September evenings find thousands of Portlanders picnicking on a hillside at Chapman Elementary. They’re all facing the same direction, as if expecting a performance, but the field below only reveals a smattering of kids kicking soccer balls and doing handstands. Over time, it becomes clear that what everyone is staring at is the chimney. They’re waiting for the Chapman swifts, tiny birds that gather in the sky near sunset and then dive into the chimney by the thousands. It’s like watching a massive plume of backward-traveling smoke, or (for Harry Potter fans), the tattered fragments of an obscurus.
The Chapman swifts are Vaux’s swifts, migratory birds that spend the night in chimneys and hollow trees before continuing their southward migration.
In today’s post, I’ll share the highlights of watching the Chapman swifts, and everything you need to know to watch the swifts in Portland yourself. To see this bizarre phenomenon in action, check out the video below.
Video of thousands of Chapman swifts swarming into the chimney
Watching the swifts in Portland is one of my favorites among Oregon’s weird and whimsical events, right up there with the Giant Pumpkin Regatta and the Adult Soapbox Derby. A strange feeling of instant community materializes as sunset nears and the crowd’s gaze turns as one to the chimney. Like watching a sports match, the audience gasps and cheers as the first birds begin to enter the chimney. It’s an unlikely combination, something like Audubon Society Meets Football Match.
An Evening Watching the Swifts in Portland
To break down what you’ll see at Chapman Elementary, here’s what happened the day we first went to see the swifts.
Bryan’s dad is a birding enthusiast, so I was delighted when their annual visit turned out to land in mid-September…right when the number of swifts in Portland should be peaking.
“I think we should get there really early,” I said, peering into the room where Bryan was still absorbed in a work project. I pictured not finding parking, or the swifts making an early entrance.
Sunset that night was set for 7:23 pm, so we arrived about an hour before. Miraculously, a street parking spot materialized right next to Chapman Elementary.
There were no Chapman swifts yet, but there was plenty of activity. A crowd was already gathered on the hillside above the school. A couple dozen kids were gleefully “sledding” down the dry summer grass on flattened sheets of cardboard. Still others were passing around a soccer ball, while others did cartwheels on the field. Families had spread picnic blankets on the hill, and the air was filled with the general buzz of happy conversation.
We found a spot toward the top of the hill to set up camp chairs and a picnic blanket. Bryan’s dad turned to the page on Vaux’s swifts in his birding book, binoculars at the ready. We settled in, glancing around at the sky for signs of the incoming swifts.
The Chapman swifts gathered slowly at first. The crowd’s eyes began to follow them as their numbers grew. By sunset, they had formed a veritable swarm that circled the chimney.
At 7:35 (12 minutes after sunset), the swifts started diving into the chimney. I thought they might all dive in at once, but not so. The bizarre funnel cloud of swifts continued to circle for minutes at a time, with seemingly few birds actually flying into the chimney.
The pace slowly accelerated, until all of the swifts were finally in the chimney around 7:50, 27 minutes after sunset. The crowd cheered and slowly began to disperse. But like the swifts, it took a long time before everyone had left.
How to Watch the Swifts in Portland
To view the Portland swifts at Chapman Elementary, head to the school any evening in September. Chapman Elementary is in Portland’s northwest quadrant.
Getting to the Portland Swift Watch
Street parking can be tight right around Chapman Elementary since it’s a popular event, though we were able to find it without too much trouble. A great option to avoid the congestion is to take the bus (either the 77 or the 15). The closest stop is NW Vaughn St at NW 26th Ave, and it’s a 5-minute walk from there to the school.
When Are the Swifts in Portland?
The swifts roost in the Chapman Elementary chimney in Portland every September during their southward migration. More precisely, they begin arriving the last week of August and continue through the first week or so of October.
The swift numbers begin small, and they tend to peak in the middle of September. If your timing is flexible, I’d recommend aiming for mid-September, when you’re likely to see the most birds. Here is the link to the official nightly Portland swift counts so you can see how they vary from day to day. In 2022, they peaked at an estimated 11,530 swifts on September 13. We went on September 14 and saw an estimated 9,050! As we watched the cloud of tiny birds circling overhead, I was grateful not to be the one tasked with counting them…
The Intriguing Story of the Chapman Elementary Chimney
While watching the thousands of swifts dive into the chimney, questions sprang to my mind. How could the swifts all fit in the chimney? Where would the Chapman swifts roost if there weren’t a chimney? What would happen when the heat turned on?
It turns out Vaux’s swifts naturally roost in large, hollow trees, but chimneys are suitable substitutes that are increasingly used (due to habitat loss).
The story of the Chapman Elementary chimney in particular is in itself fascinating. Per Portland Audubon, it’s no longer a working chimney (that explains how the Chapman swifts can nest in it all night!). However, for about twenty years after the swifts started roosting there, it was indeed the school’s only chimney. The school delayed turning on the heat each year until the swifts had left. That led to some cold days in the classroom!
Beginning around the year 2000, a partnership with the Audubon Society and several grant organizations raised funds that enabled upgrading the heating to a more efficient system that could use a different chimney. The swift chimney was now entirely for the birds.
The cables you can see surrounding the chimney were added shortly afterward, for earthquake safety. Those Chapman swifts have a pretty solid roosting spot! For more on the chimney’s seismic renovations, check out the building firm’s webpage on the Chapman chimney project!
Other Easy Wildlife-Watching Opportunities in the Pacific Northwest
If you enjoy watching the swifts in Portland, you may also enjoy these other easy wildlife-watching opportunities in the Pacific Northwest. Check out the links to view our blog posts for each.
In the fall, salmon swim upriver to return to the streams where they were born. At the Salmon Cascades in Olympic National Park, you can watch as salmon jump up a series of small waterfalls on the Sol Duc River. Closer to Portland, the Youngs River just below Youngs River Falls is a great place to watch salmon spawning in the fall.
Snow geese overwinter by the thousands in the Skagit Valley in Washington state. In winter, you can use the eBird smartphone app to locate huge flocks. To learn more about how to find the snow geese, check out our snow goose migration blog post above.
Roosevelt elk are the largest of the North American elk, and they’re native to the Pacific Northwest! One of the most predictable places to find them in the wild is the Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area near Reedsport, Oregon.
Tide pools provide a fascinating window into marine life. This blog post shares how to find the tide pools at one of our favorite tide pooling places on the Oregon Coast, Lincoln City.
The central Oregon coast is home to the world’s largest sea cave, which is the seasonal home of hundreds of sea lions!
Other Adventures in the Pacific Northwest
For more travel ideas in the Pacific Northwest, check out our PNW Trip Planner. You can find adventures near you and filter by season and difficulty level. There are weird and wonderful things to explore any time of year. The trip planner links to blog posts to help you plan your next adventure.
Happy exploring!
Leave a Reply