By Sally Siko

Sound on heh heh;)
So a couple of weeks ago, I got up at 3:30 am, hit the gym for about an hour and then drove 4 hours west to Lake Julian Park in Arden NC (just outside of Asheville) in search of bird number 296 to add to my list, a Black-bellied Whistling Duck who was “hiding” in plain sight when I shot this.
That might not have the best idea as this video proves why crazy ass birders like me should probably get more sleep at the end of the year lol!

It’s also good to point out that although I’m a birding guide who takes guests all over the place to see cool birds, there ain’t no such thing as a pRofeSSioNAl biRdEr 🤪
We all miss the forest through the trees (or the lifer in the mallards) sometimes and it’s ok not to be perfect 😉