American Dipper—Photo: Mick Thompson
OPAS Field Trip: Elwha Through the Seasons—End of Summer
Leaders: Ben Hannah & Kathy McCoy
Saturday September 12, 2026—9:00 a.m. until noon
Limited to 15 participants
Registration required—register below
Free to attend
Meet at the Madison Falls parking area on the Elwha river.
Directions from Port Angeles (approx. 20 min drive from downtown): Follow Highway 101 west from town and turn left onto Olympic Hot Springs Road shortly before crossing the Elwha River. Continue on this road until you reach the gravel parking area on the left, just past the Olympic National Park boundary. For directions, search for Madison Falls Trailhead on Google Maps or your preferred maps app, or use this link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/MdUDuNDXLrTpXwgu8
Features: This is the third of four planned trips this year to the Elwha Valley, one in each season. We’ll begin at the Madison Falls parking lot and check the river for American Dippers, Canada Geese, and Common Mergansers, now joined by Harlequin Ducks and Wood Ducks. We’ll also revisit the bigleaf maple grove across the parking lot for woodpeckers and songbirds. So far, this area has been fairly quiet on our first two trips From there, we’ll walk about one mile south along Olympic Hot Springs Road to the washout from the 2017 flood. Habitats along the route include river, riparian forest, deciduous forest, conifer forest, and open fields.
By September, several summer migrants will already have departed, such as most flycatchers, Rufous Hummingbirds, Western Tanagers, and many warblers. Some species linger a bit longer, including Turkey Vultures, Swainson’s Thrushes, Vaux’s Swifts, and Band‑tailed Pigeons.
As with our earlier trips this year, this area remains relatively under‑birded in spring and summer, so eBird data is limited. Each visit helps us continue adding to the body of citizen‑science knowledge!
What to bring: Binoculars (and any other optics you may have) and weather‑appropriate clothing. As we move toward fall, rain becomes increasingly likely.
If you don’t have binoculars, please come anyway—there will be spotting scopes available for everyone to use. And if you have a spotting scope and would like to share, they’re always a welcome addition.
Further information: Contact Ben Hannah at OlympicTransplant@gmail.com.
Liability Form: The OPAS field trip liability release form will now be included in the Eventbrite registration. It will require a check mark that indicates you have read and agree to the liability form language before registration continues. Important! Please provide your first and last name and other participants’ names, if applicable, during registration. This requirement will free up your time and the field trip leader’s time to collect signatures.