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<p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">The weather might not be to most people's taste today, but it's fast getting toward the time of year when I start thinking more about kayaking. Sea kayaking during the last 30 years comprises a large fraction of the time that I've spent looking at or for birds. One of my favorite places, and certainly the one with the least challenging kayaking, is Port Susan, just north of Everett. I've only kayaked, so you will have to use your own judgement about other forms of boating like canoeing or paddleboarding.</p>
<p class="gmail-p2" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica;min-height:14px"><br></p>
<p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">Obligatory warning:<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Sea water in Washington is almost as cold in summer as in winter.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Port Susan is one of the few places that I kayak without wearing a wetsuit or drysuit, but that only applies if you stay quite close to shore at all times (about 50 yards or so, depending on your re-entry skills).<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Ideally, you should have a group of at least three boats for mutual support, although that won’t help much unless everyone has some basic rescue and towing skills. <span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>
<p class="gmail-p2" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica;min-height:14px"><br></p>
<p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">Also, at any season of the year you should check the MARINE weather forecast to be sure the wind will not exceed what you are happy with.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>The “Admiralty Inlet” zone is probably the best indicator of conditions in Port Susan.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Keep the multiple hours of sun exposure in mind in summer, too.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>End of gloom and doom lecture.</p>
<p class="gmail-p2" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica;min-height:14px"><br></p>
<p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">Port Susan is the most interesting Washington sea kayaking venue for relative beginners (in my arrogant opinion), due to the dramatic tidal action.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>It also has some excellent bird life in most seasons of the year.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>I have seen dozens of Bald Eagles in early spring (March, IIRC) which were probably the birds who had gathered on the Skagit River for the late winter salmon run and were waiting for longer days to disperse to territories in the North.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Spring can also have sizable flocks of shorebirds, which may be chased around by falcons.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Summer is a bit less dramatic, but typically there will be quite a few Great Blue Herons standing in the shallow water along the tide line. In the fall/winter this is an active area of waterfowl hunting, so take that into consideration.</p>
<p class="gmail-p2" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica;min-height:14px"><br></p>
<p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">The ideal time to go is on a day when there is a low tide in the late morning or very near noon, preferably a “minus tide” but definitely below about +2 feet.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>If you launch from the aptly named Kayak Point County Park, at or about an hour after low tide, you will have a short paddle north before reaching the edge of a large sand-flat filling the head of the bay.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>On a good minus tide, I believe the area of exposed flats exceeds five square miles.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Unlike most locations on days of big tides, there is virtually no current here because it is a dead-end bay, so you don’t need to worry about that.</p>
<p class="gmail-p2" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica;min-height:14px"><br></p>
<p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">The boating goal is to find the “channel” that the river water is coming out of and paddle up it into the tide flat.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>The water is quite murky, and there are lots of areas of very shallow water outside the actual channel, so you may run aground even in a kayak before you can see the bottom.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>It’s an amusing puzzle to find the somewhat twisty route in which you can actually make progress.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>The Stillaguamish River “delta” really has only two distributaries: one south near the village of Warm Beach and one that runs west just south of the marsh that connects Camano “Island” to the shore, which is far out of the way when coming from Kayak Point, so you’ll be looking for the former channel.</p>
<p class="gmail-p2" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica;min-height:14px"><br></p>
<p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">Once you work your way a few hundred yards up in to the flats, it’s interesting to pull your boats up on the highest bit of sand you can find and sit on them for a while watching birds (bring a thermos of tea, maybe, although beware that there are no concealed places out here for a pee-break).<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>If you wait just a little while as the tide rises, soon the water will catch up and surround you.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>It’s pretty interesting how fast the sand-flats disappear once you get about two hours past low tide.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Don’t leave your boats unattended! <span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>
<p class="gmail-p2" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica;min-height:14px"><br></p>
<p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">If you are really persistent, you will reach a couple of salt marsh islands that you can see on a satellite photo northwest of Warm Beach.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>I’ve usually turned back before I made it that far.</p>
<p class="gmail-p2" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica;min-height:14px"><br></p>
<p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">Note on parking:<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>There is an entry fee for Kayak Point Park, and parking at the beach fills up on weekends when the weather is nice.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>I have not been there in the last few years, so I can’t say for sure when it maxes out on the weekends, but if don’t arrive pretty early (10 AM? 11???) you may have to unload your boats by the boat ramp then park up the hill.<span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Since you don’t want to launch before low tide, if you park earlier you may want to have a picnic lunch or bring a frisbee to play on the lawn while waiting for the tide. <span class="gmail-Apple-converted-space"> </span>Don’t start paddling before low tide, because the fun here is mostly watching the sand-flats disappear.</p><p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica"><br></p><p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">Feel free to email me if you have any questions about this or other areas for kayak birding. I've been around the San Juans a lot and most of Washington's other salt water shoreline somewhat.</p><p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica"><br></p><p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">Mike Wagenbach</p><p class="gmail-p1" style="margin:0px;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size-adjust:none;font-kerning:auto;font-feature-settings:normal;font-stretch:normal;font-size:12px;line-height:normal;font-family:Helvetica">Seattle</p></div></div>