I know we don't need any more owl photos; I blame all previous reporters for my desire to "join the club." For this very special opportunity today, there were not only people from across the state, but also a couple from California.

Shorebirds, eagles, hawks, loon, bufflehead and merganser were completely ignored and upstaged by the true stars, and like paparazzi at the Oscars, the photographers staked out their favorites among these remaining six. I was impressed with the respectful behavior of all of the several dozen visitors and the birds were consequently unstressed. We saw no hunting behavior until a heightened vigilance at dusk, when the rodents are starting to become active and the humans are vacating the premises.

The many beautiful photos of the Snowy Owls on the recent WTA trip reports were an inspiration to make the trip to the park and hope to see the snow-white birds in person. Six owls were seen today with one that surprised and delighted spectators with a spectacular display in flight showing its grace and expansive wing span.

Not knowing anything about the Snowy Owl, it was time to do a little research. Owl experts are reporting that the Snowy Owl from the Arctic is on a mass southern migration, farther south than normal, known as an irruption this winter. The Snowy Owl's diet consists of lemmings and experts believe there was a plentiful supply of lemmings last season which resulted in an increase in the owl population this year. Therefore, competition for food is greater and owls need to migrate farther south to survive.

No signs were seen for Damon Point State Park, which is located at the intersecion of Marine View Drive and Protection Island Road SE, but you knew you had arrived with the many cars parked on each side of Marine View Drive. It seems the word has spread fast about the owl sightings at this location as a new sign is posted in the park reminding visitors to not disturb the owls and to stay 150 feet away from the owls.

Today was a fun adventure searching with anticipation to get a glimpse of the Snowy Owl. How wonderful it was to see these beautiful owls in their natural habitat. If you enjoy birds, love the ocean and beach, move this hike up to the top of your list as a "must do" hike.

We had camped at Ocean City SP Friday and Saturday nights so we met our son and his family at Damon Point this AM to again view the beauty of the snowy owls on a cloudy but balmy day--a pleasant change from yesterday's wind and rain! There was even some blue in the sky! Because of the pleasant weather there were many more people today. Our 5 and 7 year old grandsons enjoyed the owl sightings and playing along the beach on the logs, fallen trees, and rocks.
 

We arrived at the parking area about 10:00 AM. The weather was windy and rainy and we were discussing whether we should wait awhile to see if the weather improved. The couple who were parked beside us returned to their car at this point and told us we had just missed Art Wolfe who had told them to protect their camera gear by not hiking. We decided to wait awhile in hopes the weather would improve. We returned again about 1:00. There seemed to be less rain and wind so we dressed appropriately and began our walk. In about 1 mile we saw our first owls. As one lady told me, "This is less than ideal conditions, but it's still great to see the owls!". We probably saw 5 although it was hard to tell as they flew often seemingly spooked by some people getting too close. On our return to the truck we saw thousands of shore birds along the water of Grays Harbor.