I will be in WA state in May for a college graduation. I hope to tie in a trip to the Seattle area for eagles. Am I correct in thinking the birds will be in the Silverton area in early May or do I need to come at a later time?
I was on Whibey Island Wa. last May and saw many eagles. It requires a ferry ride, when the tide is out you can see as many as 13 at one time.
I'm confused. The title says "Hood Canal". Union is a small town on the Hood Canal "hook". Silverton is a small town in the Cascade Mountains on the Mountain Highway Loop northeast of Seattle. It is 150 arduous highway and freeway miles from Union to Silverton.
Are you going to Hood Canal or are you going to Silverton?
That title was a mystery to me. It could have meant so many things. 😁
Good luck with your shooting!
Mid-May through the end of June (approximately) at Seabeck in the Hood Canal area. I live in Kent, about 15 miles south of downtown Seattle and it is about a 75 minute drive from my condo. (take I-5 south to Tacoma and then the exit to Bremerton.) Eagles congregate to feed on a small fish called a Midshipman that come into spawn. It is up to about 6-7" long. Best to check tide tables and look for dates with low tides, but not necessarily extremely low tides. The fish get into the tide pools and shallow water which makes for easy work for the eagles.
I have seen up to about 30 eagles on the beach at a time, but counts vary. And they tend to come and go. Plan to be there early as the tide is going out, as this keeps the eagles in closer proximity to the shore.
If you can be there on a weekday it is less crowded and parking on the roadside is limited. Then you have the option of shooting from the elevated road side or going down on the beach.
A bonus is there are often a good number of Great Blue Herons as well and often some good interaction of the eagles chasing the Herons off certain spots.
The attached photos are from my trip there June 15, 2022. It was a very low tide day and this pushed the eagles out to the water line, probably 100-150 yards out.
runakid wrote:
I will be in WA state in May for a college graduation. I hope to tie in a trip to the Seattle area for eagles. Am I correct in thinking the birds will be in the Silverton area in early May or do I need to come at a later time?
One of the best birding locations is Point No Point Lighthouse. Many nesting pairs with many other species that do interact. Keep your camera with long glass handy!
Thank you so very much for the information. I guess I should have titled it Silverdale instead of Hood Canal.
runakid wrote:
Thank you so very much for the information. I guess I should have titled it Silverdale instead of Hood Canal.
I live here! So far we've had Silverton, Silverdale and Seabeck mentioned in the topic. How can I help?
bsprague wrote:
I live here! So far we've had Silverton, Silverdale and Seabeck mentioned in the topic. How can I help?
Travel agent services? Hard to tell what they want. Eagles may be found in and around most state parks that bound water.
Sinewsworn wrote:
Travel agent services? Hard to tell what they want. Eagles may be found in and around most state parks that bound water.
Yes. My travel agent suggestion is to book the "Engineer's House" at Fort Flagler State Park for a few days. They have eagles there too.
Look through the windows and see the view.....
https://tours.waparks.org/fort-flagler-engineers-house/index.htm
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