Shasta Valley Wildlife Area
Montague / Yreka · near Yreka · Shasta Cascade
Wildlife Watching
At a glance
- Best season
- Pronghorn resident year-round; fall/winter for waterfowl & raptors; spring for birds & wildflowers
- Open year round
- Yes
What is here
- Wildlife
- land-mammals · birds
- Species
- Pronghorn antelope, wintering waterfowl, raptors
- Amenities
- Auto route through the area · Mount Shasta backdrop · Volcanic-mound grassland & ponds
- Best for
- The region's most accessible pronghorn viewing under Mount Shasta
- Features
- Resident pronghorn antelope · Iconic Mount Shasta backdrop · Waterfowl & raptors in cool months · A photographer's stop too
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Seasonal & drought-driven access closures - verify open · Gravel roads · Open, exposed terrain
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Wildlife Watching detail
- Viewing
- drive
- Effort
- easy
- Habitat
- plains
- Sighting
- 3
- Viewing notes
- The region's best shot at pronghorn - North America's fastest land animal - on rolling volcanic grassland with a dramatic Mount Shasta backdrop, plus wintering waterfowl and raptors
- Intl tip
- The Mount Shasta backdrop makes this a photography stop as much as a wildlife one - go in golden light and scan the open flats for pronghorn. Verify the area is open first; it's small and prone to drought closures. A CDFW Lands Pass is required.
The guide
Framed by the white cone of Mount Shasta, the Shasta Valley Wildlife Area is a rolling landscape of volcanic hummocks and ponds…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Shasta Valley Wildlife Area — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 41.8, -122.45