Tag Archives: Mendocino coast

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Self Heal, Prunella vulgaris, is blooming in sunny spots on the Mendonoma Coast. There are several of these interesting wildflowers growing on our property in Anchor Bay. Last year Frank Drouillard took a very close up photo of one and was startled to see what looks like an alien face. It startled me too!

Self Heal has amazing qualities. First, its leaves are edible. They are mildly bitter greens. But its medicinal qualities set it apart from other wildflowers who might be considered "just pretty faces." It is an antiseptic and has an antibacterial effect. It's believed to be effective in cases of food poisoning. Native peoples used it to treat cuts and inflammation. It's a wonder plant!

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While Foxglove isn't a native plant - it is native to Europe - it seems at home on the Mendonoma Coast. It blooms at the same time as our native Wild Rhododendrons and Azaleas and is a member of the Figwort family. It's Latin name is Digitalis, which means finger-like. Its blossoms are the perfect size for putting one's finger inside. It has a well-known medicinal use, which strengthens and regulates the beating of the heart. The plant itself is poisonous so don't eat it, just enjoy looking at its beauty!

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Soon after Rick and I moved to the Mendocino Coast we found this magnificent old growth Sequoia Sempervirens or Coast Redwood. We were nearly overcome with awe and delight when we first saw it and even now, after 15 years, we still get a thrill every time we hike down to see it. It is on a neighboring property. Our area was logged in the 1880's. This giant wasn't taken because it wasn't straight; it grew in a twisty fashion. Rick is in the first picture to give you some idea of how big this beautiful tree is. About halfway up a limb grows as big as a second growth tree. It's perfectly straight. The top was blown off in a storm many years ago. Who knows how old this tree is? Many hundreds of years and perhaps even a thousand years old. What stories it could tell...

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This morning's sunrise was particularly beautiful with the full moon slowly setting in the west. A few stray clouds leftover from yesterday's storm can be seen drifting in the sky. The oh-so-blue Pacific Ocean completes this portrait of a lovely Mendocino Coast morning.

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Frank Terlouw and his son are fishermen who fish off the Mendocino Coast. They were out in their boat on the Pacific Ocean when they saw this unbelievably strange and beautiful cloud formation overhead. Frank later found an explanation for the rare phenomenon in an article by Victoria Tang in Earth Science magazine. An airplane can punch a hole in a cloud and actually change the weather below, causing that part of the cloud to snow. Frank never saw an airplane but the photo in the article was nearly identical to the one he took. With Frank's kind permission I've posted his fantastic photo below. Notice that in his photo Frank also captured a rainbow. Enjoy, enjoy!