Essentially the entirety of the publicly accessible area can easily be covered in one morning, parking at either parking spot and walking to the next. You can then loop past the clubhouse and down Morgan Mill Road, or you can walk back the way you came - in the summer, the latter is usually better, while the former is advised in the winter. Such a walk typically takes 2-3 hours, unless there is exceptionally good birding. In the summer, it is necessary to arrive fairly early in the morning, as activity tends to quiet down around 9 due to the hear.
Empire Ranch is a highly underbirded region surrounding the Empire Ranch Golf course. The main draw is the diversity of habitats packed into a small area - there is Carson River riparian, wetlands, open fields, scrub, and suburban yards all within a few square miles. Essentially the entirety of the publicly accessible area can easily be covered in one morning, parking at either parking spot and walking to the next. You can then loop past the clubhouse and down Morgan Mill Road, or you can walk back the way you came - in the summer, the latter is usually better, while the former is advised in the winter. Such a walk typically takes 2-3 hours, unless there is exceptionally good birding. In the summer, it is necessary to arrive fairly early in the morning, as activity tends to quiet down around 9 due to the hear.
Empire Ranch is a highly underbirded region surrounding the Empire Ranch Golf course. The main draw is the diversity of habitats packed into a small area - there is Carson River riparian, wetlands, open fields, scrub, and suburban yards all within a few square miles. Essentially the entirety of the publicly accessible area can easily be covered in one morning, parking at either parking spot and walking to the next. You can then loop past the clubhouse and down Morgan Mill Road, or you can walk back the way you came - in the summer, the latter is usually better, while the former is advised in the winter. Such a walk typically takes 2-3 hours, unless there is exceptionally good birding. In the summer, it is necessary to arrive fairly early in the morning, as activity tends to quiet down around 9 due to the hear.
