Be Bird Wise is back for the 2025-2026 Fall and Winter seasons! Be Bird Wise is an informational initiative of Skagitonians to Preserve Farmland and its agency and organizational partners across Skagit County to inform the public about the dynamic relationship between the working landscape and the wild birds that congregate here every year. This month we are talking with John Orestad, a local duck hunter who grew up in Skagit Valley, resides in Burlington, and hunts in Edison, where he is also part of a hunt club. John is a lifelong Skagitonian and shares his observations of change across the landscape and in his beloved pastime of hunting waterfowl. Read his story here! Photo by Victoria Roberts. https://www.bebirdwise.org/blog/bird-wise-observations-duck-hunter-john-orestad #bebirdwiseskagit #skagit #skagitvalley #skagitcounty (fb)

Edith Walden of Willowrose Bay Farm is our featured farmer in our Meet the Farmer post this month. Not only does Edith grow a highly specialized crop in the quince she is known for, she is also one of the last remaining working farms on Guemes Island, reachable only by ferry from Anacortes. Willowrose Bay Farm faces challenges unique to island-based ag--that of reduced access to infrastructure, increased transportation costs, and rising cost of land. Read more at our website (link in our bio), and join our mailing list to stay informed of other farmer neighbors whose stories are just as compelling: https://www.skagitonians.org/blog/willow-bay-farm-odd-fruit #skagitcounty #skagit #guemesisland #quince (fb)