A Foray into Nature Journaling
If you are familiar with nature journaling, you might assume that it would be a matter of routine to a self-professed nature lover and artist like myself. But hey, we all have to start somewhere, and for me that’s now!
Nature Journaling
To be transparent, I only learned about nature journaling last month after stumbling across YouTube videos by UK-based artist Alex Boon. In a way, it merely put a name and a structure to a practice that I already observed—making observations in nature, and recording it in some format—but I loved that it would be a cohesive personal record of my nature explorations.
Nature journaling is, well, what it sounds like: journaling about nature. It’s a means of recording one’s personal observations and connections with the natural world, whether via quickly scribbled notes, species lists, and sketches, or in a more formally composed book of art and notes. I am choosing to do both: a haphazard field notebook paired with a carefully arranged watercolor sketchbook of paintings, plant pressings, and notes about my more meaningful or memorable nature experiences each month.
Though I haven’t started the formal journal yet (it’s in the mail), this practice has already encouraged me to learn new things! Because winter botanizing leaves a lot to be desired (yes, yes, I know, winter twigs!), I have been redirecting my focus elsewhere: birds!
Birding at Union Bay Natural Area
Though Seattle has no shortage of excellent birding sites (I plan to write a post about it, actually!), the spot I explored for this post was Union Bay Natural Area. This restored wetland on the shore of Lake Washington is a fantastic spot to spot waterfowl as well as species that rely on grasslands and thickets.
A view north from Union Bay, with Mt. Rainier in the distance.
I spotted more American Coots than I could count, Double-crested Cormorants, Pied-billed Grebes, Buffleheads, Green-winged Teals, Northern Shovelers, a Wood Duck pair, plenty of Mallards, Canada Geese, and either a Cooper’s Hawk or a Sharp-Shinned Hawk (both have been spotted here recently). The most memorable, though, was a Downy Woodpecker busy at work above the trail in Yesler Swamp, an area on the eastern edge of the wetlands.
I really didn’t see that much diversity today (far fewer species than I have on previous trips, though I did dedicate less time than I have before), and I didn’t get any stellar photos, but I had a great time. Having that moment of watching the woodpecker looking for insects, aware of my presence but continuing to forage, was really special.
With all my best,
Ellen Freya
