Simple, practical gifts for outdoors fun in Northwest

  • By Sharon Wootton
  • Friday, December 6, 2013 3:10pm
  • Life

My nephew, Devin, recently moved to Seattle. It didn’t take long for a new friend to take him on a hike near North Bend.

It wasn’t a difficult hike, the friend assured him.

So Devin, who had spent most of his life on the flat lands of the Eastern Shore of Maryland and kayaking the flat waters of its rivers, joined him.

He said that a few hours into the climb, he thought he was going to die on this “not-hard” elevation-gaining hike.

Welcome to the Cascades, nephew.

I was reminded of this story when thinking of a holiday gift for Devin, whose only other experience with a Washington hike was walking down Mount Constitution on Orcas Island.

What better gift than a state Discover Pass ($30; $35 if purchased at a licensed dealer, by phone or online).

With that pass, Devin has entry into more than 100 state parks, more than 350 primitive recreation sites (including campgrounds and picnic areas), almost 700 water-access points, nearly 2,000 miles of designated water and land recreation trails, and more than 110 natural and wildlife areas.

Those options offer landscapes far different than the Eastern Shore, including alpine meadows and Western Washington’s shrub-steppes and deserts.

This holiday, give your relative a Discover Pass. For more information, go to www.discoverpass.wa.gov.

Another option is one or more of the Jeff Corwin and Waterford Press Explorer series of pocket naturalist guides.

Corwin is the award-winning TV host and producer of Animal Planet programs, “The Jeff Corwin Experience” and “Corwin’s Quest.”

The 8.25-by-4-inch, six-fold laminated guides ($7.95) are a good introduction to various animals. Each guide focuses on one animal, such as bears, snakes, sharks or primates, using short text blocks and photographs.

Each focuses on specific areas: introduction, senses and anatomy, behaviors, interaction with humans, threats and conservation, and facts and distribution.

Size matters: Large wintering birds create an excellent opportunity for casual bird-watchers as well as expert birders.

The wintering birds tend to concentrate at food sources, often close to roads (think snow geese) while foraging in fields.

Identifying ducks is generally easier for beginners than identifying small birds that use trees and brush for cover.

It’s a good idea to spend a little time with a bird-identification book before you leave home, familiarizing yourself with several likely to be seen species.

Be respectful: Enjoy the view but let them feed in peace and quiet. It is selfish and potentially harmful to deliberately or thoughtlessly cause snow geese, for instance, to flush.

It is a beautiful sight, but they should fly on their own schedule, not yours. They are here to eat and rest, and pack on calories for the long flight north in late winter.

If you are within sight of the birds move slowly, and watch with a small group to be less disturbing.

Here are some viewing sites that reliably provide good views of waterfowl.

  • Skagit Wildlife Area, including the Johnson DeBay Swan Reserve, Johnson/DeBay’s Slough Game Reserve, Fir Island Farm/Fir Island Farm Game Reserve, Skagit County.
  • Birch Bay State Park, north of Bellingham, 94 acres with more than 8,000 feet of saltwater shoreline.
  • Semiahmoo Spit, Whatcom County Park on Drayton Harbor, Blaine; 0.8-mile paved trail on the east side of the spit.
  • Union Bay Natural Area, University of Washington (Montlake Fill); 74 acres, 4 miles of Lake Washington shoreline, one of the best bird-watching sites in Seattle.
  • Crockett Lake, Whidbey Island; more than 600 acres of brackish marsh, freshwater marsh and mudflats on the western side of the island.
  • Tennant Lake Wildlife Area, Ferndale; best birding spots are on the boardwalk loop trail, river access trail and from the tower. A spotting scope would be helpful.
  • Samish Flats, Padilla Bay and Alice Bay, Skagit County.

Columnist Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964 or www.songandword.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.