A seagull found the perfect perch on a rooftop at the beach.
I have taken many photos and videos I want to share from sea lions to beach birds, beach and harbor views, the farmer’s market and fish tacos. I think I’ll be posting photos and videos from this vacation after we return home. In the meantime, here are a few photos and videos of wildlife.
We went to dinner by boat the other night and saw sea lions lounging on docks. There’s a little glare from the boat’s window in this pic.
I’ve never seen Mallards in the ocean before. Below is a flock of terns taking off.
Lone pelican floating in the waves.
Ducks waddling on the shore.
Sea Lions upset because we woke them up.
Pelicans in flight.
My favorite of the photos and videos on this post is the last one of pelicans flying low over the ocean.
What’s your favorite?
This reminds me of Ogden Nash and his famous Pelican limerick my dad used to read to us when we were young:
A wonderful bird is the pelican. His bill can hold more than his belican. He can hold in his beak Enough food for a week, But I’m damned if I see how the helican.
I was watching this Great Egret on the beach during one of my twice daily walks. FYI, all photos are from my iphone since I left my Nikon and telephoto lens at home.
I had to look this guy up. He’s a Long-Billed Curlew.
The Long-billed Curlew is North America’s largest shorebird and is a member of the sandpiper family, Scolopacidae. Although it is considered a wading shorebird, it is primarily ground-dwelling, using short-growth grassland prairies for survival. The genus, Numenius, is Greek and refers to the crescent-shaped bill. https://sanctuarysimon.org/dbtools/species-database/id/649/numenius/americanus/long-billed-curlew#
These guys are Sandpipers.
Sandpipers have long bodies and legs, and narrow wings. Most species have a narrow bill, but the form and length are variable. They are small to medium-sized birds, measuring 12 to 66 cm (4.7–26.0 in) in length. The bills are sensitive, allowing the birds to feel the mud and sand as they probe for food. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandpiper
This gull was checking us out for snacks. They are very crafty and can get into bags of food the minute you walk away. Fortunately, we haven’t been taking snacks to the beach.
Seagulls are widely considered to be intelligent birds, exhibiting problem-solving skills, memory, and complex communication. They are known to learn from experience, adapt to different environments, and even pass on learned behaviors. https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/how-identify/identify-gulls
The shore birds are different than my desert bird buddies. What they have in common is they are all fun to watch. I doubt I’ll get a chance to make friends with shore birds the way I have Red and Mrs. I hope you enjoyed my short lesson on Shore Birds. I learned about them by writing this post!
Which Shore Bird do you like best out of these four species?
Do you have any of these birds where you live?
We ran into this flock during an evening walk. I’m thinking they are Plovers. Anyone know for sure?
I used to look forward to our beach vacation every year. Until this year, that is.
I literally lived for beach time. Especially when the kids were young and we’d go to Laguna Beach for two months — or even the entire summer. Living in the desert, I’d need to get out of the heat. The kids would have swim lessons at the city pool and we’d head to the beach for the rest of the day. They’d have hours of free play, using their imaginations building drip castles or building a restaurant and serving me assorted dishes made from sand and seaweed.
My kids when they used their imaginations to play in the sand.
Now that it’s almost beach vacation time, albeit much shorter than the vacations in the past, I’m apprehensive. Why? Because I have been on two trips the past few months. And they didn’t go well.
First, we explored the mountains and forests of Arizona. I tripped on our first hike. I thought I had a sprain, but I broke my ankle. Within a week of coming home, I was rushed into surgery. That put a damper on my summer.
Next, we flew to a friend’s daughter’s wedding in Northern California. We came home and got terribly sick with COVID.
Needless to say, I worry about what’s going to happen on our upcoming vacation. Shark attack? Car accident? Food poisoning? My imagination is going wild. This morning I asked my husband, “What’s wrong with staying home? I like it here.” After all, there’s no place like home.
Two summer vacations ago, we were worried about our Daughter-In-Law’s cancer. I was so worried about her tests, surgery, etc. It puts a harsh reality on our summer vacation — that everything is not beach mode and real life worries take hold — regardless of vacation or not.
FYI, If you think it’s a good time to break into our home, think twice. I have two neighbors watching out, plus a house sitter. Good luck!
I’m sure once I get to our destination, everything will be okay. At least I hope so.
