The
Illahee
Apartments
Photos by Andy Cameron
ABOVE: A house sparrow seen in Lewis and Clark National Historical Park. RIGHT: A young bald
eagle sits atop a hollow tree trunk.
Birdwatching at Lewis and
Clark National Historical Park
As good as it gets
in Downtown
Astoria!
1046 Grand Avenue
Astoria, OR 97103
503-325-2280
4 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
Public lands are the home of
a diverse array of bird species
BY ANDY CAMERON
Composed of numerous sites encircling
the mouth of the Columbia River, Lewis and
Clark National Historical Park is well posi-
tioned as one of the North Coast’s top bird-
watching sites. The park features numerous
biomes, including coniferous forests, inter-
tidal estuaries and expansive plains. As such,
birdwatchers are treated to year-round oppor-
tunities to observe a diverse array of species.
National Park Week, which begins on Sat-
urday, off ers a timely reason to head out and
explore the avian species inhabiting this rich
trove of public lands. Birders hoping to max-
imize the experience and minimize travel
from Astoria can do no better than a trip to
Fort Clatsop. Harboring a localized sampling
of park habitats, this site allows observation
of small songbirds, stunning raptors, ambling
seabirds and swimming ducks.
Songbirds
To locate the smaller species, particularly
See Page 5