at the Friday evening event on May 15th at the Union County Senior Center in La Grande, or at the Tule Lake entrance off Peach Lane, LMWA on the morning of May 16. Passports are required for the festival, so do not forget to register and pick up your passport/information packet on the 15th or 16th.

Directions to Ladd Marsh HQ:

From La Grande: Take the Union Highway (203) to Pierce Road (near B&K Auto Salvage). Turn right (south) on Pierce. Continue for approximately 1.25 miles to HQ on the right.

From Union: Turn left on Pierce Road and continue for approximately 1.25 miles to HQ on the right.

HQ can be reached from I-84: Take exit 268 (Foothill Road) then turn east. At the “T” with pierce Road, turn left (north). Continue about 1.5 miles to HQ on the left.

Send a message to learn more

04/25/2026

The Ladd Marsh Bird Festival is three weeks away and I have some updates. Due to personal reasons, our initial speaker for Friday night had to cancel. The Board did some fast footwork and located another exceptional speaker, Jay Withgott, naturalist and birder from Portland. Jay will speak about 50 years of birding in Oregon based on the Oregon Birding Associations publication, "Oregon Birds".

The times and meeting place for the Art Center East photography workshops have been finalized. The instructor, Teresa Uriarte, will host two sessions, one starting at 6:00 am and one at 8:00 am, meeting in the parking lot of the Peach Road Fishing Pond.

To register for the Festival, sign up for a Sunday field trip, or to get more information about the talk and photography workshops head over to the Friends of Ladd Marsh website: www.friendsofladdmarsh.org. Don't forget, registration is free but required to get your passport to the Marsh for the weekend.

Field trips depart from designated locations as follows. Please plan to be at the meeting places 15 minutes before departure time:

04/19/2026

A note to people interested in attending the Ladd Marsh Bird Festival that the "Birds of the Pine Forest" field trip has filled and it no longer available for sign up. There are four other field trips to choose from, so check out www.friendsofladdmarsh.org for more information and registration.

Field trips depart from designated locations as follows. Please plan to be at the meeting places 15 minutes before departure time:

04/16/2026

A reminder that registration for the 2026 Ladd Marsh Bird Fest is open, along with sign-ups for field trips. The always popular Birds of the Ponderosa Pine Forest trip is almost full, but there are five other options to pick from.

At the very least register for the Festival, it's free, then kick things off Friday night, May 15th, at the Senior Center on Cove Ave in La Grande. You need to register so you receive a passport that allows you access to the Marsh. Then venture out to the Marsh on Saturday to visit the six staffed stations and get your passport stamped. If you do it right, you could have a big day of bird counts.

04/10/2026

A reminder that registration for the 2026 Ladd Marsh Bird Festival is open. Go to the Friends of Ladd Marsh website (www.friendsofladdmarsh.org) and look in the upper right of the page for the link to the registration form. While registration is free, you need to register to receive a passport to the Marsh for Festival weekend.

Also, if you are interested in attending a Sunday field trip, registration opens this coming Monday.

Looking forward to seeing you all at opening event of the Festival. Doors open at 6:00 pm, Friday, May 15th. Come and pick up your festival packet, enough some appetizers, conversation and our guest speaker, Rob Miller, who will talk about Short-eared owls.

04/01/2026

First Saturday Bird Walk:

April 4, 2026
8:00 AM
Meet at Ladd Marsh Headquarters on Pierce Road
Don’t forget your Parking Permit

The Friends of Ladd Marsh and Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area (LMWA) first Saturday bird walk for April is this Saturday, April 4. We meet at the LMWA HQ at 8:00 am. Don’t forget your ODFW parking permit. The weather is predicted to be good and last week’s scouting activity found hundreds of Sandhill Cranes on the marsh. They just might be the bird of the day for this Saturday. The current bad weather is not bad news for birding. During migration when bird species are heading north to breeding territory they can fly far, high, and long term to reach their goal. Inclement weather can cause a short pause in bird flight patterns and bring them down to ground to wait out the storms (we call this “fall out”). We just might be lucky enough to catch the end of a fall out this weekend. We’ll just have to try it and see.

The Ladd Marsh Bird Festival schedule for 2026 is now posted on the website, www.friendsofladdmarsh.org. Free registration for the festival opens on April 6th and registration for field trip (fees required) begins on April 13th. All registered participants will receive their LMWA access permit (passport) and group information packet either at the Friday registration event on May 15th at the Union County Senior Center in La Grande, or at the Tule Lake entrance off Peach Lane, LMWA on the morning of April 16. Passports are required for the festival, so do not forget to register and pick up your passport/information packet on the 15th or 16th.
Directions to Ladd Marsh HQ:

From La Grande: Take the Union Highway (203) to Pierce Road (near B&K Auto Salvage). Turn right (south) on Pierce. Continue for approximately 1.25 miles to HQ on the right.

From Union: Turn left on Pierce Road and continue for approximately 1.25 miles to HQ on the right.

HQ can be reached from I-84: Take exit 268 (Foothill Road) then turn east. At the “T” with pierce Road, turn left (north). Continue about 1.5 miles to HQ on the left.

Send a message to learn more