 |
| Snowy Owl At Presqu’ile Provincial Park |
I know most people aren’t going to resonate with this, but I wish it would just snow already! It is winter time after all (and almost Christmas I might add) and I’ve been looking forward to some fun in the snow. With the weather we’ve been getting lately, it’s been too easy to sit in front of the computer instead of getting out to take pictures, but when I heard about the snowy owls at Presqu’ile Provincial Park, I had to go check them out.
So on Monday morning I packed up my gear and hit the road intent on seeing some owls. I had heard that the water was low enough to walk out to Gull Island (where the owls are hanging out) with proper boots, but I figured I’d just walk out to the point to see what I could find. When I arrived at the park I headed out on the walking path with determination… that is until I neared the end of the path and found a sign that said “NO ACCESS MONDAY WEDNESDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY”. Now, as many photographers will tell you, from time to time fences get hopped over, warnings discarded, and signs ignored in pursuit of a photograph. In that vein I decided to continue a little to see what the reason for the sign could be, then it hit me… hunting season. When I came across the second sign confirming my suspicion, I decided no photo adventure was worth getting shot over and turned around.
On my way back down the trail, I decided to see what I could see from the nearby lookout. Sure enough, I could spot several hunters in boats as well as a bunch of hunting blinds. I guess some signs should not be ignored! I took out my camera and scanned the area to see if I could spot an owl from the lookout. After several gull sightings, I noticed something much larger coming in for a landing. I took the photo below and zoomed in and found not one, but two owls just sitting on the beach… the beach that I couldn’t get to! I’ve enlarged one of them in the image below, the other is about center frame sitting on a log next to the blind.
 |
| Snowy Owl At Presqu’ile Provincial Park |
I hung around for a little while in hopes that one of the owls may come closer, but finally gave up and headed home for the day. I was a little ticked that I couldn’t get out to the island to see the owls, but then again I wasn’t prepared for the trip that day anyway.
So on Tuesday morning I loaded up again, this time with my trusty green Vulcan boots (which have been with me for over 20 years!) and bright red rain coat (just in case!). They’re not much for walking in or looking at, but my Vulcans kept me warm and dry! The day before the water was smooth and calm, but not this day. So it took me a few minutes to find a way through the waves without getting water in my boots and the current was strong enough that one small slip could have seen me going for a swim.
When I got to the island, I came across a group doing some sort of research. They also had a scope and were tracking the owls and pointed out a few to me. Of course they were all on different islands. Too far to see with the naked eye.
I continued along the coast hoping to spot something but had no luck, so Instead I sat on the beach for a while to take some long exposure photos of waves over the rocks. Luckily my bag was also stocked with snacks for those times I have my son in tow.
When I first started taking photos, the rocks you see in the above photo were much more visible. When I realized this, a moment of panic came over me where I wondered if I was going to make it back to my car with dry feet, so I packed up and headed back. Then I saw this.
I used my photographer ninja skills to slowly approach the owl. He kept a close eye on me, but let me get within 50ft or so before taking off. That’s when I realized that I was actually interrupting his lunch. If you look closely at the photo at the top of this post, or the one below you can see he was snacking on something!
With that (and the impending rain) I started back towards the mainland when I noticed some very cool ice formations not far from shore. With the warmer weather and rain, the ice that had formed in the channel was melting fast so I quickly setup my trusty Gorillapod… in the water… with waves hitting it… and melting ice all around… at this point I was really wishing I had brought along my full sized tripod. Add this to the list of things I’ll do to get a shot.
To give you an idea of how fast conditions were changing, these two photos are of the exact same piece of ice taken within minutes of each other. The one below was taken first and you can still see the rocks and sandy bottom. By the time I took the second shot above, water levels had risen significantly and just seconds after I took the shot the entire piece of ice fell apart to nothing.
By this time, the rain had really started. My gear was getting soaked (despite my attempt at using the little umbrella I’d packed) so I got back to my car as fast as my Vulcans would carry me.
43.9963468-77.7280396
