How about we have a "what do you love about Seattle". Haters, stay on your own side, just for once (tickets, place)

[Seacove]

Originally Posted by homesinseattle

Hey gents, Can we get back to the topic title and maybe you two can have private message jousting? I like all the birds in Seattle, two of my favorites are hummingbirds and even owls in Volunteer Park Seattle.

Steller's Jay wins for me, we get tons of them at our feeders. We also see a Pileated woodpecker with all the trees on our property but I think the Steller's Jays are are more stunning.

[RotseCherut]

The wildlife and bird life in Washington is amazing.. Haven't seen an eagle since I left.. I remember one day sitting in my office in Mount Vernon and I look to the left of me through my window and a giant eagle flys right next to my window with his 7 foot wingspan (looked like a plane was coming at me) and swooshes by me and we literally make eye contact. That was one of the most amazing experiences I ever had and I didn't even have to go far into the wilderness to experience it. Literally, I was sitting at my computer at home programming and took one moment to stare out the window and me and a giant eagle are looking eye to eye at each other..


I took this photo coming home from the Tulip Festival.. The Skagit Valley and Whatcom county have some of the best Eagle and bird viewing opportunities in the country:

[perigee]

I love stellar jays, they are gorgeous.

Amazing pictures, Rotse and whoa on that experience! They are massive birds and while they may not be the most savory creatures I can't help, but look on with awe when I see one.

Speaking of birds, probably in the next month or so the little song birds from the mountains are going to come down here for the winters. Last year I opened my window and it went from the normal noise to nothing but juncos. I love putting a suet cake in a window box and watching the cats go crazy, this time they will get those tasty morsels! This time!

[RotseCherut]

Originally Posted by perigee

I love stellar jays, they are gorgeous.

Amazing pictures, Rotse and whoa on that experience! They are massive birds and while they may not be the most savory creatures I can't help, but look on with awe when I see one.

Speaking of birds, probably in the next month or so the little song birds from the mountains are going to come down here for the winters. Last year I opened my window and it went from the normal noise to nothing but juncos. I love putting a suet cake in a window box and watching the cats go crazy, this time they will get those tasty morsels! This time!

Thanks for your compliments, Perigee.. I also miss the many different types of birds and their beautiful songs that I experienced living on the Oregon Coast, Willamette Valley, as well as in the Puget Sound. The Snoqualmie Valley, where I just moved from, was particularly rich in bird life and miss the large varieties of birds I got to see. On the Oregon Coast I was blessed with 1000s of hummingbirds, which I ended up starting a colony at my house. In the Summer I would go through 3 large sized feeders a day at one point and I must have had 1000+ needled nosed visitors each day.

P.S.
I love Stellar Jays, but hate their awful swquaking sound.. Annoying, but still a beautiful bird to look at. The woodpeckers were G-d awful when I lived in a metal manufactured home on the Coast; it sounded like I was being shelled when they would start banging away at my walls.

[elkotronics]

Elk, well played with the change of direction. I'm not a crazy birder but i have seen some beautiful ones I think that are called "pileated woodpeckers", over in the Arboretum.

Thanks for that, homesinseattle!


Great and glorious pictures, RotseCherut. Wow, this thread has done a fantastic 180 degree turn for the better. Bald-headed eagles are all over Skagit Valley up north, especially at certain times. All of you that are so fortunate ta be in western Washington, enjoy it to the full. It does not disappoint nature-wise - like I said earlier on city-data Washington, western Washington is God's Country!

[RotseCherut]

Thanks Elko.. I really miss so much about the Skagit Valley and Whatcom County. If I ever get enough capital together, I think I would be very happy to retire in rural Whatcom county, preferably around the lake. I'd definitely be taking frequent trips to the Skagit Valley just for the bird watching alone. Also, the drive from Sedro to Winthrop via North Cascades Highway is one of the most immaculate on this Earth. It definitely qualifies as G-d's Country..

[elkotronics]

Also, the drive from Sedro to Winthrop via North Cascades Highway is one of the most immaculate on this Earth. It definitely qualifies as G-d's Country..

Oh, the colors of those lakes up there is so beautiful - that green color - that North Cascades Pass Highway 20 route is just gorgeous! Love it!

[BCCan]

From my visits to Seattle:

-- Waterfront
-- Safe vibe when walking in the city alone
-- Parks and green space
-- Drivers noticing that pedestrians exist
-- Accessible recycling
-- Fresh air
-- Walking around Capitol Hill
-- Westfield Mall
-- Perfect summer weather

There are more neighborhoods I'd still like to see such as Wallingford, Fremont, Ballard. I really enjoy Seattle.

[scatteredthunder]

Originally Posted by perigee

I love stellar jays, they are gorgeous.

Yes! I have a couple that visit my house frequently and steal food from my feeder that's not big enough for them.

I also occasionally get visits from a northern flicker, which is cool. When I first moved here, I was [nearly] convinced that WA had no other birds besides crows. LOL

So, my list...

- coffee stands everywhere / coffee-loving culture
- mild winter (minimal snow)
- early flowers in spring
- feeling of self-sufficiency of the PNW - not a Seattle thing per se - but lots of things produced in the region
- great produce - again, more regional
- quality organic/foodie kinds of grocery stores (PCC, Met Market, Central Market)
- plethora of Thai/Japanese food
- proximity to the coast (and Puget Sound, of course)
- progressive politics, environmental consciousness, etc
- the KCLS (not Seattle proper - though Seattle's library system is good too)
- hot spot for performing artists, authors, etc
- lots of higher education options
- fewer bugs (mosquitoes!) than other places I've lived
- Top Pot!

[elkotronics]

Seattle used to be home to the Supersonic NBA basketball team. But sadly, that ship has since sailed. What's worse, too many Seattleites not only consider that to be just fine, they are actively trying to keep a new Sonic's franchise from landing back in town.


I am a sports nut, and I have trouble watching NBA ball any more. I am a Mariner's fan and a big 'ole Seahawk's fan, yep. I was raised by a Dad who played sports and brought me up with a basketball in one arm and a football in the other arm. Why it needs ta be such a struggle ta bring the New World Order Seattle Sonic's back to America's best sports city is beyond me. Huh? The Longshoremen don't want their game traffic clogging up Occidental Way? OK...and for some strange reason The Seattle Times is railing against the Sonic's, too. The Seattle City Council is proving to be about as useful as a bag of rusty nails in a Pacific NW rainstorm and overall the people of my birthcity are really not behind Chris Hansen in his efforts to bring a new team back.


Chris Hansen's Dad used to bring him to Sonic's games, too, as a youngster. So Chris Hansen bleeds Sonic green and gold, too. He's rich, his efforts to throw money at the owner of the SAC King's were blocked by Adam Silver and the NBA front office. There's a vampire on every corner in this quest to bring the team back.


Am I the only Sonic fan on city-data?