contrary winds?

The surface winds and lower clouds were coming from the northeast this morning but the upper clouds were moving in the exact opposite direction -- from southeast to northeast. Even stranger was the fact that the roar of the ocean breakers, coming directly from the south, was as loud as I've ever heard it! At daybreak, a large raptor was harassing the Town Dock gulls at the foot of Bay Avenue. At first, I couldn't get any markings on this big dark bird but as it turned away from the gulls and came straight across the marsh, I could see some light marks on the back of the otherwise dark plumage. Given that the size of the bird was close to (or even larger) than the gulls, I would venture to say that this was a first-year Bald Eagle and, if so, the first of the year! All three mimids (Mockingbird, Thrasher, Catbird) are still here along with small numbers of both finches and several Blue-headed Vireos. A winter-plumaged Blackpoll was mixed in with the Yellow-rumped Warblers and there were quite a few Common Yellowthroats along the marsh edge. Eric Salzman