my favorite thing to do in portland in september is to pack a picnic dinner and some wine, and head to chapman elementary to watch the bedtime ritual of migrating vaux's swifts. hundreds of people line every available piece of lawn on the school grounds, and thousands of swifts don't disappoint, putting on an unbelievable aerial display as they prepare to dive into the chimney for the night. the crowd boos the occasional peregrine falcon or cooper's hawk, and cheers as the swirling vortex of tiny cigar-shaped birds starts its dramatic plunge, funneling into the chimney. from late august until mid-september, the swifts make this their resting place before continuing their migration south. (the school kindly does not turn on the furnace during this time.) i lived within walking distance for a few years, and would head over every late summer evening. the swifts don't seem to mind the audience - it is a very convivial scene as groups of friends chat on picnic blankets, kids slide down the hill on cardboard boxes, and soccer games go on below.
