I'd vote for marsh wren. Gene Hunn, Seattle.

At 05:01 PM 10/31/97 PST, you wrote:
>Hello tweeters.
>
>Once again I'm asking for your help with a bird ID.
>
>Last Monday, while walking the Stanley Park Seawall, in Vancouver, B.C. I
>spied a "wrennish" looking bird, hopping about on the beached logs, right
>next to the seawall. I only had one field guide with me, but the bird looked
>closest to the House Wren. I'm not sure if a House Wren is likely to be here
>at this time though. When I got home and checked out all of my guides, I
>found that they all showed the House Wren as a "summer" resident only. I
>don't know how long "summer" residents might hang around in Vancouver.
>
>The bird was small, but not so tiny as I think a Winter Wren might be. I'm
>not a very good judge of 4" or 5" of hopping bird. This little guy/gal had
>an eyestripe, but not as distinct as a Bewick's Wren looks to have. The tail
>was definately not the little stub of a Winter Wren but the colouring was
>similar. All of the photos and drawings I looked at showed the Winter Wren
>as round and pudgy. This bird was more round than slim looking. I got the
>impression that there was some rusty colouring on the tail and and rump. At
>first I thought it was some kind of dark sparrow, but then I noticed the
>sticking up tail.
>
>I watched the bird for about 5 minutes, but it was very active. Just as I
>would get it in the binos, it would jump under a log or up onto a rock or
>behind a rock......
>
>So, to make a long story short, I think I saw a House Wren, but after
>reading my guides, I have doubts about whether one would still be around at
>this time of year. What do you think?
>
>Thanks in advance for your always welcome advice.
>
>Ingrid Lae
>Vancouver, B.C.
>
>
>