Before our current road system, water travel was a ready way to get around on the Olympic Peninsula and trade also took to the water. Remnants of old piers have been removed, including one at Port Williams. This one, at the end of Sequim-Dungeness Road, reached into Dungeness Bay and served water traffic between the Olympic Peninsula and the New Dungeness Light Station. These days seagulls find them a convenient perch.
We had a nice little dusting of snow yesterday. It fell steadily during my walk to the Dungeness bluffs, where I saw this eagle taking in the sights. No zoom lens. Falling snow. But I find eagles exciting enough that I’ll take the shots I can get.
We’ve had an uncommon treat on the Olympic Peninsula lately: snowy owl sightings. According to the Peninsula Daily News and the Dungeness River Audubon Center, snowy owls migrate from the Arctic to Washington state every three to seven years. This is the result of a good feeding year in which many young owls survive to migrate south in search of food. Click the link above for more information from Wikipedia.
The first of these owls were sighted at the Dungeness Spit. These spectacular shots were taken by our friend Miriam and her daughter Tami last month during a stay at the New Dungeness Light Station. They were gracious enough to share them with Sequim Daily Photo.
Snowy owls have a wingspan up to 52 inches and look quite large but an adult weighs only about 4 pounds. The size/weight illusion is due to lots of feathers and hollow bones.
Unlike more familiar owls, snowy owls will hunt in daylight. We saw a snowy on the wing during walks in the Dungeness Recreation Area on both Friday and Saturday at dusk. Their large wingspan and bright white feathers make them readily identifiable — and an exciting sight. Owl sightings are a rare treat for daytime walkers.
This was a long, slow yawn that Tami caught. “I’m so bored with all these paparazzi!” Tami’s two shots are the close-ups; Miriam took the two shots of the owl on its perch. I’m so grateful for their willingness to share!
You may have noticed the scaffolding on the lighthouse above. It was used during replacement of the vent ball at the top of the lighthouse in December. A new 200-pound specially cast brass ball was purchased by the New Dungeness Lighthouse Association and hoisted to its spot in the peak of the tower by members of the U.S. Coast Guard.
Happy New Year! Today’s City Photo Theme Day topic is “Photo of the Year 2011.” Because the Sequim Daily Photo has had two bloggers this year, Shannon and me (Kay), you get two favorite photos from 2011.
The top one is mine, a moonrise over Dungeness Bay. It captured for me the mood and colors of a perfect summer evening.
Shannon let me choose which of hers was my favorite in 2011. This one immediately came to mind. I rocked back in my chair with an “Oh, wow!” when it came up on my screen the first time. I still think it’s stunning.
I think that together Shannon and my photos capture some of the beauty that I love so much in Sequim. I hope you enjoy them.
Yesterday’s mallard post made me long to see a ducks in a more natural environment. Here’s one I saw recently in the Sequim Water Reuse Park. He swam and dove, nice duckish activities.
And here’s another guy in a pond at Carrie Blake Park. He had a lot to say. I think it mostly had to do with my disturbing his nap. He definitely looks different from the mallard above. As far as I can tell, I think this guy may be a greater scaup. But I’m just pawing through a bird book and I’m happy to stand corrected by anyone with better birding skills.
Update: I stand corrected. Both ducks are male mallards. Thank you, Paul from Powell River Photo Blog!
I pulled into a parking lot recently only to find it full of ducks, mallards, who were clearly making themselves at home. It was a mystery until I pulled back and looked a little further.
Then I remembered that I’ve seen pans of food left near Del’s Feed and noticed a well-picked-over spot on the pavement where lunch had been.
Here are more seagulls on the wing. They’re doing fly-bys as a man on the bluff throws bread, which they catch midair. I like the play of light and shadow.
People here regularly throw bread to the seagulls. Gulls are world class scavengers and I doubt that they would go hungry without handouts. But I’m not sure human bread constitutes a healthy diet.
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