The brightest light in the night sky this month will be 2017’s only supermoon, on Dec. 3 weather permitting. That’s when the “Moon Before Yule,” as it was once called, will be closest to Earth, so it will look larger, brighter and bring unusually high tides.
Unfortunately, the day with the fewest hours of sunlight is also near: the winter solstice on Dec. 21, when temperatures start dropping.
Point No Point lights up. The holiday lights around the lighthouse will be turned on every night from Dec. 1 through Jan. 7, and the park hours extended to 10 p.m. — a beautiful sight, so plan a family outing or a romantic walk on the beach, weather permitting.
Christmas for kids. Santa will arrive on a big red North Kitsap Fire & Rescue truck with a sack full of gifts Dec. 14 for the Greater Hansville Community Center’s annual Children’s Christmas Party. There will be treats and entertainment from the “Puppet Please Marionettes,” a mother-daughter team, Shirley and Terry McManus, who build their own marionettes. They love audience participation, and Santa loves posing for photos with the kids. Festivities begin at 7 p.m. at GHCC on Buck Lake Road.
Eglon Schoolhouse fete. Built in 1922, Eglon’s Historical Schoolhouse was in use until Wolfle Elementary opened in 1951. Today, it’s a community meeting place and, on Dec. 2, residents will host their annual Holiday Sale, which helps support scholarships for local students. There will be handmade wooden ornaments, driftwood wreaths and other holiday décor, plus pies, cookies, fresh baked bread and hot cinnamon rolls. From 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., 33777 Eglon Road NE.
Census for the birds. The Audubon Christmas Bird Count began in 1900 as an alternative to a holiday tradition known as the “side hunt,” in which teams of men competed to see which could kill the most birds in a day. Fearing this mass slaughter was driving some species toward extinction, the Christmas Bird Count was started by ornithologist Frank Chapman to gather data on population trends and shifting ranges to help conservationists.
There hasn’t been a Christmas Bird Count in Hansville for about 40 years, but the Kitsap Audubon’s count on Dec. 30 will encompass all of Kitsap County north of Liberty Bay. The Hansville team will count the number and species of birds observed at Point No Point, Norwegian Point, Buck Lake and the Hansville Greenway, and they’re looking for volunteers — no experience necessary. A training session is scheduled for 9 a.m. Dec. 9 at Point No Point Park.
Our team leader, Audubon’s Al Westphal, says, “We’re likely to find many varieties of seabirds, including grebes, loon, possibly 100 or even 1,000 Bonaparte’s gulls, also pigeon guillemots, rhinoceros auklets, marbled murrelets, geese and sea ducks. On the landward side, there may be wintering sparrows, finches and marsh birds, such as great blue herons and wigeons.”
As Yogi Berra pointed out, “You can see a lot by just looking.”
My husband and I have been on field trips led by Westphal, a very sharp-eyed and patient guide, and although we’ve never counted birds before, we’ll give it a try. Hope to see you there.
— Annette Wright was an editor and writer for women’s magazines in New York City for 25 years. You can contact her at wrightannette511@gmail.com
