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Great Washington State Birding Trail
Olympic Loop
 The
Olympic Loop, published in February 2007 features more than
200 of Washington’s 346 annually recorded bird species.
From the quiet Nisqually River delta in
south Puget Sound, the Olympic Loop leads west to wild Pacific
breakers, follows rivers through moss-draped forests, and
touches the tip of the contiguous U.S. at Cape Flattery. The
route traces the Strait of Juan de Fuca east over the Olympic
Peninsula, and wends south along the inland waters of Hood
Canal.
This loop explores Olympic National Park,
four national wildlife refuges, state and local parks, as
well as the natural and cultural history of six Native American
tribes: Jamestown S’Klallam, Makah, Quileute, Quinault,
Skokomish, and Squaxin.
Around the Olympic Loop, spring migration
brings clouds of shorebirds to sandy beaches—Dunlin,
Sanderlings, and Western Sandpipers—and visitors to
rocky coasts—Black Turnstones, Surfbirds, and Wandering
Tattlers. In summer, Marbled Murrelets and Bald Eagles nest
in old-growth firs, American Dippers bob on glacial streams,
and Yellow Warblers sing in wetland willows. Fall’s
berries feed Cedar Waxwings. Winter features waterfowl extravaganzas
on fresh and saltwater.
Applause to the many dedicated Birding
Trail volunteers, and to the funders: National Forest Foundation;
US Forest Service; Washington State Tourism; Parks and Recreation
Commission; departments of Fish and Wildlife; Transportation;
and Community, Trade and Economic Development; Grays Harbor
and Mason Counties; the Cities of Aberdeen, Forks, Ocean Shores,
Olympia, and Tumwater; Clallam Bay and Port Angeles Chamber
of Commerce; Sequim Marketing Action Committee; North Olympic
Peninsula Convention and Visitors Bureau; and individual contributors.
The map features original art by Ed Newbold
on the cover and along the route of the map.
Click here
to see the trail online and click here
to purchase your map.
Good birding to you!
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