Hello all... It's my first post here.

My girlfriend and I went up to Stanwood to see if we could find the Snowy Owl off Eide rd. It didn't take long to see a lovely snowy in the driftwood about 200 yards down from the end of the road and over the dike. Many thanks to the owl for sitting there patiently until we were threw gazing. Short Eared Owls, Harrier and a variety of other birds seem to be extra willing to pose just right for us.... " wouldn't it be nice if that owl stopped and perched on that stick right there for us"....... 30 seconds later, Thanks owl with the short ears!

We did have one very unpleasant event happen. While I was standing on the dike at the far end of the sandbags/ dike reinforcement watching a lone male Bufflehead on the water, we were shot at. A hunter walking on the opposite bank shot the Bufflehead while i was looking at it. While this was unpleasant enough, the duck was between us (4 birders at the time) and the hunter. So to shoot the duck he shot right at us. The sound of pellets hitting the sand bags and brush around us was not exactly comforting. I yelled at him and he said he yelled back... Sorry. No one was hit but just as easily could have been. His dog swam out and fetched the Bufflehead..... A duck that in my understanding is nearly inedible.

There was an English gentleman it the receiving end of the shot as well who will no doubt get a good 'combat birding in the US' story out of this.

The things you have to put up with to see an owl......

Bill Cirino.... Seattle.