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Jennifer Smallwood was at Arena Cove last weekend during the very low tides, the opposite of the King tides. The intertidal zone revealed quite a few Abalone in that cove.

Here's a look at a Red Abalone waiting for the tide to come back, taken a few years ago by Chris Wall.

And here is the short video Jennifer took of the Abalone "on the move." Abalone slowing moving by Jennifer Smallwood

Thanks to Chris for allowing me to share her photo and to Jennifer for allowing me to share her video with you here.

Rain total from yesterday was 0.32 inches. Season to date 4.54 inches. Cold today (43 degrees this morning) with quite a few clouds this afternoon. A big river-of-rain event is headed our way beginning late Tuesday night. The fire department is warning folks to stay off the roads Wednesday and Thursday. YIKES!

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Catherine Miller and Jill Nussinow went out looking for one of the most delicious edible mushrooms a few days ago, and they found some beauties! Boletus edulis, aka Porcini, have made their most welcome appearance. See the joy on Catherine's face!

Catherine told me there were no bugs in these boletes. Lots of critters enjoy munching on these particular mushrooms, including many of us.

Thanks to Jill for allowing me to share her photo with you here. Jill is also known as the Veggie Queen. You can learn more about her, and her plant based meals, on her website: https://www.theveggiequeen.com/

It is lightly raining today. Monday and Tuesday are forecast to be clear. Then the rains are predicted to be heavy on Wednesday and continue through the weekend. We'll be on watch to see which day the Gualala River breaches the big sandbar, always a dramatic event. And seasonal creeks are sure to come to life, as their year-round ponds have been filling from previous rain events. They are primed, just like the river! Here's a photo I took on Friday of the Gualala River.

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Maureen Simons wrote, “I took this shot while hiking the Stornetta Lands with some friends. The late afternoon sun lit up the grasses so beautifully I kept getting left behind, just taking it all in. When we turned a corner and I saw the color of the grasses echoed in the Pt. Arena cliffs I knew I had my photo.”

That's the Point Arena Cove in the distance. Beautiful photo!

Thanks to Maureen for allowing me to share her photo with you here.

Rain totals from yesterday - 0.47 inches, 4.22 inches season to date! I received my first sighting of a Boletus edulis mushroom today from Catherine Miller! King Boletes, aka Porcini, are highly desired edible mushrooms.

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Craig Tooley found these Oyster Mushrooms growing on a dead tree near his Sea Ranch home.

Their role in Nature is to decompose dead wood. Many of us enjoy eating these delicious mushrooms. Oyster mushrooms are grown commercially now. In David Arora's excellent pocket guide, "All That the Rain Promises and More," he points out that their growth is shelf-like. Banana Slugs love these mushrooms too!

Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photo with you here. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is the link to his website: http://www.ruffimage.com

It's storming here today! I'll report rain totals tomorrow. The Pacific Ocean is very loud, with huge, crashing waves. And the King Tides arrive Friday through Sunday. Lots to marvel at!

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Peggy Berryhill was up in the town of Mendocino when she saw this circle around the sun, which is called a Halo.

Marion Patterson took this photo at her home in Anchor Bay. The sun was behind the tree, but you can see most of the Halo. Notice that Marion's photo shows some color in the Halo.

The following is from the National Weather Service and explains the different between Halos, Sundogs and Sun Pillars.

"A Halo is a ring or light that forms around the sun or moon as the son or moon light refracts off ice crystals present in a thin veil of cirrus clouds. The Halo is usually seen as a bright, white ring although sometimes it can have color.

Sundogs are colored spots of light that develop due to the refraction of light through Ice crystals. They are located approximately 22 degrees either left, right, or both, from the sun, depending on where the ice crystals are present. The colors usually go from red closest to the sun, out to blue on the outside of the Sundog. Sundogs are also known as mock sun or parhelia, which means "within the sun."

Sun Pillars appear as a shaft of light extending vertically above the sun, most often at sunrise or sundown. They develop as a result of ice crystals slowly falling through the air, reflecting the sun's rays off of them. Look for Sun Pillars when the sun is low on the horizon, and cirrus clouds are present."

Thanks to Peggy and Marion for allowing me to share their photos with you here. And thanks to the National Weather Service for a great explanation on the differences between these phenomena.

Clouds are pouring in this afternoon after a sunny morning. Temps are around 60 degrees. A storm is headed our way for tonight. Bring it, Mother Nature!