The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

Visitation to Port Susan Bay Preserve is by permission only.

Please contact Pat Hampton phampton@tnc.org (360-419-3140) or Joelene Boyd jboyd@tnc.org (360-419-3125) Monday-Thursday at least one week in advance to make your reservation. Visitors will be required to complete and submit a liability form prior to their visit. Forms can be submitted via mail to the attention of Pat Hampton at 410 N. 4th Street, Mount Vernon, WA 98273 or via email to phampton@tnc.org.

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Port Susan Bay holds some of the finest estuarine habitat in Puget Sound. Its marshes, vast mudflats and tidally influenced channels support hundreds of thousands of birds, several species of salmon, smelt, English sole and clams. Western sandpipers, dunlins and dowitchers swoop over the mudflats. Wrangel Island snow geese gather by the thousands in tidal marshes and on nearby farm fields. And hundreds of raptors, from peregrine falcons to short-eared owls, add to the drama.

The Stillaguamish River spills into the bay, mixing freshwater and saltwater to create extensive estuarine marshes that produce a vast quantity of decaying organic matter, which feeds the abundant invertebrate life in the tide flat sediments. These tiny creatures, in turn, feed the shorebirds and waterfowl that make Port Susan Bay and adjacent Skagit Bay important stops for migratory birds traveling along the Pacific Flyway. 

Conservation Actions

The Conservancy owns the 4,122-acre Port Susan Bay Preserve, which encompasses much of the Stillaguamish River estuary. The property is managed in a way that benefits the vibrant estuary system and its salmon, birds and other wildlife.

The Port Susan Bay Estuary Restoration Project just wrapped up to restore 150 acres of tidal marsh in the Stillaguamish River estuary. An outer dike was removed and an inner dike redesigned to provide greater protection for neighboring farmlands during floods, and improve the ability of fish caught in flood waters to return to the natural system.

Now, native tidal-wetlands that support estuary-dependent animals are in better condition, juvenile chinook salmon have access to restored rearing habitats, and the stronger connection between the river and tidal habitats in the northeastern portion of Port Susan Bay will improve the resilience of the bay and estuary to sea level rise. Healthier tidal wetlands mean more food in the system for salmon, Dungeness crab, gray whales . . . and people.

Port Susan Bay will continue to be an important research area for the Conservancy. Roger Fuller, an estuarine ecologist for the Conservancy, is using Port Susan Bay as a laboratory for studying climate change.

Conservation Context

The Port Susan Bay Preserve is part of a larger landscape that is important for both wildlife and people. A collaborative, non-regulatory Marine Stewardship Area has been proposed for the entire Port Susan Bay and nearby uplands. You can read more on the Snohomish County Marine Resources Committee website.

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Other birding sites in the area that do not require prior permission:

• Leque Island
• Iverson Spit
• English Boom
• Big Ditch

Things To Do

Plan Your Visit

The public is allowed to visit this preserve, but prior arrangements must be made. Anyone interested in visiting should contact Pat Hampton at phampton@tnc.org or 360-419-3140, or Joelene Diehl at jdiehl@tnc.org or 360-419-3125.  

Directions

Discussion

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Add Your Comments

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