First trip to Madrona observation site!

I spent a lot of time in nature when I was growing up. I was raised on the Lummi Reservation that is a small peninsula surrounded with beaches and the San Juan Islands. I was a child of the beach. My family and I would go camping every summer and sometimes for a month at a time. Our favorite place was a deserted island called Portage Island. When the tide is out it exposes a big sandbar you can use to cross and when the tide comes in the only way off is by boat. I loved being in nature because you never knew what you were gonna get. The land was always moving beneath, above, and beside you and each day provided a new adventure. There is always so much life to look for in the hidden parts nature like the crabs under the big rocks or the frogs hidden in the trees. My first experience with nature provided me with lots of food. We used to pick the oysters off the sides of the big rocks at low tide and dig clams that would spit water on top of the sand. We would pick the wild blackberries and salmon berries and come up with new dishes to create with them. I remember nature being a massive space with more bugs than I could ever find, more food than I could ever eat, and more land than I could ever explore. Needles to say when I first arrived at Madrona Park to do naturalist observations I was highly disappointed. I had never been to Madrona Park and from first glance I thought the park was a small strip of land on the beach of Lake Washington. It was no doubt beautiful but not exactly my idea of a natural observation site. After asking a jogger if there was anything else I was directed to the natural forest restoration across the  street from the public bathrooms. The walking path is small but full of life. I heard several species of birds overhead as well as the crinkle of leaves below. My first visit was definitely more about hearing than seeing the wildlife of the area. I found a beautiful observation spot right under a large cedar tree with cut down logs, perfect for sitting, scattered about. I was surprised during my first journal entry to look up and see a hummingbird in front of me scoping out all the nearby vegetation. The bird was not only looking in the flowers but in the pine trees as well. I then heard a loud squawking that sounded kind of like a seagull but not quite. I followed the sound to the top of a cedar tree only steps away from my observation site and a large bald eagle swooped in for feeding. The squawking subsided as the eaglet ate and the mother kept watch from the highest branch of the tree. I noticed fungi on the logs, trees that were different from the pines and cedars I was familiar with, plants that were in the mid-stage of bloom, birds and insects and all of which I am currently unable to identify but plan on doing so in the coming weeks. The Madrona Park natural forest is absolutely gorgeous on a sunny afternoon and I look forward to going back!

Observation Spot

The Unknown Fungus

Stretch out for Spring!

Eaglets are up there!