Birders and photographers hunt for the elusive Puffins as the Saratoga sails past the southern side of Protection Island.
A group of Rednecked Phalaropes fly past the vessel.
Oyster Catchers (black birds orange beaks) mingle with others on the shore.
A sailboat floats past.
Surf Scoters take off as the Saratoga approaches. The male Scoters have the showy orange bills.
Built in 1914, Point Wilson Lighthouse has the tallest tower on Puget Sound.
A bald eagle chatters with another eagle after landing on the side of a hill. The holes in the hillside are home to Alcids, which include the Puffins, Murrelets, Auklets and Murres.
A non breeding Pigeon Guillemot cruises beside the boat.
A tug totes a barge piled high with crushed cars.
Part of a large colony of Glaucous Winged Gulls.
A buck dines atop a hillside undamaged by a recent fire on Protection Island.
A group of seals on the eastern side of the island eyes the Saratoga as it passes.
A common Murre separated from its group goes to join them.
The sun breaks through an opening in the clouds as the Saratoga leaves Protection Island.
As part of the Puget Sound Bird Festival in Edmonds, a group of approximately 75 birders and bird photographers gathered on the Puget Sound Express Saratoga late Sunday afternoon for a three-hour excursion to Protection Island a National Wildlife Refuge.
Jon Houghton and Joe Sweeney were the bird guide experts leading the trip. They are both Master Birders and belong to Seattle and Pilchuck Audobon. The hope, for most, was to see Puffins in their breeding plumage but that didn’t happen. What everyone did see was one of the largest nesting colonies of Glaucous Winged Gulls, plenty of Common Murres, a few Rhinoceros Auklets, and several other genus of birds, as well as a large population of harbor seals.
The forecast was predicting winds from the west with swells, according to Captain Brian. That didn’t really happen. It was pretty smooth sailing and in spite of some threatening gray skies as we approached the island, it never rained a drop.
— Story and photos by Julia Wiese
2 Replies to “All aboard for a bird-watching adventure”
Thanks for the story & photos, Julia. Too bad about not seeing the puffins but it sounds like it was a great trip otherwise. How nice to have the Saratoga all to yourselves!
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Thanks for the story & photos, Julia. Too bad about not seeing the puffins but it sounds like it was a great trip otherwise. How nice to have the Saratoga all to yourselves!
Thanks Vicki! It was a nice trip and there is always next year 😉