'Until you see it, you may not get how great it really is'
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PORTLAND, Ore. - It's a tell-tale sign that fall is just around the corner when the Vaux's Swifts start circling around Chapman School's chimney.
Every year, thousands of the small birds call the chimney home for a few weeks as they migrate from the Pacific Northwest to Central America and Venezuela.
And every year, crowds gather to watch what's been described as beautiful, magical and amazing.
"Until you see it, you may not get how great it really is," one spectator told us when we stopped by recently to get a look and talk to folks about what brings them to Chapman. "It's a great experience."
According to the Audubon Society of Portland, the swift population that shows up at Chapman School every year has been doing so since the 1980s.
The school's chimney is actually one of the largest known roosting sites for the birds.
As far as numbers, the last count that the Audubon Society of Portland did was on Tuesday, Sept. 11, and at that time there were around 14,900 swifts at the school.
Keep in mind that the numbers do vary. Here are some previous counts:
- Sunday, Sept. 9 - 12,000
- Saturday, Sept. 8 - 4,000
- Friday, Sept. 7 - 6,900
If You Go
- The swifts will be there through the month of September and are best viewed in the evenings, one hour before sunset.
- Chapman School is located at 1445 N.W. 26th Avenue.
- Parking is limited so you might think about taking a bus there instead.
- If you bring your dog, have some bags handy so you can pick up after them.
- Be sure to pick up your trash when you leave.
- Both smoking and drinking alcohol are prohibited on the school's grounds.
- For more information on watching the swifts
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wonder how many people got crapped on........
Wow, crap from 14k birds, in a smoke stack don't we all just need to see that!
Only opened this story because of the headline. Then saw it only had to do with birds going down chimneys. And this story is supposed to get me to go watch this big event? Big deal! But I'm glad someone is actually sitting out there doing a count on how many there are. I put a screen and cover on my chimney because of these little critters zooming in at dusk! Was cheaper than paying the cost of annually having the chimney cleaned because of the little darlings and their residue.Â
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I've camped out beside a lava tube entrance in the central Oregon high desert to watch the bats come out to feed at sundown, that was completely cool â I may make a trip over and watch this event!
For the folks that love bird watching, more power to ya.......
But for me bird watching is almost as much fun as watching paint dry
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I will say I am a bit curious on how ASofPÂ conducts their counts, how they sample, etc.
 @kramr They have the birds line up and go thru an interview process, similar to Ellis Island but without the statue. Then, they sign the birds up for welfare, unemployment, Oregon Health Plan, and free bikini waxing.
;)Actually, I participated in a bird count about a hundred years ago when I was a teen. I was too interested in Danny Davis, another teen, to pay really good attention.