Wiley Slough – a drowned world
One of our favorite half-day getaways, this walk is little more than an hour’s drive from North Seattle. It is essentially a flat walk along this slough, or estuary. A birdwatcher’s dream, it is filled with birds, eagles and herons. When the tide is low you see the exposed mudflats.
Unlike a forest hike, this area is open to the sky and sun, with wide views of hundreds of apparently drowned trees among the high grasses. It feels like a drowned world, as in a short story by Paul Bowles or J.G. Ballard. We see the Cascade Mountains beyond on one side and the Olympic Mountains on the other. And there are frequent views of Mt. Baker’s white flanks looking north, along with several other Cascade peaks.
I overheard someone on the trail saying that the current bald eagles you see around a certain nest are new to the area. They moved in, killing the other chicks and driving the previous eagles away.
We usually continue our drive from the wetlands walk through parts of the Skagit Valley, stopping in the town of La Conner for coffee to go. Lots of barns, fruit and berry stands are scattered around. I get my honey from a local farm. Interesting sketching opportunities.
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