Seattle: Bird watching

In autumn, flame-colored maples light up the forest edges around Seattle, chum salmon hit the creeks, and waterbirds like buffleheads and harlequin ducks come home for the winter.

Add in year-round residents like rhinoceros auklets (yes, they have horns on their bills) and the place starts looking like a zoo.

Observe from Discovery Park, where the wild beaches have tidepools, bluffs, and restored wetlands.

• Free
• 3801 W. Government Way, Seattle, WA
• Neighborhood: Magnolia
• seattle.gov/parks
• 206/386-4236
• Call the visitor’s center (Closed Mondays) for directions to park