National Wildlife Refuge · Southwest North Dakota · Southwestern ND (Missouri Slope); 4,034-acre oasis of lake, marsh, prairie hills, and rock outcrops
Verified coordinates from the source record. Still confirm the current entrance and road status before travelling.
Late October to early November for peak fall duck concentrations; April to May for spring migration and cranes
Peak months in the record: Apr, May, Oct, Nov
Pick any day of the coming week for sunrise, sunset, the low-light windows and the forecast at Lake Ilo NWR.
North Shore Trail (1 mile) from Lake Ilo Park along the lake; self-guided auto tour; gravel roads. Lake Ilo Park (Dunn County) has picnic tables, restrooms, and a boat ramp. Early morning and evening best. Open sunrise to sunset daily (daylight only).
Free
Southwestern wetlands closed to people year-round; fishing closed in April and in some areas during nesting; no waterfowl hunting on the refuge (hunting occurs nearby).
The notes on this page come from the guide's fixed records and can age. These links open what the managing agency publishes right now — always the last word on access.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (National Wildlife Refuge)
Agency pages are found by searching the place name, so the search may list nearby units too — no page here is a stored link to a specific trailhead or gate.
No access check recorded for this place yet. Once you have confirmed the current rules with USFWS, mark it here so you can see how fresh your information is.
This only records that you checked. It never changes the guide's access notes and is not a statement from any agency.
Nobody publishes an open fall-colour peak map, so these are the dates volunteers recorded coloured leaves in North Dakota — a handful of plants at a handful of sites, not a statewide peak. Use the official reports below for the wider picture.
Leaf-out and leaf-colour timing: USA National Phenology Network (usanpn.org).
Cranes
Tap for recent sightings, where to go and today's light →
Dawn fly-outs from shallow roosts are the classic shot; fall staging birds are more approachable and linger for weeks.
Illustration, not a field photograph · Real photos on All About Birds
Pelicans
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Photograph the colony only from established distant viewpoints; do not approach nesting islands. Synchronized cooperative fishing groups on lakes make spectacular flight and feeding shots.
Illustration, not a field photograph · Real photos on All About Birds
Waterfowl
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Backlit dawn takeoffs from river roosts near Bismarck give clean sky backgrounds minutes from home.
Illustration, not a field photograph · Real photos on All About Birds
These are historical public posts collected as supporting evidence. They are not live sightings and do not guarantee current bird activity. Photos are not copied here — each entry links to the original post.
No collected post is mapped to this place. Several posts name only free-text locations — see the evidence log for those.