NORTHWEST WILDFOWL

About Paul and Lynn

Skiing at the top of Big Mountain, MT

        In 1995 I retired from Boeing after 32 years in Engineering and Customer Support. My waterfowl breeding hobby began when I was a young lad of 12 years, and has continued to this day, thanks to the generous help of my mom and sisters, who carried on during my time away in the Marines, and when I first moved to the Northwest from New Jersey. Once firmly established in Washington my love of hunting and fishing gradually expanded to a love of all outdoor activities, from birdwatching and mountain climbing to bicycling and downhill skiing. Photo safaris to Africa and the Amazon have become a real passion of late, and additional trips to the Arctic and Antarctic are currently in the planning stage. In recent years my early spring wildlife tours of the farm and adjacent sanctuary have become increasingly popular with the public.

        I also try to stay active in Avicultural, Environmental and Sportsmens organizations. Currently I serve on the board of The Snohomish Wetlands Alliance, a county alliance of Environmental and Sportmens interests dedicated to the protection of local wetlands. As Legislative liason for the Washington Ornamental and Game Bird Breeders organization (WOGBB), I monitor the impact of changes in legislation on aviculture in Washington. I also serve as second vice president and awards committee chair for the International Wild Waterfowl Association (IWWA) and am an associate member of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA).

        One of the luckier breaks of my life came during a month long assignment for Boeing in the Seychelles, a nation made up of about a hundred islands in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Kenya. It was here, in 1989 that I met Lynn, who was on holiday from her job as a travel agent in England. From our first date snorkeling offshore we both knew there was a special bond. It grew steadily and in 1991 during another assignment, this time in South Africa, we decided to get engaged. In 1992 we were married and have been a team ever since, sharing our love of the outdoors, sports, our birds and our travel adventures. Currently Lynn owns and manages a Travel Agency, where she keeps her eyes open for new adventures, both local and international, that we can share with our friends.  It is often possible to read about our latest wildlife trip in the adventure section of www.marysvilletravel.com.