treat for a peregrine and me

Hiked up Jocelynn yesterday and as I came out of the woods to the first rock outcrop I noticed a Peregrine falcon circling above. It rose in the thermals for a few hundred feet above me. It broke out of the circles it was making and flapped a few times to gain speed and then dove down like a bullet to just near me. I heard its wings "woosh" as it stopped abruptly, turned, and caught a small bird that was in mid flight just above the treetops. The falcon circled looking for a place to land, and decided on a branch of a tree just up the ridge from me.

I watched it for about 5 minutes as it devoured a small grey bird, not sure what it was .

it then flew to another branch

Before flying off to the east for another tidbit no doubt

Check out my other pics of peregrines at this site

Jocelynn Hill today

Hermit Thrush

I hiked up Jocelynn Hill today, took the jocelynn hill ridge trail which is about a 500 foot climb in about 10 minutes before you get to the ridgeline. from there it is an up and down trail , mostly up, to the main trail along the cliff edge. on the way an Owl flew up from an rock outcrop on the side of the trail and vamoosed into the woods nearby, it was the colour of the back of a coopers hawk , so I assume it was a Horned Owl. I think a Barred would have been quite grey, it was a little odd to see a horned out sunning itself.. Further on along the trail where a bunch of chickadees were hanging out , a Hermit Thrush twitted away.
When I arrived at the top the ravens were cavorting and carrying on back and forth over hilltop, squawking

Common Raven

alot but not finding anything to chase around, no hawks at all today.
The air was totally calm,  not a breath of wind., which is unusual for up there, the sun was out,  so it was quite balmy for a September day.


About 5 Vaux.s Swifts zoomed by heading north as well as a flock of band-tailed pigeons

Band-tailed Pigeons on the move

Saanich inlet from Jocelynn Hill

I could see a flock of Waxwings way down below where the pigeons flew but they were heading south . On the way down the hill I ran into a couple of other hikers but no Owl.