Drivers heading for the Benicia-Martinez Bridge on I-680 pass right by one of the East Bay's better birding spots. The East Bay Regional Park District says Waterbird Regional Preserve covers 198 acres of wetland and the uplands to the east. Its focal point is Al McNabney Marsh.
The district owns 46 acres at the marsh's southern end. The Mountain View Sanitary District owns 69 acres in the northern, deeper end, according to the park district. Wikipedia notes the marsh drains into Suisun Bay through Peyton Slough. The park district says McNabney Marsh contains treated, reclaimed water, and water contact of any kind is prohibited.
How it became a preserve
Wikipedia says an oil spill in 1988 contaminated wetlands in the area, including McNabney Marsh. After the cleanup, a $10 million fund was set up to restore or acquire the equivalent of the damaged resources, and that money helped the park district acquire the south end of the marsh and the uplands. Before that, a railroad was built through the area in the 1880s, and chemical plants went up near the mouth of Peyton Slough.
What you might see
The marsh lies on the Pacific Flyway. Fall and spring migrations bring large numbers of waterfowl resting and feeding, the park district says. Birds it lists include the American avocet, killdeer, great blue heron, American kestrel, western meadowlark and great horned owl. Lucky birders may spot a white-tailed kite, northern harrier, golden eagle, osprey or peregrine falcon. Ground squirrels and pocket gophers live in the uplands.
Several miles of upland trails start at the parking area. The Meadowlark Ridge Loop has good views of the marsh. Toward the north end, pepperwood trees mark the site of old housing from the early 1900s.
Rules and access
The entrance is on Waterbird Way off Waterfront Road, near the Marina Vista/Waterfront Road exit of I-680. Dogs are not permitted anywhere in the preserve, to protect the fragile marsh and its feeding and nesting birds. Fishing is not allowed either. The park district says the trails are expected to connect someday to the proposed Point Edith-to-Martinez Shoreline Regional Trail. For another walk nearby, try Martinez Regional Shoreline.