Willows owners and the road to Hastings Island

Willows is the Glenn County seat, with 6,190 residents and a median age of 38.6 (Census ACS 5-year 2024). It sits 7 miles north of a national wildlife refuge.

The refuge complex at your door

Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge covers 10,819 acres, 7 miles south of Willows. The five-refuge Sacramento NWR Complex totals nearly 70,000 acres, and waterfowl regularly peak at over 500,000 ducks and 250,000 geese from late November to December (USFWS).

Glenn County also appears fifth in CDFW's 2024 survey of counties named for waterfowl hunting, at 5.49 percent of respondents.

Planning around 2.2 hours

A trip of about 2.2 hours each way is a long day, not an errand. At this distance, plan around drop-off and pick-up; call Richard about both. Call Richard about drop-off and pick-up, and ask whether a lesson at the end suits you.

If you are weighing the cost of the trip against local options, the guide to choosing a gun dog trainer lists questions worth asking any trainer.

What stays the same wherever you live

Those facts come from his profile on the Hastings Island Hunting Preserve site, linked below.

• Richard has trained dogs professionally since 2002.
• He has run and qualified at an AKC Master National.
• He trains pointers and other upland breeds as well as retrievers.
• He works with handlers, one-on-one or in groups.

Opening weekend and the long drive

If you want your dog ready before the October opener, summer is the time to start. CDFW lists Balance of State ducks as October 24, 2026 to January 31, 2027, but confirm your county on the CDFW zone map because zones are set by county.

The waterfowl opener guide lists what a dog should know by that morning. Given the drive, finish the program with a handler lesson so you can keep the work going at home.

Clubs within reach

Clear Creek Sports Club in Corning hosts hunt tests and field trials on the 2026 California calendar. The calendar page explains how to confirm dates.

Questions Willows owners can bring to the call

Ask whether your dog's breed suits waterfowl, upland or both. Ask how Richard introduces gunfire and birds, since steadiness at the shot is a skill built in stages, as the steadiness entry in the glossary explains. Ask what to expect from progress updates while the dog is away. Richard sets each plan himself, so every answer is specific to your dog.