Tag Archives: Cook’s Beach

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Martin Steinpress was out on the rocks at low tide at Cooks Beach. He wrote, “I saw a few medium-size Sea Stars, including two orange ones next to a bunch of Purple Sea Urchins. I found a whole ecosystem of inhabitants beneath and between some Mussels, including these small, one-inch-diameter Sea Stars. It’s nice to see them returning to our coast in a big way.”

Sea Stars, formerly called Starfish, were devastated by a wasting disease. It’s believed to be a virus, and warmer waters might be a factor too. We have an over-abundance of Sea Urchins, causing an imbalance in the Pacific Ocean’s ecology. Sea Urchins have been eating much of the kelp, which leaves not enough kelp in some areas for the Abalones.

Sea Stars eat Sea Urchins, so we are rooting for their continued good health!

Thanks to Martin for allowing me to share his photos with you here.

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Cooks Beach, just north of the town of Gualala, has a large pocket beach, a creek for little ones to play in, and a beautiful view of the Pacific Ocean. It's a perfect place to go to see the sunset. Eric Duff did just that a few weeks ago.

I love the reflection on the wet sand. Thanks to Eric for allowing me to share his photo with you here. To learn more about Cooks Beach, here is the link to the Redwood Coast Land Conservancy: http://www.rc-lc.org/

Some smoke has flowed into the coast from the inland fires today. It's not too bad, but you definitely can smell smoke. There are a lot of evacuees here, and we are trying to help them as best we can. We pray the rain in our forecast materializes. It is forecast for late Wednesday. Rain would be such a boon for Northern California.

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Eric Duff was at Cooks Beach to experience the beautiful sunset we had last Saturday, Sept. 9th.

To see the colors of the sky reflected in the water on the sand is special. And I thank Eric for allowing me to share such beauty with you here.

The weather looks fine for the weekend and the Mendonoma coast beckons you. If you'd like to find Cooks Beach, here is the website to the Redwood Coast Land Conservancy. http://www.rc-lc.org/

You will find directions for Cooks Beach, plus another of my favorites, Hearn Gulch, and the Gualala Bluff Trail. Rick and I, along with our golden retriever, Sunny, walked the GBT yesterday. A Gray Whale was seen just off the kelp beds. We always see something from this trail. Thank you, RCLC!

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Mike Nelson visited one of his favorite beaches, Cooks Beach, recently. He was surprised to find this beautiful stone sculpture balanced on a log.

With the clouds, the ocean and the setting sun, don't you wish you were at Cooks Beach too? Here's a closeup of the stacked stones.

Cooks Beach is a Public Access Project of the Redwood Coast Land Conservancy. To learn more about this special place, here is their website:  http://rclc.org/

Thanks to Mike for allowing me to share his photos with you here.

We have sunny, breezy weather today. It feels like spring!

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The big storms have washed away a lot of sand, more sand than many can remember. With the temporarily absent sand, rock formations are revealed. Ray Edlund sent me a photo the aptly named "Butt Rock."

Ray Edlund wrote, “Butt Rock, usually buried under a few feet of sand, is now fully exposed for all to see after the massive surf of the last few weeks.

“Located near the south end of Cooks Beach, the recent storms removed about eight feet of sand, exposing formations which haven’t been seen for many years. Enjoy while you can. Cooks Beach is a real local jewel of a spot!”

To learn more about Cooks Beach, which is found just north of Gualala, here is the link to the Redwood Coast Land Conservancy: http://www.rclc.org/Cooks-Beach.html

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