thanks for posting this. I just moved to Seattle a few months ago, and have
been asked to lead a birding walk for (mostly) non-birders (group I went to
high school with 40 years ago, on the other side of the country). we will
all be staying in LaConner so I was looking for some place close &
convenient, & had planned on Skagit. I would appreciate any
thoughts/guidance on good spots to take novices for a couple of hours that
is convenient to LaConner. thanks in advance.
chris kessler, seattle

On Wed, Jul 9, 2008 at 4:49 PM, Michael Hobbs <birdmarymoor at verizon.net>
wrote:

>
> ----- Original Message ----- *From:* WDFW Public Affairs<do.not.reply at dfw.wa.gov>
> *To:* mjct_hobbs at msn.com
> *Sent:* Wednesday, July 09, 2008 3:10 PM
> *Subject:* WDFW News Release: Access closed on portion of Skagit Wildlife
> Area as work begins on Wiley Slough
>
> *WDFW NEWS RELEASE *
> *Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
> 600 Capitol Way North, Olympia, WA 98501-1091 *
> *http://wdfw.wa.gov/ *
>
> *July 9, 2008
> Media Contacts: John Garrett, (360) 445-4441
> Lora Leschner, (425) 775-1311 ext. 121*
>
>
> *Access closed on portion of Skagit Wildlife Area
> as work begins on Wiley Slough restoration project *
>
> OLYMPIA - Starting today, the 175-acre Headquarters Unit of the Skagit
> Wildlife Area will be closed to public access as work crews begin clearing
> land for a major estuary-restoration project at the mouth of the Skagit
> River.
>
> The closed area includes the public boat ramp and the dike-top trails along
> the Skagit River and Wiley Slough.
>
> Lora Leschner, regional wildlife manager for the Washington Department of
> Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), said the department expects to reopen the
> Headquarters Unit to public access at the end of September.
>
> "We had hoped to keep the boat launch and the inner dike trail open during
> construction, but there's just too much heavy equipment involved," Leschner
> said. "We don't want to put visitors at risk."
>
> WDFW owns and manages the entire 16,708-acre Skagit Wildlife Area to
> preserve habitat for fish and wildlife, and provide a site for outdoor
> recreation. Leschner suggests that boaters use the ramp in Conway off Fir
> Island Road as an alternative while the Headquarters Unit is closed for work
> on the restoration project.
>
> First proposed in 2002 by the Skagit Watershed Council, the Wiley Slough
> project is designed to restore 160 acres of estuarine salmon habitat that
> was diked and drained to create farmland in 1962. The federal salmon
> recovery plan for Puget Sound identifies the project as an important step
> toward restoring chinook stocks in the Skagit River.
>
> Partners in the project include WDFW, the Skagit River System Cooperative,
> Seattle City Light and the Skagit Watershed Council, with funding from the
> state Salmon Recovery Funding Board, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and
> the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
>
> State and federal agencies are providing $3.8 million for the restoration
> work, which is scheduled for completion during the summer of 2009. Seattle
> City Light contributed another $150,000 to the project.
>
> WDFW awarded the construction contract to Northwest Construction Inc. of
> Bellevue last week, after completing a competitive bidding process.
>
> During the next three months, construction crews will work to construct a
> new "setback" dike further inland along the border of the wildlife area and
> install a new, larger tidegate farther upstream on Wiley Slough.
>
> Next summer, the work crews will remove approximately 6,500 feet of other
> dikes and levees, allowing the tides and the river to reclaim the area south
> of the new setback dike.
>
> "Our goal is to wrap up work each summer before the general hunting season
> begins," Leschner said. "We recognize that hunters, hikers, birdwatchers
> and others have come to depend on this area for outdoor recreation."
>
> After recreational interests raised objections to the restoration project
> last year, WDFW Director Jeff Koenings directed department staff to work
> with those groups to find common ground.
>
> To address concerns about lands lost to hunting, WDFW is working with a
> coalition of hunters, recreationists, farmers and other landowners to secure
> hunter access to private lands in the area. The 2008 Legislature provided
> $75,000 to support that effort.
>
> In addition, the department agreed to improve the boat launch, maintain the
> nearby "island segment" for hunting and improve hiking trails in the
> Headquarters Unit of the wildlife area. Riparian vegetation will be planted
> to replace songbird habitat.
>
> WDFW has already purchased 250 acres near Bayview on Padilla Bay that will
> eventually provide additional wildlife habitat and wildlife-viewing
> opportunities.
>
> "We've worked with a lot of different groups to reach consensus on this
> project and move forward," Koenings said. "That's important, because this
> project is a milestone for salmon recovery on the Skagit River and
> throughout Puget Sound."
>
> For more information on the Wiley Slough restoration project, see WDFW's
> report to the 2008 Legislature at
> http://www.goskagit.com/pdf/wiley_slough_wg_report.pdf . Questions can
> also be directed to the WDFW Region 4 Office at (425) 775-1311.
>
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