The water levels in the slough near the gazebo at Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge in Meigs County at Birchwood have dropped quite a bit, and there were several hundred sandhill cranes in the slough this morning. Water levels are still very high on the river, but a few dozen sandhill cranes managed to find some mud flat areas on Hiwassee Island, as seen from the Cherokee Removal Memorial Park. I also saw 4 whooping cranes for sure and probably 5 late today. Charles Murray Birchwood, TN