Goose, Geese, Gosling; Utah’s Snow Goose Festival

Thousands of snow and Ross’ will fill the sky at this year's Snow Goose Festival. Photo: Utah Division of Wildlife Resources

DELTA, Utah. — A few hour’s drive from Park City near Delta, Utah is Gunnison Bend Reservoir. The reservoir is a mecca for ‘bird nerds’ and anyone else who wants to take in the spectacle of thousands of Snow Geese during their annual migration.

The Snow Goose is known to migrate up to 3,000 miles seasonally. The snow geese that travel through Delta come from California on their way to the arctic tundra. Nice of them to stop by.

This year’s annual Snow Goose Festival is scheduled for February 26-27 and is hosted by the Delta Chamber of Commerce and located at Gunnison Bend Reservoir.

As many as 20,000 geese (mostly snow geese) have been at the reservoir during past festivals. Except for the black tips on their wings, snow geese are completely white. At the festival, Utah Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) biologists will be available to provide information about the birds and help people spot find them.

“It’s an exciting time to be there,” says DWR Regional Outreach Manager Phil Tuttle. “All those thousands of geese in flight make for incredible photos. Watching and hearing the geese take off can take your breath away.”