Just before new year we went for a walk at Second Beach and for lunch at Vera's Burger Shack on Denman St. Vera's do fantastic burgers, made with real meat rather than the stuff they serve up at the big chains.
While we walked around the seawall we ran into a chap with a long lens photographing the birds out on English Bay. Neither of my sons can resist talking to new people, especially if they have gadgets, and this was no exception - my elder son immediately struck up a conversation. He and his wife were long-time Vancouverites and are hard-core lovers of Stanley Park. He is in the process of building a web site about the natural history of Stanley Park and we spent a wonderful half hour chatting and wandering with him and his wife. They were wonderful with the boys and told them all sorts of interesting things about the beach and the birds we could see around us. It's great to live in a place where you can bump into people like that who will give their time so freely.
So Elder took this photo of the birds that our friend was looking at - not bad for a beginner! They are Surf Scoters and they gather in English Bay (and no doubt many of the other coastal wetlands of the Pacific Northwest) in late Autumn every year.