Exploring Smith and Bybee and Whitaker Ponds with Friends

When we are out exploring natural spaces, we like to bring our friends with us. Today, I’m going to tell you about two places in Portland that we have visited with our friend E.V. Armitage.

First, we visited Whitaker Ponds Nature Park in Northeast Portland, which has two ponds, and one is surrounded by a 0.5 mile-long trail.

From the viewing platform, we saw a lot of ducks and an osprey. There were a lot of great egrets flying overhead. There were so many of them that we wondered if they were looking for a place to roost for the night.

As we walked around the trail, we saw butterflies, dragonflies, and a great blue heron fishing in a stream that runs between the slough and pond. Because it was warm and it was late in the day, there was not a lot of bird activity, but we heard song sparrows, spotted towhee, and black-capped chickadees.

“What I love about Whitaker ponds is it's this little nature area right in the city,” E.V. told me. “It's surrounded by all this industrial stuff and big trucks, but there are tons of birds, and you never know what you're going to see. Today we saw a bunch of ducklings and herons and egrets and little birds. And sometimes you might see turtles and otters, and you definitely see signs of beavers and owls, so it's kind of just a little neat hidden spot in the city.” 

E.V. told me that one time she found owl pellets beneath a tree at Whitaker. Next time I go, I will definitely look for them.

Another place we visited with E.V. was Smith and Bybee wetlands in North Portland, we saw robins, song sparrows, mallards, northern shovelers, bald eagles, blue herons, warblers, a rabbit, and even coyote scat.

There are two lakes in this natural area: Smith Lake and Bybee Lake. Two bald eagles were sitting in a nest in a tree along Bybee lake. We watched one of them soar over the lake hoping to catch a duck.  It is likely that they will have eggs in the nest soon, and it will be fun to return and watch the family grow.

Both of these places have flat, short trails, so they are easy walks, and they both have some viewing platforms. I encourage you to go and see for yourself.