It's not unheard of to have an Elephant Seal here, but it doesn't happen too often. And when one appears, it's always on the beach, the sand. But not this big fellow. Traci Segelstrom wrote, “Here’s Gus the Elephant Seal at Anchor Bay Campground.  He has completely stolen my heart. Who even knew Elephant Seals had eyebrows?!”

Paula Stillman also photographed him. She wrote, “This Elephant Seal picked campsite 33 to chill and relax for awhile. Apparently he’s a regular around here.”

Last week Mark Vanderwoude also found the big Elephant Seal in residence. He wrote this fun story.

“I was at the Anchor Bay Campground this morning and it appears that Mr. Elephant Seal has commandeered Spaces 32 and 33 without a reservation, and has no intention of paying. He isn't very friendly and the staff has no intention of inviting him to leave any time soon. Seeing is believing when campers with reservations are told of his disregard for their reservations, they now understand why ... he's huge!”

Mark also pointed out the many scars on this Elephant Seal’s back.

While resting on the beach, or favored campsite, Elephant Seals fast, living off their blubber. Dogs will need to be kept on leashes while this big fellow is in residence.

Thanks to Traci, Paula and Mark for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

A wait-five-minutes kind of day. Showers, sunshine, downpours, wind, roiling clouds - the Mendonoma Coast has a little bit of it all today. Nearly two inches of rain from the storms.

 

The Doe found a nice place to shelter from a recent storm, under a Cypress tree on The Sea Ranch.

I wonder if she is under there again today, Friday, because it's been pouring rain!

Thanks to Robert for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

The rain started mid-morning this Friday. Well over 3/4 of an inch so far, and it's still raining as I type this post!

There was a nice break in the stormy weather this several weeks ago, though dark clouds occasionally blocked the welcome sunshine. Those dark clouds brought rainbows. Mark Hancock photographed an unusual one near the Point Arena Lighthouse. He wrote, “I've never seen such a flat rainbow, it was so vivid and right above Arena Rock off the Lighthouse Peninsula.  Really beautiful. I made sure everyone on my staff took a look and they all agreed it was pretty unique.”

Such a low rainbow is rare. I learned that the position of the sun in the sky plays the crucial role in determining the height, or lack thereof, at which the rainbow appears. As the sun climbs higher, the rainbow drops lower. We usually see rainbow in the mornings, and sometimes in the late afternoon.

You can see sights like this at the Point Arena Lighthouse. Learn more about it at this link: https://www.pointarenalighthouse.com/

Thanks to Mark for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

Clouds this morning, sunny this afternoon, with rain arrived early tomorrow, Friday. Maybe we'll have more rainbows!

Marilyn Green found this object washed up on a beach at The Sea Ranch.

Bob Van Syoc knew what it was. I found it eerily beautiful. Bob wrote, “Very beautiful indeed! This is the shed exoskeleton of a Barnacle.  Barnacles live inside a permanent calcareous shell attached to the bottom, but inside of the shell they also have a chitinous exoskeleton (like crabs and shrimp) as they are crustaceans. To grow they must shed their old exoskeleton and then form a new larger one. The shed exoskeletons float around and some wash ashore.”

So, inside the Barnacles' shell is an exoskeleton. And they outgrow it and have to shed it. Who knew? Lucky for Marilyn and me, Bob knew!

Thanks to Marilyn for her ability to spot small, unusual items and for allowing me to share her photo with you here. Also thanks to Bob for his expertise.

Cool this afternoon, with a breeze. We have rain coming in starting tomorrow night. Happy first full day of spring!

It's rather startling to see this, but it is a treat. Grace O'Malley photographed a Sun Halo. What's interesting in Grace's photo is the pyramid shape in the middle of the Halo.

A Sun Halo is a ring or light that forms around the sun as the sunlight refracts off ice crystals present in a thin veil of cirrus clouds. It often predicts rain within the next 24 hours.

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

No Sun Halo today. We actually saw some fog form out on the ocean, and that is a harbinger for spring! It's been sunny with light breezes and temps in the 60s. Perfection!