Beaches

Thumbnail image for Low Tide Driving

Low Tide Driving

February 26, 2011 Habitat

I was surprised to see this Mercedes SUV navigating over sensitive tidelands habitat in the Des Moines area of Washington. I looked it up and found that it is, in fact, legal for residents of this area. As a transplanted Californian, I’ve been told a few times now to stay off the tidelands, low or [...]

[read the full post ...]
Thumbnail image for Learning to Not Trespass

Learning to Not Trespass

October 1, 2010 Habitat

It shouldn’t be that tough, right? My first beach 2010 experience up in the PNW was during a minus-point-one low tide. That foggy Seattle morning, I ventured from a public beach into the way-out low tide. Normally, I wouldn’t go that far since I’m hesitant to mess with fragile sea things under my boots. But [...]

[read the full post ...]
Thumbnail image for Getting to Know Seattle (Again)

Getting to Know Seattle (Again)

September 25, 2010 Seattle & Vicinity

Hugh and I lived here for a time more than 20 eons ago, so we decided it was time to renew our acquaintance with the emerald north.

[read the full post ...]

Stormy Beach People

January 11, 2010 California

I’m a perfect fit with Northern California, loving the storm-whipped ocean as I do. From the shoreline, that is. Keeping my eye on that 7th wave. Wrapped in layers. Wishing I could still operate my camera while wearing gloves. Keeping the UV filter on for the saline mist. Loving every second of this El-Niño-driven swell. [...]

[read the full post ...]

A Mackerel Sky

August 27, 2009 Weather

We went to the Pacific to grab lunch at Nick’s and couldn’t have anticipated the prismatic cycles of yesterday’s sky. At first a mackerel sky, then buttery, then illuminated by flame. Here’s a reasonable representation of our afternoon under the clouds.

[read the full post ...]

The Art in Bull Kelp

July 4, 2009 Bay Area

I never appreciated kelp until, 1) I first saw this particular monster of a kelp, and 2) I saw close-ups of kelp shot by better nature photographers than I — capturing the golden palette of this gargantuan plant.

[read the full post ...]

[read the full post ...]

Encounters With [the Elusive] California Beach Hopper

June 25, 2009 Bay Area

California Beach Hopper or Megalorchestia californiana As fleas go, they’re giants. Not giants in the sense of Bikini-Atoll-nuclear-mutant-gone-bad giants. But by flea standards, they’re positively huge — about 1 inch long. That’s probably because they’re not parasitic dog or cat fleas, but rather, amphipods — shrimp-like creatures who dine on organic matter at the outer [...]

[read the full post ...]

Marine Mammal Viewing — From a Distance

June 25, 2009 Bay Area

Hugh and I had another knucklehead-versus-wildlife encounter this past week with a family on the Mendocino coast. We hiked over an unpopulated bluff and saw a mom and kids chasing a young sea lion across the rocks for a photo op. Their actions were forcing the young animal away from her resting spot, as she [...]

[read the full post ...]

Splendor in the Low Tide

June 17, 2009 California

An homage to Warren and Natalie — in title alone. There’s photographic magic in the sun rising over a super-low tide. At the point where dawn meets a -2.0, the strange, the stunning, the predictable and the chaotic all converge on that plane of tide pools, mudflats, and beach flea burrows. One of my favorite [...]

Related Posts with Thumbnails

[read the full post ...]