Only did the short loop as it started raining, but this was being used as a leg stretcher for us. It’s right off I5.

Really beautiful and the amount of wildlife you can see made me and the kiddo want to come back. We did see deer, geese, goslings, and tons of songbirds.

Our first time here. Arrived around 9:30am Sunday, to find plenty of space in the parking lot and squeaky clean bathrooms in the visitors center. We took the Twin Barnes loop trail then followed the boardwalk out over the estuary. We saw Double-crested cormorants, Harrier hawks, bald eagles, several different types of ducks and geese, plus so many interesting looking shorebirds! Our kids aged 8, 6, and 2 (we carried him) loved the hike and enjoyed spotting the wildlife. FYI it was chilly and blustery out on the boardwalk and several degrees cooler than the main trail so having layers was helpful. Such a beautiful place! 

It was a beautiful day to be out by the water. As usual, I forgot to check the tide tables and the tide was out again. I have never been here during high tide! This is a nice leisurely stroll out over the mud flats and Billy Frank Wildlife Sanctuary. Lots of different types of birds. I saw several bald eagles out at the end of the pier. This is a great family hike!

Fabulous day spent wandering the trails with our nature loving teenager. I love going this time of year and seeing the daffodils from the old gardens popping up in the woods at the south end of the Twin Barns loop. I am always blown away with the diversity and abundance of wildlife so near I-5. Pussywillows, red flowering currant, Indian plum, salmon berry blossoms. Herons, raptors, sapsuckers and songbirds. Lots of frog eggsacs were easily visible from the boardwalk on the west side of the loop. We saw turtles sunning themselves and even a snake swimming along. The swallows are starting to build their nests along the barns. A woman came rushing out of one of the outhouses while we were watching the swallows, screaming and frantically pulling up her pants, "There's a frog in there!!!" We found a tiny frightened tree frog in a corner behind the vent pipe and rescued the poor thing (he seemed very happy to be back outside). Spotted more herons, sand pipers, eagles and seals from the boardwalk out over the mud flats. All reminded me that we really need to come out here more often.

Because it was a fee-free day because of President's day, a lot of people were enjoying the refuge, but it did not feel crowded.  Many species of birds were out, I took advantage of the free checklist that they have at the pay station and it was fun to see how many species you can identify.