A new friend at the beach bringing a ball to my husband.
After our evening beach walk and swim, we were relaxing in beach chairs watching the waves. Suddenly, a small dog ran to my husband and dropped a ball at his feet. We looked around for his owners, but there was nobody close by.
My husband threw the ball. The speedy little pup raced after the ball and ran back to us, dropping the ball at my feet. It was my turn.
The pup alternated between the two of us for 30 minutes, never tiring of chasing the ball.
The dog is waiting in anticipation for the ball to be thrown. If you look in the ocean there is a couple out there.
Eventually the couple who were body surfing in the waves came onshore.
“Is this your dog?” my husband called out to them.
“No, he’s yours now,” the man replied. We all laughed. The dog trotted over excitedly to his rightful owners.
The dogs on the beach are so entertaining to watch. There’s a man who lives a few houses away from Kevin Costner, who walks his black lab every morning with a tennis ball launcher. That dog is so excited and jumps and circles, crying for the ball to be thrown. He runs back and forth chasing and retrieving the ball for an entire hour walk. We watched a pair of Vizlas chasing balls from their owner’s tennis ball launcher, leaping to catch the balls in the air before they hit the sand. Then there are dogs who pick up sticks two to three times the size of their bodies and proudly trot them down the beach.
Here’s a video of our new friend racing after the ball:
If you have a dog, do they like to swim, chase after balls or carry sticks?
What other creatures are as happy as a dog at the beach?
Soon, we’ll be making a nine-hour drive to our beach vacation in California. It will be our seventh year renting the VRBO cottage.
I will admit, I’m a little anxious over the trip. I think it’s because of how things turned out last August. It wasn’t exactly a relaxing vacation with our DIL getting diagnosed with cancer. Our son and DIL planned a last-minute wedding prior to surgery that was cancelled due to COVID. Later, they were able to move ahead with the wedding. At first, they didn’t want people flying in bringing germs, since she was beginning chemo. Then our son really wanted us there, but we couldn’t get flights to make it on time.
It was an extremely stressful time with lots of waiting, questions and prayers. I wrote about it HERE.
The last week of our vacation, friends that we have in the area all got COVID. We left a couple days early, because it seemed like the safe and sane thing to do.
This year I’m reading that Arizona has one of the lowest COVID rates, while California has one of the highest.
The cat sitter is lined up. The next door neighbor is watching our house. Time to pack and hope for a peaceful, relaxing and rejuvenating beach vacation.
Do you find vacations to be relaxing or stressful? Why?
After posting photos of all the gorgeous houses on the beach, I’m sharing the house we’ve rented each summer since 2018. It’s a three-block walk downhill to the beach. Behind the yellow front door is the bedroom. Upstairs is the living room, kitchen and bathroom. I think it’s cozy and cute.
We made the drive home from Santa Barbara to Arizona in eight hours. We left in the wee hours of the morning and we’re both exhausted. Kitty Olive was so glad to see us. The cat sitter took good care of her and left notes like “Olive was lonely so I petted her for 20 minutes and turned on classical music.”
Once home, I ran into all sorts of weird snafus. The lamp on my nightstand collapsed at the neck where the light bulb is. Then I couldn’t get my Bird Buddy (AI bird feeder) to charge after bringing the camera unit inside while we were out of town. Then I tried to log into my Cox app on my phone to view the outside camera — and it logged me out — and won’t let me log back in. I tried resetting the password. Nothing worked. Not even our cable TV.
I received money via Venmo and I tried to transfer the money, only to get a message that Venmo wasn’t available in my area.
My husband snapped at me over something minor. I realized we are both tired and I gracefully accepted his apology.
Everything is going haywire. It’s like our house is upset we left it alone for three weeks. The electronics are rebelling.
I decided to focus on my reactions. I can’t control many of the issues surrounding me. But I can control how I react. I closed my eyes and pretended I was sitting on the beach listening to waves.
Here are a few more photos:
The kitchen of the house we rented. I love the shabby chic decor.
The view from the patio with barbecue and table. Perfect except for electrical lines.
The cottage we rented in Laguna Beach for at least 15 years while our kids were growing up. That’s our beloved Angus on the front porch (RIP). Can you see why I’m a beach cottage fan?
How do you react when electronics seem to be working against you? What do you do to control your reaction when things seem out of control?
