Excellent bird outing. Warblers starting to pass through and trees not in full leaf just yet. Extra treat was the owlet sitting on its nest. Still just a fuzz ball, but it won't be long. Be sure to take the walkway. A sign has been set up to help locate the nest. Otherwise the usual suspects. A splendid day on the trail.

Great hike- mostly boardwalk. Turned into a gorgeous day late afternoon. Trail was not too busy - perfect amount of people. We happened to arrive at low tide which was amazing. Many birds including two immature eagles. I would highly recommend bringing binoculars. We will have to return at high tide to see the difference. Kid friendly- no dogs allowed

Finally a day without rain, it seemed a perfect time to get outside and see some wildlife. The Wildlife Refuge did not disappoint. As we started walking on the boardwalk, we were treated to the sight of a large turtle basking in the weak sun. Continuing our walk, we saw beautiful ring necked ducks, and a gorgeous pair of hooded mergansers swimming in the high waters of the delta. Further along, we saw many pairs of northern shovelers, paddling around each other in what was clearly springtime mating behavior. We were further treated to small groups of the very pretty green winged teals, as well as flying red winged blackbirds. We also saw bald eagles, American coots, and buffleheads. What a fun outing.

After our hike at McLane Creek, we went to Nisqually NWR and walked the Twin Barns Loop with side trips to the Twin Barns Observation Platform, Nisqually River Overlook, and the Riparian Forest overlook. There were not many birds to be seen. A pied-billed grebe, several ring-necked ducks, a black tailed deer, a song sparrow, and a raccoon were seen.

We did 2 miles of the 5 mile hike with a three-year-old and five-year-old