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20 · Whidbey Island

Fort Ebey State Park

Coastal forest, bluff, kelp beds

A former coastal defense fort where dense woods meet a high bluff over the Strait. Owls and woodpeckers in the trees, and below the bluff a seawatch over kelp beds where scoters, loons, and auklets ride the tide rips. Pairs with Crockett Lake for a full Whidbey day.

Effort Moderate · 2–5 mi rolling Forest singletrack and bluff trail with modest ups and downs.
When to go Morning in the woods, afternoon seawatch from the bluff.
Access Discover Pass required. Restrooms at the Gun Battery lot. Directions eBird hotspot

Birds by season

Curated highlights · the current season is marked

Spring

  • Great Horned Owl
  • Olive-sided Flycatcher
  • Rufous Hummingbird
  • Orange-crowned Warbler

Owlets fledge near the gun battery.

Summer

  • Rhinoceros Auklet
  • Pigeon Guillemot
  • Swainson's Thrush
  • Common Nighthawk

Auklets feed in the rips below the bluff.

Fall

  • Surf Scoter
  • Common Murre
  • Red-necked Grebe
  • Varied Thrush

Seabirds stream past the point.

Winter

  • Long-tailed Duck
  • Red-throated Loon
  • Black Scoter
  • Golden-crowned Kinglet

Quiet trails, busy water.

Reported here in the last 30 days

● Live from eBird

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Sources

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Live sighting data from eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology · Location research: Washington Trails Association, Eastside Audubon, Birds Connect Seattle, Washington Ornithological Society, Birdful · Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors