Is it nesting? Senile? Out for revenge? Puyallup warns of owl encounters on popular trail
The Clark’s Creek Loop Trail in Puyallup is Cynthia Woolbright’s sanctuary.
The 44-year-old South Hill resident walks the 4-mile trail two or three times a week in the summer, she said, to the point that she almost does it on auto-pilot. With the shorter days this time of year, she found herself on the trail near dusk Nov. 30.
She had a choice: Finish one of the last parts of the loop, through the Silver Creek Riparian Zone near 11th Street Southwest and 12th Avenue Southwest, or bypass it by exiting to a nearby street. It was pretty dark, but she was determined to do the whole loop.
“I should have known not to hike that close to dusk,” she said.
As she walked on, she felt something smack her in the back of the head, and thought it was a person, until she saw an owl. The bird grabbed her bun and pulled straight up, she said, trying to lift her off her feet. The force threw her forward.
She’d seen little owls and tiny hawks along the trail, but this owl was bigger, she said. She took out her phone to get a photo, then thought better. Her experience as a bearded dragon lizard owner taught her that some creatures are attracted to shiny things.
“I realized, wait a minute, the owl is very much watching me, and I kind of had a moment of: ‘Oh, no, it’s hunting me. It’s still very much mad at me,’” she said.
She put her phone away and started to leave. The bird swooped her again.
“It just wanted to get me,” she said.
It swooped her about four more times as she left the woods and grabbed her on several of those dives, she said. She wasn’t injured.
“It was fiercely determined to make sure that I knew I was not welcome there,” Woolbright said.
She eventually broke into a run, swung her backpack and yelled. It followed her onto the street when she exited the trail before eventually returning to the woods.
“The whole time I’m going: ‘No, I love wildlife. I don’t want to hurt you,’” she said.
Woolbright wants to be very clear: She does not blame the owl, and she does not want any wildlife agency to take action against it.
“I don’t want someone to come in and decide to bring the exterminators,” she said. “It’s their area. They have every right to be there.”
She wonders if it was a barred owl, based on her research, but isn’t sure.
“I’d have to see a lineup,” she said.
What caused the owl to attack?
City spokesperson Eric Johnson connected The News Tribune with Woolbright and said that the city appreciates her reporting the encounter. It’s not the only one in the past month or so.
“We had a few owl sightings along the trail, so we put up signs to alert hikers about them and also some things they can do if they encounter one,” Johnson told The News Tribune in an email Tuesday. “The sightings appear to happen in the early morning hours and at dusk. We believe there is a nest somewhere along the trail. Owl sightings are pretty rare in this area, although they do happen. We’ve contacted Fish and Wildlife about investigating, and we’ll let you know if we hear anything from them.”
As for what provoked the owl, Woolbright said it makes sense that it might have been protecting a nest.
“That explains it,” she said. “I’m a mom, too. If anyone was coming near my babies, I’d come at them.”
Or maybe it was going after her pink hair tie, she said. The rest of her clothing that day was dark.
Then there’s the longtime neighbor who lives near the trail, who told her the owl has lived there peacefully for years, and that it swooped another woman. His theory is that the bird is getting senile, or that someone messed with it and it’s out for revenge.
Whatever prompted the bird’s attack, Woolbright’s takeaway is to be in awe of the critters along the trail.
“I’m grateful that there’s so much wildlife able to be in Puyallup,” she said.
She saw a blue heron flying with something in its mouth at the end of her walk that day.
Another reminder from the encounter, she said, is to avoid the trail after dark. She’s still a little spooked when she visits but feels safer when there’s daylight.
“It was Mother Nature reminding me to respect her sleeping hours and her preferences,” she said.
She and her family laugh about it now.
“I’ve recently gotten into astrology and looking for symbolism in nature,” she explained. “And to get grabbed by an owl — that’s one way to end the year.”
