Snow Geese on Fir Island in Skagit Valley
This week's Photohunt theme is Bird(s). I knew right off what photos I would be using.
Just north of Seattle is the fertile delta of the Skagit River. Every winter from November through March, the skies are filled with Snow Geese over wintering from the Arctic. We love to drive up to Conway and cruise the country roads of Fir Island. In the summer, many farmers grow corn. The stalks are cut and the stubble is left in the fields over winter. The geese love these fields.
I am always amazed to see the noisy flocks swirling and covering the dark fertile soil like snow. Over the years we have seen the flocks grow and grow. They used to be hard to see - always in the distance but recently they have become more brazen and we have found huge flocks along the main highways.
We drove up to Mt Vernon two weeks ago. On the way home, we drove though Fir Island. The birds have arrived for their winter retreat.
Here are some more pictures that I took in 2008. Here is the post of that day.
In the field
Flock on the move
Grabbing a bite
Attracting a crowd
Comments (17)
Love the photos ... Looks like you got *really* close to them!
Posted by colleen | November 20, 2009 9:16 PM
Posted on November 20, 2009 21:16
WOW! Great photos of birds! And to allow people to stay really close to them... amazing.
Posted by Eden | November 21, 2009 1:09 AM
Posted on November 21, 2009 01:09
LOVE the endless sea of birds feel in the first shot! Great photos!
Posted by Tomara | November 21, 2009 8:08 AM
Posted on November 21, 2009 08:08
Stunning shots, Marta!
Posted by candi | November 21, 2009 9:09 AM
Posted on November 21, 2009 09:09
They look like snow . . . nature's perfection.
Posted by Lisa | November 21, 2009 9:39 AM
Posted on November 21, 2009 09:39
That's cool! I really liked those pics, I think it would have been fun to be there. Keep up the good work and thanks for visiting my site. Feel free to come back often.
Scott
Posted by Bull Rhino | November 21, 2009 10:43 AM
Posted on November 21, 2009 10:43
Fantastic! I especially love the one with some of them flying. Wow.
Posted by azahar | November 21, 2009 12:17 PM
Posted on November 21, 2009 12:17
So amazing. The top one almost looks like a painting.
Posted by Susanne | November 21, 2009 12:28 PM
Posted on November 21, 2009 12:28
Now that's a gaggle! m
Posted by menehune | November 21, 2009 2:13 PM
Posted on November 21, 2009 14:13
Oh Marta, those are AMAZING! Very cool photos!
Posted by Palma | November 21, 2009 4:11 PM
Posted on November 21, 2009 16:11
What an amazing sight to see so many of them at one time. Your photos are wonderful.
I'm so glad our blogs were fixed in time for this photohunt (I love birds!)
Posted by Annie | November 21, 2009 4:38 PM
Posted on November 21, 2009 16:38
Thanks everyone. It was an amazing day.
I am also soooo glad our blogs got fixed in time for this week's Photohunt.
Posted by Marta | November 21, 2009 5:14 PM
Posted on November 21, 2009 17:14
Now that is a lot of birds!! Very cool photos. Must have been amazing to see them in person.
I am also glad that the blogs are fixed. Had my photos saved for a while for this post week's post also :)
Posted by girasoli | November 21, 2009 7:28 PM
Posted on November 21, 2009 19:28
That's a lot of geese! We have Canada geese that winter in the fields near us.
Posted by Lew | November 21, 2009 8:38 PM
Posted on November 21, 2009 20:38
Marta, this was by far my favorite photo hunt posting this week! The flock on the move photo is amazing!
Posted by Deborah | November 22, 2009 8:17 AM
Posted on November 22, 2009 08:17
Wow. And I thought our Canadian geese were out of control. Impressive shots!
Posted by Vicki | November 22, 2009 8:58 AM
Posted on November 22, 2009 08:58
Great shots, Marta! What an amazing sight to see so many snow geese.
Posted by Maria I. | November 22, 2009 6:34 PM
Posted on November 22, 2009 18:34