Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center

"We’ve visited twice in a week because we love it that much! The Visitor Center is so well done and thoughtfully crafted to look beautiful and also share useful information in fun ways, especially for children. The volunteers there are so kind and glad to see the kids excited about the wildlife and the landscapes, and are so helpful and informative. A wonderful field trip for homeschoolers, we went the last week of January and first of February and there were still lots of beautiful sandhill cranes, and even a whooping crane both times. The viewing building where you are able to watch the cranes out by the water is so serene and wonderfully done, you feel immersed in the natural beauty. Trails with a storybook to follow along as you go, and bird blinds for more viewing around the visitor center made it a rich homeschooling day full of exploring and enjoying the cranes and part of the refuge. 10/10 recommend."

"Amazing place to see cranes wintering in here. Great staff who will answer your questions and provide interesting information about these amazing birds."

"Absolutely amazing place to watch winter migrating birds. Hundreds of sandhill cranes can be seen. If you are lucky, you can even spot a whooping crane or two. They also get white pelicans and other water birds. Parking is ample at the visitor center and there are a variety of bird blinds built around the grounds."

"Wheeler National wildlife refuges is one of the nicest places to view waterfowl in America. Every kind of waterfowl can be seen here from the observatory to the blinds. I've never seen so many cranes in one place. It's free and a must see for bird lovers"

"We came to the visitors center because we saw on their Facebook page that the cranes had begun to return to the refuge for the winter. We did see cranes, but we were told that we were a little early for the big flocks of cranes. We enjoyed the experience, anyway, and plan to come back for the festival in January."