Explore the Luckiamute State Natural Area

ALBANY, Ore. — Nearly 30 minutes southwest of Salem is the Luckiamute State Natural Area, a former gravel quarry and farmland that is being restored back to a riparian forest habitat, rich with birds and other wildlife.

“It's a combination between a state park and a wildlife area,” said park ranger Steve Hernandez. “It's managed in a way where the focus is not just on the recreation, but mainly on the ecology.” 

Hernandez has been a park ranger with Oregon State Parks for 21 years. The Luckiamute State Natural Area has a north and south unit. The north unit is currently closed after a huge cottonwood tree branch fell and took out a bridge, but according to Hernandez, the smaller south unit is worth the drive, too.

“It's a less visited park, which gives you more intimate experience with nature, something that you can't find in a lot of parks that are closer to larger metropolitan areas… It's a rather unique experience when you come out to this park,” he said. 

Hernandez has seen deer, foxes, even coyotes in the area.

Once an old quarry and farmland, restoration work continues to bring back the riparian forest habitat. Upon arrival, you notice the groves of huge oak trees.

“When you care about a place, when you love your watershed, you build a relationship with it, and you want to protect and restore it,” said Suzanne Teller with the Luckiamute Watershed Council (LWC). The mission of LWC is restoration work and community education.

“Every year, we work with partners to bring people out to the landscape, to bring people out to maybe places they've never been before,” said Teller. “And our bird walks are one way that we do that.”

In partnership with Salem Audubon, LWC will host a bird walk at this south unit at the end of September. The event recently sold out, but you can still come and explore this hidden treasure near Independence, OR.

If you visit, make sure to look for an oak sapling named Garry (short for its scientific name Quercus garryana) , the one millionth plant planted here by the Luckiamute Watershed Council. 

“You could watch a documentary on TV; you could maybe read about a place in a book,” said Teller. “But when you're walking on the land, when you're experiencing and breathing in the air on the landscape, you're becoming connected to it.”

Always do your research before heading out on an outdoor adventure. Check for closures or other advisories on the Oregon State Parks website. The LWC's event page, with its fall calendar, can be found here.