07/14/2026
🦉📸 The Great Barred Owl Stakeout of Des Moines Creek 🌲✨
Under a brilliant blue sky ☀️, the morning air along the Des Moines Creek trail was already warming up, making it the absolute perfect day for a photo expedition 🎒📷. With the golden sunshine piercing through the lush canopy of Douglas firs and maples 🍁, my fellow photog, Joby, and I were on a mission. Our target? The elusive, beautifully camouflaged Barred Owls 🦉.
🔍 The Hunt
Walking the paved path, we kept our eyes peeled 👀, scanning the tangled cedar branches as the climbing temperatures brought the forest to life 🌡️🌿. Photographing owls is half skill and half stubborn patience, and Joby and I brought plenty of both 🤝. The bright sunlight created patches of high contrast through the leaves, so every snapped twig or shifting shadow had us both stopping, holding our breath, and raising our glass 🔭🤫.
For the first mile, it was just the usual suspects—noisy jays and squirrels enjoying the sunshine 🐿️☀️. But we both knew the terrain. We kept our ears tuned for the telltale “who-cooks-for-you” call 🎶, tracking the deeper, cooler shadows along the ravine.
😲 The Sighting
Then, Joby tapped my shoulder. Total silence 🤐. A pointed finger directed my gaze up into the crook of a massive, moss-draped maple that offered a bit of shade 🌳.
There they were. 🤩
Perched quietly above the trail was a magnificent adult Barred Owl 🦉, its rich brown and white streaked plumage glowing where the sunlight caught it ✨. And just a few branches over, the absolute prize: a fluffy, wide-eyed juvenile, looking like a little toasted marshmallow with a beak, trying to beat the morning heat 🥺🔥.
💦📸 The Money Shot
As the day grew even warmer, the owls decided they had the exact same idea we would: time to cool off 🧊. The adult dropped silently from the branch, gliding down the embankment toward the water, with the juvenile clumsily fluttering right behind 🪶. Joby and I scrambled—moving quickly but silently 🥷—getting down low to the edge of the creek bed to set up our angles 📐.
Right there, in the shallow, babbling water of Des Moines Creek, the owls waded in to escape the heat 🌊. The adult dipped its head, shaking its wings to kick up a spray of water for a refreshing morning rinse 🚿. The juvenile mimicked the movement, splashing awkwardly and ruffling its downy feathers 🐥💦.
Click. Click. Click-click-click. 📸⚡
Our shutters fired in rapid succession. I nailed the exposure, freezing the iridescent water droplets mid-air as they sparkled in the bright sun 💧☀️, capturing the raw, wild beauty of the owls taking their bath.
Lowering our cameras, Joby and I just looked at each other with those massive, knowing grins that only wildlife photographers get 😁🙌. We didn't just find the owls—we captured a perfect, hidden moment in the creek on a gorgeous, sunny Pacific Northwest morning 🌲🏔️💚.
Photos © 2026 David Rosen/SlickPix photography
