Seeking refuge

Trips to Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge near Smyrna, Delaware, are almost always followed by beer and a rockfish sandwich at Sambo’s Tavern in Leipsic.

Stretching eight miles along Delaware Bay and covering 16,251 acres, the refuge provides habitat for wildlife. Four-fifths of the refuge is tidal salt marsh with a mix of cordgrass meadows, mud flats, tidal pools, rivers, creeks, and tidal streams. The upland area includes forests, freshwater impoundments, brushy and timbered swamps, and fields of herbaceous plants. This diversity of habitats is reflected in the diversity of animal life.