3 Best Sights in Mount Vernon, Washington Cascade Mountains and Valleys

At this serene 8,000-acre wildlife preserve adjacent to Bayview State Park, the Breazeale Interpretive Center has great birding: there are black Brant (or Brent) geese, peregrine falcons, and bald eagles. Trails lead to an observation deck, into the woods, and to a rocky beach with more good bird-watching opportunities. This is also a popular place for kayaking.

Adjoining the small waterfront community of the same name, this scenic 25-acre park has a campground with cabins in the woods and picnic tables on the low grassy bluff above Padilla Bay, a national estaurine sanctuary. Canoers and kayakers take note: Padilla Bay runs almost dry at low tide, when water is restricted to a few creeklike tidal channels.

Atop the eponymous mountain at the southeastern edge of town, this 522-acre park, which rises to nearly 1,000 feet above sea level, has great views of the Skagit Valley (especially in March and April, when the daffodils and tulips are in full bloom), the San Juan Islands, Mount Baker, and the distant Olympic Mountains. It's a lovely spot for a picnic.