I sometimes to go some weird places looking for raptors. Skaggs Island appears to be a part of the San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge, and in fact, it IS, but despite apparently being frequented by intrepid birders, it’s mostly not open to the public. I went looking for a burrowing owl and didn’t get far enough down Skaggs Island Road (which is closed to vehicle traffic for about a mile, then closed to foot traffic as well) to see any owls. I’m used to not seeing owls I go looking for, but I was more than usually frustrated by Skaggs Island because it has some similarities to my beloved and much-missed Occoquan Bay NWR, which was previously an Army base (whereas Skaggs Island was a Navy base), is located on a bay, consists of wetlands, and is small but brimming with wildlife. Don’t get me wrong, I love, love, love the parks around here and California blows away even the excellent Northern Virginia park systems, and I tend to see much more wildlife here overall, but I still haven’t found a replacement for Occoquan Bay in that it was the one place I could go with no prior planning – it was ALWAYS my backup option if not my primary destination – and be GUARANTEED to see something GREAT, with “great” very, very often meaning bald eagles and foxes, as well as tons of other species. I regularly got myself out of bed at 5 a.m. to visit Occoquan Bay before work, I loved it so much. Skaggs Island is much further away than Occoquan Bay was for me, and involves a toll bridge, so is less convenient, but could be just as productive, COULD I ACCESS IT. Instead it bordered on creepy.
Skaggs Island Road.
A creepy and unwelcoming fence on the east side of the road. This part of Skaggs Island Road is very confusing. There are tons of National Wildlife Refuge signs prohibiting entry everywhere but the road itself, but in areas there are also Solano County signs with hunting dates. I guess on certain days you can bring a gun and shoot some stuff from the road? I don’t get it. (There were hunts allowed a few days a year at Occoquan Bay, though, which I hated.) The sign says WILDLIFE AREA. KEEP OUT.
This is what greets you a mile down Skaggs Island Road. From my research, I think this used to be Gate C. Beyond it lies all sorts of amazing wildlife, abandoned and razed buildings, and untold adventures. LET ME IN!!
By the way, the weekend prior to the one I took these photos, I tried to access Skaggs Island from the opposite end and had an almost identical experience: about a mile and a half down, a big locked, menacing gate. Skaggs Island, I have learned, is occasionally accessible to the public via guided tour by US Fish & Wildlife. I think I missed the last 2017 tours by like a week. Such is my luck.
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