- Bird watching, with a wide variety of native and rare species, forms a popular Mt. Hood and Hood River activity.
- Nature walks and trails can be found all over the region to view forest, nesting, and migratory species, waterbirds, and raptors.
Overview
Bird watching trips through central Oregon are best undertaken in spring and summer, before migratory flocks make their southern trek to warmer climes. The variety of habitats—from rainforest to alpine tundra—in the Mt. Hood National Forest and Hood River Valley are home to an even larger variety of nesting, forest, and songbirds; waterfowl and raptors. Birders of all experience levels will enjoy visiting this area.
Best Bird Watching near Mt. Hood
Binoculars with at least 7-8X magnification and 35 mm lens diameter are recommended for bird watching. Here are a few of the popular birding sites near Mt. Hood:
- Wildwood Recreation Area: The Cascade Streamwatch and Wetland trails will pass many waterfowl, forest and nesting species.
- High Rock Campground: In addition to Mt. Hood and wildflowers, sapsuckers, woodpeckers, and endangered Spotted Owl can be seen here.
- Timberline: Horned Lark, Mountain Chickadee, Cassin’s Finch, Mountain Bluebird, and White-crowned Sparrow all can be viewed from the windows or parking lot of Timberline Lodge.
- Timothy Lake: Many waterbirds will be seen here, including ducks, grebes, loons, and Bufflehead; gulls and thrushes too.
- Trillium Lake: The boardwalk around the lake exposes visitors to several species of swallow, warbler, and thrush; Ring-necked Duck, Osprey, and Bald Eagle.
- Sahalie Falls: Expect to see Lincoln’s and White-crowned Sparrow, Orange-crowned and MacGillivray’s Warbler in the meadows; Gray Jay, Swainson’s Thrush, Winter Wren, and Golden-crowned Kinglet in the forest.
Guided Tours & Outfitters
Birding is popular all over Oregon; bird watching classes, clubs, equipment, information, and tours are easily found—discover some of the exciting opportunities by investigating the links below.
