Skagit River Interpretive Center Hike Report - Saturday, January 8, 2022

Twelve of us gathered in Rockport at the Skagit River Interpretive Center (Formerly the Skagit Bald Eagle Interpretive Center) for a 2-1/2hour, 2.8-mile (according to Gerlinde’s phone!) tour along the Skagit River to the confluence of the Sauk River.  Joining me were Kendra Wanzenried, Clarence Elstad, Toni Williams, Gerlinde Gruber, Ida Callahan, Sam & Sylvia Shiroyama, Diane Clifford, Steve Johnson, Sean Munson and Kyle Wright.  Our guide was Joe Ordonez, author, photographer, and naturalist.  Joe has spent 30 years working and guiding in Alaska and recently moved to the Mt. Vernon with his family and, fortunately for us, recently began working as a guide and naturalist at the center.

Joe led us through prairie land, wetlands, conifer forest and restoration areas as well as to the confluence of the Sauk and Skagit Rivers. Each of these areas, for different reasons, are critical to the health of the area and subsequently to the health of the river, the salmon, and the eagles. We stopped along the way so Joe could talk about the different ecological niches we passed through, the plants, birds, and animals that live in the area and how they depend upon the river and its environs as well as the interdependence of all the resident life forms. I am hoping we all learned something we didn’t know before. I know I did. I learned that the Skagit River is the only river in the Pacific Northwest that is host to all five species of west coast salmon: Chinook (King), Coho (Silver), Chum (Dog), Pink (Humpies), and Sockeye (Red). And the Skagit is the southern most area where large Alaska migrant eagles congregate in the winter to feed on salmon. The others are the Chilcat in Alaska, Fraser in BC, and Nooksack in northern Washington.

It was an epic day for birding. We saw 4 bald eagles, many mergansers, an American Dipper (some of us knew it as the Water Ouzel), and a Virginia Rail spotted by Sean Munson – thanks, Sean. This was a super cool sighting as Virginia Rails are a very reclusive bird that is more often heard than seen. On our drive up, we saw a multitude of swans and on my way back I detoured to LaConner and was fortunate enough to see a HUGE flock of snow geese settle into a field for the night. All in all, considering the weather cooperated, I would say it was a very successful outing.