Smoke 'em if you got 'em: Harbor Seal

Showing posts with label Harbor Seal. Show all posts

Monday, November 27, 2017

Thanksgiving 2017: The Oregon Coast

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

It was unusually warm when we woke up Tuesday morning at our campsite in Jedediah Smith State Park. It had rained steadily until the wee hours of the morning, so we slept in the car rather than in our tent. I prefer the tent because there's more room. Pongo's a bit of a bed hog. The car is nicer for bad weather, though. It's very comfortable when it's just me but get's a little tight with me and the dog and all of our camping gear. Plus, I packed too much stuff for this trip. I need to weed some stuff out before the next road trip. Anyway, it was so warm that morning I was in short sleeves all the way up to Bandon, OR.

Smith River, Jedediah Smith State Park, CA

The campgrounds at Jedediah Smith State Park are fantastic. The site is in the middle of a redwood forest along the banks of the Smith River. A number of the campsite look right out onto the river. I prefer the ones across the road from those which are under some really big trees. It makes for a dramatic place to wake up in the morning.

Jedediah Smith State Park, CA

We drove up North to Pistol River in Oregon where we stopped for a walk on the beach and dunes. Pongo particularly liked the dunes, where he could poke his head around dunes and tall grass looking for little critters. We didn't find any. It reminded me of his adventures at Goblin Valley in Utah, where he had great fun sneaking around the sandstone structures.

Pistol River State Scenic Viewpoint, OR

Harbor Seal -- Pistol River State Scenic Viewpoint, OR

Pistol River State Scenic Viewpoint, OR

We made our obligatory stop at Gold Beach to photograph the sunken tugboat in the Rogue River. I never miss that opportunity.

Rogue River, Gold Beach, OR

Prehistoric Gardens, Port Orford, OR

We took a short detour in Bandon, mostly because I had to go to the bathroom. It took us out to the Coquille Lighthouse, which was pretty cool. The thing with driving up the Oregon Coast on 101 isn't the Oregon Coast itself. The highway actually spends a lot more time out of sight of the ocean than within it. It's the rivers. A hundred miles or more can be driven on the California coastline without crossing a major river. In Oregon, they come one after the other. The rivers and the bays make the drive up the Oregon coast the unique drive that it is. There are more spectacular coastlines. My dad would probably argue that point, but IMO California and Washington both have Oregon licked in that regard. It's the preponderance of big rivers that makes Oregon unique on the American West Coast. I don't know any other coastline, so I can't speak in more general terms.

Bullards Bridge, Coquille River, Bandon, OR

Coquille River, Bandon, OR

Coquille Lighthouse, Bandon, OR

It rained for the rest of the drive up the coastline. We were going to camp if the weather permitted. It didn't. So, at Lincoln City we cut over to Salem and had a nice dinner with my parents before settling in to a nice warm bed for the night. Well, more of a mat on the floor of my sister's old bedroom. Close enough. I actually sleep very well on that mat. So does Pongo.

Steller Sea Lion -- Sea Lion Caves, Florence, OR

Heceta Head Lighthouse, Florence, OR

Soundtrack:

Elvis Costello -- The Man
Ryan Adams -- Heartbreaker
Sonic Youth -- Murray Street
Loretta Lynn -- Van Lear Rose
Erykah Badhu -- New Amerykah Part One (4th World War)
LCD Soundsystem -- This Is Happening

Sunday, August 16, 2015

Monterey

Plan B

August 15, 2015

August can be a good time for whale watching in California, so that was my plan for Saturday. I drove down to Monterey to see if I could get onto a late afternoon excursion. If not, I'd still be able to hang out down there and possibly see some whales from the shore.

Monterey, CA

Fish Jumping

All of the afternoon whale excursions were cancelled on Saturday due to high winds. I decided I'd drive up around Point Pinos and then maybe head down South. It was very hot and I thought about going for a swim before heading out, but I thought better of it after thinking how I'd feel in wet shorts for the rest of the afternoon.

Harbor Seal -- Monterey, CA

I'd parked on the pier at Fisherman's Wharf. A lot of folks were out fishing and they were having a field day hauling in mackerel. There were a couple of seals below the pier who were acting lively. I thought they were just having fun with all the good fishing. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. They had both been hooked by fishing lines. Pretty sad sight. I didn't actually know this until I got home and looked at the photos. It's obvious in the pictures what's happening, but they were moving so much I didn't get a good look at what was going on. I'm sure the fisherman just consider them pests and were probably annoyed that the seals fouled up their lines. It's not an uncommon sight to see seals and sea lions with lines or wires stuck around their necks. I suspect this isn't too uncommon of an injury as well. It's unfortunate that so many interactions between men and wildlife end with death or injury for the animals, especially senseless stuff like this.

