Archives for posts with tag: Beaches

Plucky Pelican Predicament

October 8, 2013 //

Sometimes we humans get to witness moments in nature that we know we will never see again. I was taking pictures after the recent storms in Oregon, watching the thick sea foam washing over the beach when something caught my eye, an unusual movement through my viewer. I had zoomed in and still couldn’t recognize exactly what I was seeing. You may see it around the center of this shot…

It was a bird, covered in sea foam, waddling towards me until it got covered in foam again with the next wave. It was a pelican.

I wasn’t sure what to do. He was completely covered, his eyes, his wings, his bill. I was still too far from him to be of much help, so I kept taking pictures. He, or she…what do I know?…stopped and stretched. It was definitely a pelican, a tired pelican. No telling how long it had been struggling to escape the strong waves of sea foam. I know. I had been standing with my back to the ocean the day before and got caught in a rush of the nasty looking, thick foam. I couldn’t outrun it. And I’m a whole lot taller than a bird on the ground. It seems to take a long time to make it closer to the shore.

I wasn’t moving, only clicking my camera, but the pelican seemed to know I wasn’t going to hurt him. Or he was too tired to care. He was just trying to get out of the mess. Thoughts were running through my mind about trying to help. Do pelicans bite? What if I just scared him. I had nothing with me to dry him off. So much for my valiant thoughts of a wildlife rescue. He stopped and shook a few times, losing a little bit of the foam.

He wasn’t very graceful but he was moving. He seemed to know what to do. He stretched his wings again.

Then his neck. He was watching me now.

He let his pouch drop a little, alternating spreading his wings, preening to get the foam off.

He turned to me, looking right at me, probably 20 feet away.

Then he spread his wings, airing them out, and headed for the safety of a log thrown to shore by the storm.

A couple, probably from Germany, joined me on the shore and began taking photos with an iPad. They had seen many dead birds after the storm and thought this one would probably die, he looked old to them.

You know what…I don’t think so. I think he knew exactly what to do and was going to go dry off before returning to the other pelicans in the area. I’m not naive, but I saw the look in his eye, a look of strength. No matter what happened later, he had made it to shore, cleaned himself off, and looked a human in the eye. I felt good about him and grateful for getting to capture it for you. I won’t forget my plucky pelican friend…

Tags Beaches, Oregon, pelican, sea foam, storm

Categories Nature, Photography, Places, Reflections, Travel

Oregon, oh Oregon!

October 6, 2013 //

I took a blogging break, not because I couldn’t get online or didn’t have things to show and tell, but because I was busy adventuring. There’s actually too much, but I have to treat you to the wonders of Oregon. This was my fourth trip to this state and I have to say that, while I’ll never leave Oklahoma, I hope to always come back here.

We were here for about 11 days this time and even the things I’d seen before at the same time of year looked different. First, we flew in over Mt Hood and it was covered with snow. Last year, it was dry.

And our first weekend on the coast was in record rains with high winds. From the safety of our place, we watched the stormy seas, venturing away from the fireplace only for better views. As visitors, you don’t have to worry about your property, only your own safety and preparedness, so we kept the fire lit and had flashlights and enjoyed snuggling in while the winds roared and the waves rolled higher and higher.

The beaches we saw after the storm were altered by the foam and debris.

and the waves were rough for a few days

But it soon relaxed and the earth restored itself to a refreshed beauty. We explored the towns along the coast with all their seaside charm…

…ate wonderful seafood…Dungeness crab, Oregon pink shrimp, shrimp and clam chowder, rock fish, halibut, and snapper…in nice restaurants and along the road…

I saw the creatures of the sea…the pelicans, gulls, and cormorants, the sea lions in rain and shine…

…and the harbor seals…

I walked early in the morning as the sun hit the sea…

…and captured sunsets…

There were beaches with sand dunes…

and beaches with driftwood…

…and treasures to find…

There were lighthouses…

…and signs that alert…

And I left the beach to hike up trails that led to mossy forests and flowing waterfalls, lush from the storms…

…and travelled the historic coastal highway along the Columbia River, looking over where Lewis & Clark paddled by, enjoying the falls along the way.

So I prepare to leave this beautiful state while the beaches, the forests, and Mt Hood are in my heart, begging me to return.

How can I refuse as long as I can walk the shores or climb the trails? Oregon will always be a special, magical place for me.

Tags Beaches, hiking, Oregon

Categories Friends, Nature, Photography, Reflections, Seasons, Travel, Uncategorized

Beaches, Beaches, Beaches

September 30, 2013 //

Places that restore my soul definitely include beaches ever since I saw my first one when I was about 10. That was Boca Raton, Florida and we looked for shells back when you could find lots of big ones, went crabbing, my brother got stung by a Man o’War, and we learned about tides and undertows.

Since then, I’ve been to other beaches in Florida, beaches in Mexico, the Caribbean, Spain, California, Virginia, Mississippi, Hawaii, and Oregon. Probably others, too!

When I hit a beach, I walk, looking out to sea. I look down to see what has washed up. I pick up shells, rocks, driftwood, sand dollars, whatever I find. I know the names of lots of shells, refreshed when I go each time. I watch for ships, boats, whales, dolphins, sharks, fish, birds. I watch the sky, the water, the sand and rocks.

I feel small at the beach, less than a grain of sand, and that gives me peace. I am of the universe, of nature. All problems are small, all life is part of the ebb and flow of the sea.

I walk, I think, I remember, I take pictures. Here are some of my favorites…

Naples, Florida in the morning…