> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.brynnilsen.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Heron Roost at The Port of Everett - URL: https://www.brynnilsen.com/heron-roost-at-the-port-of-everett/ - Published: 2026-09-26T16:00:44.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-26T16:00:43.000Z - Author: Bryn Nilsen Riley was listening to the birds for years before they died. I don't know exactly when they started understanding what the chirps and titters from above meant; nor do I know when they started communicating back with the birds. What I do know is that I will never be able to look at a bird again in my life without thinking a little bit about Riley. This is a Riley association I really like encountering. I've always enjoyed nature, and my love of birds got supercharged my freshman year of high school with Mr. MacDicken's Bird Test in Biology. We had to learn and memorize all of Oregon's native birds and be able to identify them by sight. I got 100% on the test and had a blast (I even made tens of dollars by selling a few sets of my study cards that I printed on my Pappa's big work printer.) After that class I've always had a slightly above average skill at spotting and identifying birds, and since getting into photography they have been some of my favorite subjects. Though with all of this love and appreciation I've never been able to speak with them in the same way Riley did, which is ultimately for the best, but I will continue to hear the echoes of my beloved sibling in these Portland flocks. This was a heron roost at the Port of Everett that Sam and I checked out. The best views of them are on a private lot that we couldn't access, but it was still such a cool little habitat. I have never seen so many great blue heron's at once! Sam and I watched *The Boy and the Heron,* the latest Studio Ghibli movie, when it came out in theaters in December 2023 and I was absolutely hit with so many Riley connections in the film, especially because I was still so raw in my grief. I highly recommend it and I also recommend going out and finding some herons in real life! If you're in the Portland Metro Area we have many different waterways and wetlands to see them, I give a ringing endorsement to: [Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge](https://www.fws.gov/refuge/tualatin-river?ref=brynnilsen.com), [Oaks Bottom](https://www.portland.gov/parks/oaks-bottom-wildlife-refuge?ref=brynnilsen.com), [Jackson Bottom Wetlands](https://www.jacksonbottom.org/?ref=brynnilsen.com), and [Smith and Bybee Wetlands Natural Area](https://www.oregonmetro.gov/places/smith-and-bybee-wetlands-natural-area?ref=brynnilsen.com), all as great places to see some herons. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-1.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-2.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-3.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-4.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-5.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-6.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-7.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-8.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-9.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-10.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-11.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-12.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-13.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3f/1a/3f1a5bc8-4e8b-43ec-bcfd-6e772719b80b/content/images/2026/08/Heron-Roost-at-The-Port-of-Everett-14.jpg) Thanks for checking out my photos and [subscribing](https://www.brynnilsen.com/#/portal/) to Bryn Mag! If you want any prints of my pictures email me at brynnilsen95@gmail.com with which photos you would like If you would like to hire me to take photos check out my [Portfolio](https://brynnilsenphotography.myportfolio.com/?ref=brynnilsen.com) All of my [MERCH!](https://slobcore-kitchen.printify.me/products?ref=brynnilsen.com) My [Slobcore Kitchen](https://www.youtube.com/@slobcorekitchen?ref=brynnilsen.com) cooking videos My [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/brynnilsen/?ref=brynnilsen.com) and my [Photography Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/bryn%5Fnilsen%5Fphotography/?ref=brynnilsen.com) My [Podcast](https://feeds.transistor.fm/podcore-slobcast?ref=brynnilsen.com) Ta-ta for now! -Bryn