A trip to the beach

One of the advantages to living in the Puget Sound basin is that you can easily drive to different habitats within a short period of time. The coast and the mountains are less than two hours away, Portland, Vancouver B.C. and a desert are all within three hours.

In the Western lowlands the weather is driven by what happens out in the Pacific Ocean. Everything hinges on the pressure out at sea. The further inland you go the less you realize the powerhouse off shore. When planning a trip to the coast you have to trust the weather satellites, make your best plan and take your chances.

This past weekend it looked as if the weather was going to offer up a rare fall high pressure window with mild winds, sunshine and warm temperatures. My wife had just returned from a trip to Florida and I had been working on remodeling around the house for the past five weeks. I wanted to get a way and the weather satellite on Friday's late news showed a gap coming for one day, Sunday.

Sunday morning came in cold and foggy here at the South end of the Puget Sound. We had lunch, clothing, camera,coffee and dogs loaded up and out the door at 0700. The trip out to the coast was slower than expected, temperatures were in the mid thirties with patchy heavy fog. Westward on I-5 south to Olympia then out to Aberdeen. Since this is my blog I get very myopic. I only see what animals are in it for me.

Our first stop was a break for the dogs. They are still puppies and held out all the way to Aberdeen. We stopped on the south side of town by a mall for a quick romp. Within seconds of stopping I noticed a small group of crows in the heavy fog when one of them jumped and exposed white feathers on it's wings.

This is the second bird like this I have found this year. In fact this is the second bird like this I have seen in over forty years of bird watching.

Just minutes outside of West Port the sky opened to a brilliant blue with wispy clouds over the ocean. Here is how the day went.

Strings of Brown Pelicans were orbiting the town of West Port clockwise. We worked our way to the North side of town were the break water let us get a better look.

They were getting closer

Then they came in.

Sweet.

We leashed up the dogs and took a walk out into the marina and then out to the far break water.

This Common Loon in winter colors was preening along our walk and allowed us to get very close.

After a good preening it is time to show off!

This big boy passed us on his way out to open water.

As the Sea Lion was headed out the fishermen were headed in.

So, here we are in Washington state, Sea Lions and Harbor seals are plentiful at the opening to a large bay. These guys are out there surfing on the waves hitting the breakers. I am not paranoid but the thought of sharks does come to mind.

Pelagic Cormorant

After a while we headed South toward Tokeland. For years now we have made a fall pilgrimage to the coast for the Dungeness crabs. This year is exceptional. If you are not into crabs that is fine. If you are, nothing beats one caught and cooked just before you eat it. Sorry, some how I did not get any pictures of the crabs.

Marbled Godwits at the Tokland Marina

A better look

Finally we get to the beach.

Freedom!

The water was cold, Phoebe did not mind at all while chasing the ball. Lister on the other hand made sure he did not get his belly wet.

Plenty of room to run

The dry sand proved to be as much fun as the wet.

Lister

Phoebe

In the end it was a beautiful day and fun was had by all! We spent the day at the beach and had a fantastic drive with the leaves in fall colors. Home safe with plenty of time for a leisurely dinner and very tired puppies.

Change of season

Fall is coming. Here is my photo essay on what I see as the signs here in the North West.

Spiders spin webs on every possible anchor point. They are easy to see when soaked in morning dew. As the day warms and the webs become harder to see and if you are not paying attention while walking though the woods you end up with on of theses in your face.

Harmless but not very comforting at all.

As the weather changes farther North the birds of prey begin to move. Waves of Vultures and smaller hawks such as these work their way south along the Southern coast of the Puget Sound. When the migrants enter the territories of the locals things can heat up. I heard the screams of the Red Tailed Hawks as this unidentified hawk passed through the area.

All of the Black Berries have ripened. Those left this long ferment on the vine and the birds that eat them get a little "buzz", some get out right intoxicated. Few things in life are funnier than a drunk Robin. My dogs have been sneaking out to the berry patch and getting their fill of the berries also.

This was a new life bird for myself. It is a first year female Black Throated Gray Warbler. Hatched and fledged far to the North of here this summer she and those like her are headed to South American. Thousands of miles lie ahead of her before her return next spring and she has never made the trip before.

This secretive Male Pileated Wood Pecker feeds on the fruit of our Dogwood tree. He shares it with a family of Northern Flickers. In the last five years I have gotten three photos of him. He is very wary and does not hang around when he sees the dogs or myself.

This Thirteen inch diameter Sunflower grew in our garden this summer. It took a family of four Steller's Jays less than three hours to completely glean every seed from the husk. Look closely at the Jays crop, it is stuffed with so many seeds they keep falling out. The jays take the seeds off into the woods to hide them for later.

Black Capped Chickadees find it easier to harvest the seeds from the smaller flower heads that the Jays can not land on or hang from.

While doing some repairs to the garage I noticed this North West Salamander slowly working it's way through the leaf litter. I have never seen on of these before and was fortunate to have the camera handy to get a picture.

While birding at the dam I came upon this tell tale evidence of Beaver movement. Strangely this tree is below the dam in the brackish water exchange. I did not know that Beavers would swim in salt water. After felling this tree the Beaver nibbled on a few branches and left the tree for later.

Wood Ducks prepare for winter by ensuring their new feathers are in top condition.

Ducks like this pair of Gadwalls that have been far to the North during the summer, suddenly return over night. These beautiful ducks are often over looked or mistaken as female Mallards.

Clear cold skies at night set the stage for an early morning Coot silhouette on the calm waters of a local pond.

Fall in the North West means the return of the iconic Salmon. Four years ago this fish crossed over this very dam on it's way out to the ocean. Every day was a struggle leading up to this final challenge.

Welcome home.

Scores of different species await the return of the salmon to prepare for winter.

Next spring when the next batch of 200,000 young Cohos swim over the dam they will enter the waters enriched by the salmon that died there this fall. The big wheel keeps turning.

The Black Tailed Deer have shed their reddish coats of summer for the gray winter coats. The young deer in the back has tiny "nubs" where his antlers will grow next spring.

Well Fall is here, we can not change that. I will embrace it for the opportunities it will provide and share the photos with you as they present themselves.

Stay warm and dry, Take care.

Red, Pheobe and Lister

RED

PHOEBE

LISTER








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