Another Bird I've Never Seen

Great gray owl photograph by Tim Driscoll.

Our pal Tim Driscoll of Grand Forks, ND, sent me this image of a great gray owl, one he saw on a recent trip to Beltrami State Forest in NW Minnesota. This is the same place that Tim, Julie, and I, and a handful of other birders (including Patti Alleva, and Dave and Cec Lambeth) visited last June seeking life birds.

I was hoping (in June) for five possible lifers: great gray owl, Connecticut warbler (my total jinx bird for a decade), three-toed woodpecker, black-backed woodpecker, and spruce grouse. We dipped out on all five, though we heard a few CT warblers singing.

So good old Tim is "kind" enough to send me a note when he sees any of my most-wanted birds, including this lovely great gray. Last summer he sent me two notes about Connecticut warblers he'd seen.

Perhaps I am not meant to see any more birds in this lifetime.....yeah right!
I... am...fighting....the....urge....to......drive.....north.......