Looking for somewhere new to take my camera, and wanting to scratch my “I love a good wetland” itch, I finally checked out Mercer Slough last Friday. I went to the boat launch first and walked the trail along I-90, hoping to get some good bird photos. I saw exactly one duck, who did not want their photo taken, but did get a neat shot of the Slough winding its way through the verdant plant life.
(Side note: Almost everywhere else I walk that is also used by cyclists, the use of bells or “on your left” as they pass me is fairly good. Here? No one did.)
Undeterred, I went to the trails around the blueberry farm next. Not being next to an Interstate it was much quieter, and a very chill place to walk on a warm afternoon. It was honestly easy to forget I was in the middle of a busy urban area, which led to my favorite shot from the walk: the juxtaposition of someone paddling down a serene waterway, surrounded by verdant trees, with tall city buildings rising up in the distance.
I want to explore the park more in the future, and probably do it as a morning walk when I suspect there will be more birds around. But this first walk definitely scratched the itch I had… and left me with others. It’s a wetland after all, as the mosquitos were happy to remind me.
I’ll put on bug spray next time.
Gear: Nikon Z 7II, Sigma 150-600mm f5-6.3 + 1.4 Teleconverter
