What a Hoot, the Owls of Coxsackie

There've been ballet slippers in Saratoga, moose in Bennington, cats in Catskill, and this year for the very first time there are owls in Coxsackie!  According to the What a Hoot website, the word Coxsackie is a Native American word that translates to 'the hoot of the owl' or 'place of the owls'. Therefore, the owl is the symbol of the village of Coxsackie.  Who besides me didn't know that?  We had the opportunity last weekend to check out the owls and wow, they are beautiful.

Like the cats of Catskill, the owls are sponsored by local businesses which helps cover the cost of the owl, art supplies, mounting hardware, etc...   In September the owls will be auctioned off at a Gala with the proceeds shared between the artists and local charities.

Out of the 52 owls in display, we found 28.  It took us more than a couple U-turns, but worth every one!  Coxsackie is one of those places, not all that far from home, that we've driven through but never visited.  A couple years ago when driving through we stopped and had lunch at Red's.  We've been talking about returning ever since so when I heard about the owls, it was an easy decision to make it a day - lunch at Red's and owl hunting afterwards.  Our wonderful server at Red's (where we found our 4th owl), gave us some tips on where to find the owls.  Considering we were new to the area, I was pretty impressed at how many we managed to find.  Since then, though, I've seen several more beauties on the What a Hoot Facebook page that we missed.  That's a good excuse for a return trip because there's a lot of beauty in the area and I've got my eye on another couple of stops I want to make - BlackHorse Farms and the Bronck Museum.  Here's a look at the collection we photographed. There are some mighty talented folks in this area!

Coxackie is located in Greene County about a half hour south of Albany.  While in town, consider visiting the Bronck Museum, a 300 year old formerly working farm.  26 reviews on Trip Advisor gave this venue 4 or 5 stars.  The museum is open Wed-Sun.  Check their website for hours. Bronk Museum Link.
I can't wait to go back and see the rest of the owls.  Their brochure will be hot off the press soon with photos of all 52 owls and a map of their location: What a Hoot Brochure Link.  Brochures will be available in about 10 days at sponsor locations and village offices.  For now though you can find the map here, and on their facebook page and website.  To follow What a Hoot on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HootoftheOwl/  You can also read more about What a Hoot, the artists, sponsors, gala and more at their website: http://hootoftheowl.com/
Thanks for visiting Life As I See It.  While you're in Coxsackie, consider traveling a little further south to Catskill where you can check out the Cat'n Around Catskill display featured in my previous post: http://www.lifeasiseeitphotography.net/2017/06/catn-around-catskill-2017-purrfectly.html  I'd like to thank my hubby, John, who not only chauffeurs me on these expeditions, stops the car and does u-turns on a dime, but also on this trip photographed many of the owls and cats.  Tomorrow will mark our 39th wedding anniversary!  No surprise why I love him and have kept him around all these years. He's a keeper!   Happy Owl Hunting!