With Great Gray Owl sightings on all sides of York Region, it was not a wild stretch of the imagination to conclude there must be some in this area as well. This morning I revisited some areas around Newmarket where these birds had been seen in previous irruption years. At the last of five stops I was directed to a Great Gray Owl by several very vocal crows and blue jays. The bird was sitting on the edge of the small woodlot on the south side of the service road that leads into the Holland Landing lagoon property, about halfway between the first and second gate. Fed up with the unwanted attention, the owl took wing and lumbered its way into the much larger wooded area on the north side of the service road. I tried to relocate it by walking along the snowmobile trail that parallels the lagoon service road, but had no luck. I gave up looking at 10:00 a.m. when a convoy of noisy snowmobiles came roaring down the trail. Yesterday while running an errand near the town of Maple (Teston Road and Hwy. 400), I observed a very interesting Northern Harrier - a juvenile bird with dark axillaries and an orange body. The bird was on the east side of the highway, north of Wonderland by about three kms. The Holland Landing lagoon area is accessed by driving north of Newmarket on Yonge Street, then turning right at the stoplights at the Newmarket Inn. This is where Yonge Street leads northeast into the town of Holland Landing. By following Yonge all the way through town, you will jog east around some tall pines and pass Doane Road. The second right turn after Doane is Cedar St. (look for the wooden wagon wheels). By turning east on Cedar and following it to its end (less than 2 kms), you will come to the gate at the west end of the lagoons. Be forewarned, the service road leading straight east is fenced off and, unfortunately, the trails leading north and south of Cedar Street are monopolized by snowmobile traffic, so your birding can be pretty compromised. Newmarket is directly north of Toronto, about halfway to Barrie. Ron Fleming, Newmarket
