Feb 2023 - Snowies in Rudyard

 

February found ShelleyJean and I flocked to the Upper Peninsula because we heard the Snowies were in town!

The snowy owl, also known as the polar owl, the white owl and the Arctic owl, is a large, white owl of the true owl family. Snowy owls are native to the Arctic regions of both North America and the Palearctic, breeding mostly on the tundra. Wikipedia

And they will Winter in Michigan! Bags packed for the weekend, we headed to Rudyard, Michigan, the "Snowy Owl Capital".

Our first Snowy!

Lucky for us, ShelleyJean has done her research. They like high places and farm equipment and we quickly found our first one on South Centerline Road. So beautiful, but also so hard to photograph the white on white. 

We pulled off the side of the road, behind other idling cars. Rolling down the windows to take photos into the wind with the ice pellets stinging our fingers. What fun!

Rudyard had just hung new Snowy Owl signs on all roads leading into town. We stopped and snapped pics at each one. The snow was so deep and so cold!

We were also lucky on South Hantz Road, too. Anytime we saw cars pulled off the road we pulled out our binoculars to catch a glimpse of those amazing eyes. Our cameras were not completely up to task, but, even blurry, the owls are still beautiful!

Finally, time was up in Rudyard so we headed to Whitefish Point. This was a sweet little park roadside. Again, no camera was able to capture this stunning landscape. 

Whitefish Point was deserted and almost snowbound. The snow was too deep for the Adventure Labs and birding so we'll have to come back another time. Sitting on the boardwalk, looking out at Lake Superior, your heart goes out to the poor sailors who lost their lives in these brutal waters. 

Time to head home, but Mackinaw City has new Adventure Labs so we detoured there for pasties and smilies. So much fun taking pictures at the Mighty Mac! I've never been here in Winter. 

ShelleyJean

Such a memorable experience, and I don't think we appreciate Michigan enough in the snow. 

Our bird count for the weekend 

12 Hawks

30 Turkeys

1 Deer

2 Eagles

7 Snowy Owls!