Made our way down to the wildlife area after poor weather plagued the Cascades. This turned out to be a great way to get out and enjoy the brief moments of sunshine during what has been an incredibly wet January. With a family of great horned owl recently making their way into the area lots of bird watchers were out and everyone was in high spirits given the weather. We happened to luck out and catch the area during low tide allowing us to view all of the sea birds up close as they made their way through the shallows looking for food. All trails, including the boardwalk, were in great shape and this was a fantastic way to spend an impromptu trip out to take some photos.

We Walk 4.3 miles in 1 hour and 45 minutes out on the boardwalk and around the Preserve. It 48 Degrees and very windy especially along the boardwalk but a lot of wildlife to see and not raining. The trails are in excellent condition. We started at 8:20 AM before the parking lot got crowded. The gift shop and displays were great after the end of the walk.

Parking was full on this partly sunny Sunday when arrived around noon, cars parked along the entrance road. Trail is mostly boardwalk.

Was lucky saw three birds never seen before:

1. northern saw whet owl, such a cutie-photo#2,

2. great horned owl (3 times bigger than saw whet)- photo#3,

3. and kestrel eating her catch on a stump above the water, photo#4

Also saw a juvenile eagle perching above the water-photo#1, And lots of water birds, herons, bald eagles, seals, etc.

a beautiful place and lots of wildlife to watch.

Today we spent three hours at Nisqually hoping to see the Northern Saw-Whet Owl which has been roosting in a small cedar tree along the entrance road near the first parking area. Today it was not seen. We did see herons, a muskrat, 2 deer, eagles, cackling and Canadian geese, green-winged teal, shovelers, widgeon, greater yellowlegs, and a pair of hooded mergansers. Many people were enjoying the day and warmer weather.

This was a beautiful place, but I plan to return in the spring or summer when the plants are in full bloom and the birds have returned. 

While walking the gravel trail, we had a crane fly down the trail straight toward us, but he turned off right before he got to us. It was startling at first but the kids thought it was really great. 

We were unable to walk the entire boardwalk on this visit, as we had a little kid that is new to hiking and she got too tired before we could finish. I can't wait to return later in the year and do the whole trail.