Full slate of activities for Wings Over Water

Wings Over Water Northwest Birding Festival will host family-friendly activities, feature artists and view live raptors during the educational birding event this weekend in Blaine, Birch Bay and Semiahmoo.
From Friday, March 18 to Sunday, March 20, festival attendees have the opportunity to participate in an all-day birding exposition with birds of prey, storytelling and kite making.
While all of the field trips are filled up, festival coordinator Debbie Harger encourages people to attend the various free events during the weekend.
“The events are open to the public and a lot of them are at the pavilion,” Harger said. “I’m so excited for the festival. A lot of work has been put into this.”
The festival has not been held since 2019. The 2020 festival was canceled two weeks prior and the 2021 festival was virtual.
The opening and artist reception will kick off the festival 5-7 p.m. Friday evening at the Blaine Welcome Center, 546 Peace Portal Drive. The reception will highlight the festival’s featured artist Lisa Abbott and refreshments will be provided.
On Saturday, there will be a free Wings Over Water birding expo all day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Blaine Community Pavilion at 635 8th Street. Donations are welcome and some activities may cost a small fee.
Sardis Raptor Center will host its popular meet-and-greet with owls, hawks, falcons and eagles 12-1:30 p.m. and 2:30-4 p.m. at the pavilion.
The Birdtastic Kids’ Activities will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in a tent outside of the pavilion. The activities, sponsored by Blaine-Birch Bay Park and Recreation District 2, include crafts and storytelling.
Kite making and storytelling will take place in another tent on the hour, every hour from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Storyteller Ron Snyder will tell a story about eagles and show Indigenous whistle making from bird bones, and artist Cathy Taggett will help children make kites.
Dancer Mary Lou Sanelli will perform “Crow Dance,” a 14-minute dance as a tribute to birds, at 11:30 a.m. Saturday in the Blaine Harbor conference room, at 235 Marine Drive, Harger said. The performance is followed by a “Birds on the Border” presentation by wildlife photographer Joe Meche.
The Alaska Packers Association Cannery and Fishing Museum, at 9261 Semiahmoo Parkway, will be open for the public to experience first-hand, local maritime history from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Wing Over Water’s keynote speaker Paul Bannick will give a presentation 5-7 p.m. Saturday at Northwood Chapel, 580 C Street. Bannick is the author and photographer of two best-selling bird books, and The Burke Museum in Seattle created two traveling exhibits inspired by him, according to Bannick’s website.
The festival will include other events that have already been sold out, including guided walks, wildlife viewing cruises from the historic Plover ferry and San Juan Cruises, and an information session on Washington’s Trumpeter swans.
Most events are free. To learn more and register for the festival, visit wingsoverwaterbirdingfestival.com/schedule-2022.