(Stanwood Via Interstate 5)

 (To Bellingham)

The Flats
The Skagit River Flats are a wintering ground for Snow Geese, Trumpeter Swans, and Canadian Honkers. It is a small farming area between the Cascade Mountains and the Puget Sound . Game department pays farmers to plant delicious grasses for the winter; crop residuals remain, and a shallow bay at river mouth (for overnight sanctuary), combined with mild winters, all create an ideal environment for the birds. The flats and valley also provide habitat for numerous birds of prey.

 Waterfowl
Trumpeter Swans epitomize the joy of flight! They are large birds, two or more times the size of a Canadian goose, with over 4 foot wingspans. Snow Geese arrive in large flocks. There can easily be 2000-3000 birds per acre in a flock. They are wild, and as such shy. Getting close requires respect, patience and non predatory body language.  

Birds of Prey
From November through March, 13 daylight species of birds of prey, numbering 600 to 800, inhabit the Skagit Valley , where the winters are mild compared to the arctic regions where many of these birds live during spring, summer and fall. From bald eagles to rough-legged hawks to peregrine falcons, numerous raptor species migrate south to make Western Washington their winter home. Over the course of the year, 16 species of birds of prey will settle in for awhile.

                 (To Seattle)