Bosque del Apache NWR

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When Mark Warner and Arthur Morris mention Bosque del Apache as one of the outstanding nature photography hotspots, you don’t need this old crow to tell you this place is well worth the trip. The Bosque (Boss-kay) as it’s known, comprises a series of natural and man-made marshes along the Rio Grande River in Central New Mexico. For thousands of years these marshes have been the winter home of tens of thousands of snow geese, Sandhill cranes, and a wide variety of migratory shorebirds. Road runners are abundant here as are various raptors. Deer are frequently seen, coyotes less often.

Within the refuge fifteen miles of dirt road form two loops, the Farm Loop to the left of the entrance booth and the Marsh Loop to the right. The two loops share a short section and most of each loop is one way counter-clockwise. Pick up a guide at the entrance booth.

Each loop has its own personality. The Marsh Loop features more abundant waterfowl and shorebirds but if it is snow geese and cranes you are after, you will find those in abundance on the Farm Loop from mid-November to mid-March. Just inside the entrance, you are allowed to turn left and follow the Farm Loop a short distance clockwise to an area known as the Flight Deck. This is the place to be before sunrise (the gates open one-half hour before sunrise) and at sunset. During the winter months, most of the geese and cranes congregate on the marshes bordering the Flight Deck and shortly after the sun pokes above the mountains across the Rio Grande, explode into the air in great flocks in an incredible spectacle. Be prepared with plenty of film; a second camera body at the ready helps.

To reach Bosque del Apache from the north, you would most likely travel on Interstate 25, 80 miles south of Albuquerque. The Bosque is fifteen miles south of Socorro, New Mexico, just off Interstate 25. You can approach from the north through the tiny town of San Antonio, turning right onto New Mexico 1 in the center of town, or from the south, also on New Mexico 1. The refuge is five miles south of San Antonio and ten miles north of the NM 1 interchange with I-25. Both exits are well marked with signs pointing to the refuge.

Unquestionably the best time to visit the Bosque is mid to late November. The geese and Sandhills have just arrived and are in prime condition. While some of the birds pack up and head further south after a few weeks, most remain through the winter, so you can find plenty to shoot well into February. Weekends (especially Thanksgiving) can be crowded with human visitors so if you can be there during the week you will find better shooting conditions. The best hours to work the Bosque are from before sunrise to late morning. Around 10:30 I usually leave the refuge and head back to Socorro to clean up and eat a hearty meal (having breakfasted on food bars while waiting for the sun to come up). I return to the refuge mid-afternoon and stay until there is too little light to do any more (the refuge is officially open until one hour past sundown).

The longest lens you have will certainly be useful for pulling in distant birds. However, if you are there for the morning liftoff, you will find anything longer than 300mm to be too restrictive. For those few minutes you can even get incredible shots with ultra-wide angle. Fill flash can be helpful and be made more useful by means of a flash extender. While driving the refuge roads, I do a lot of shooting from the car with the camera resting on the door and cushioned by a bean bag. I also use the car as a blind by setting bean bag and camera on top the car and shooting across the roof.

My film of choice is E100sw, though if you are shooting early or late in the day you may want the extra stop gained by using E200, although E100sw pushes well to ISO 200. Instead of either of those options, I typically work the early light with Velvia 400F to pick up two additional stops with little loss of quality.

There is no camping or other lodging at Bosque, but ample motel and eateries 15 miles north in Socorro. It can be dusty, especially during popular seasons when there are lots of vehicles on the roads; weekends are worst, another good reason to work this area during the week. Winter mornings can be cold, so come prepared with a warm jacket and hat and mittens. The dry air typically warms rapidly, so by afternoon you may well have shed layers down to shirt-sleeves.

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