Harbor Seal -- Monterey, CA

A sea lion a little way out from the pier was having a better time of it. He/she was leaping around, often with a fish in mouth. The sea lion seemed to be doing as well as the fishermen on the pier. It was a pretty good day for everyone without a hook in their mouth.

Sea Lion -- Monterey, CA

I headed to Pacific Grove next to see if I could spot any whales or dolphins from the shore. I wasn't expecting to see anything, but I have been lucky on occasion.

Pacific Grove, CA

I did end up getting lucky with the whales. I spotted two not too far from shore.

Humpback Whale -- Pacific Grove, CA

Point Pinos can usually be counted on for a few good shots. Between the rocks and the ocean and the lighthouse there's usually something worth shooting.

Point Pinos Lighthouse, Pacific Grove, CA

Point Pinos Lighthouse

These pictures are all a bit hazy. It was like this all over yesterday, in San Francisco and San Jose and even in Pacific Grove and places South. The speculation I heard is that it was smoke from wildfires. Could be, it's definitely not the normal fog for the area. It looked more like smog, but we don't get a whole lot of smog. All of the Bay Area's foul air blows into the Central Valley where folks in places like Modesto get to choke on it. I'm sure it works similarly for the Monterey area.

Garrapata State Park, CA

I decided to drive South and look for good spots for pictures until I ran out of light. My first stop was Garrapata, where I hiked a short distance out to the edge of the cliffs.

Garrapata State Park, CA

A woman asked me where she could find find a good spot to watch the sunset. I told her just drive until you find a spot you like, there's something amazing around every turn of this highway. I don't think I was exaggerating. Plus, I'm not a big sunset guy, so I'm not really sure what constitutes a good place to watch a sunset. I've got sunset pictures coming up from this trip, mind you, but I'm opportunistic in that regard. I enjoy a good sunset if it smacks me in the face.

Rocky Point, CA

I made it as far South as the Rocky Point Restaurant, which is about ten miles South of Carmel. The views are amazing, and it was a warm night so I decided to have a beer and watch the sunset from their porch. I guess I could have sent the ladies here, it turned out to be a nice location with comfortable seats facing the ocean.

Rocky Point, CA

That's pretty much it. I drank my beer, took some pictures and headed home. Not bad for a Plan B kind of day.

Garrapata State Park, CA

Monday, June 15, 2015

Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve

Soundtrack:

The Decemberists -- The Hazards of Love
Sleater-Kinney -- No Cities to Love
Red House Painters -- Old Ramon

If you're in Northern California looking for a place to go kayaking, this is the spot. There's a ton of wildlife, the waters are calm and while the current can be strong at points in the slough it's always manageable, at least from my experience.

Moss Landing, CA

Jim and I drove down Moss Landing on Saturday for a little kayaking excursion. We spent a couple of hours on the water with the seals and sea otters. Unfortunately the traffic was nasty getting there, but it didn't mar the experience.

Harbor Seal -- Moss Landing, CA

As usual, the seals were hauled out in the sandbar in the harbor. The tide was sort of low making the passage to the back of the harbor narrow. Even as we hugged the opposite side of the passage we ended close enough to the seals to smell 'em. They stink, if you were curious. Cuddly looking, though.

Harbor Seal -- Moss Landing, CA

A sea otter had hauled out near the seals. Their size is deceptive. They look a lot smaller in the water, I suppose because their heads don't seem to match the size of their bodies. This particular otter was almost as large as some of the smaller seals and much larger than the little guy in the photo above.

Southern Sea Otter -- Moss Landing, CA

A raft of otters has always been present every time I've visited Moss Landing. This time was no different, although this time they weren't lacked closely together. From what I've read it's only the males that gather together in groups like this. The ladies tend to keep to themselves, especially when they have youngsters. There was at least one mother and pup in the estuary and later in the harbor. She and her young one seemed to keep their distance from the rough and tumble groups of what I presumed were males.

Southern Sea Otter -- Moss Landing, CA

We saw a lot of birds as well. I don't take a lot of pictures of gulls, mostly because they're so damned hard to identify. Heerman's gulls are easy, though, and they're pretty in a way most gulls aren't, so I don't hesitate to fire away at a heerman's.

Heerman's Gull -- Moss Landing, CA

There were a few common loons hanging around as well. They're sightly birds.

Common Loon -- Moss Landing, CA

We encountered a number of otters in the slough. They seem to have life figured out. Float around on their backs. Eat fresh seafood. Primp. Float some more. Not a bad life, if you ask me.