Tag Archives: Point Arena

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Meet Rocket, the newest member of the herd of endangered Roan Antelopes that make their home in Point Arena at the wildlife preserve B. Bryan Preserve.

And here is Rhonda, Rocket's mom, nursing her newborn. You'll see one of her horns is askew. Judy Mello told me Rhonda had a fight with some other mean Roan girls and this is the result. Judy called it a "bad horn day."

Thanks to Judy for allowing me to share her photos with you here.

To see a photo of a full moon rising over the preserve, here's the link: http://www.mendonomasightings.com/2012/03/10/full-moon-rising-at-the-b-bryan-preserve/

And to learn more about this special place, here's the link to the B. Bryan Preserve web site: http://www.bbryanpreserve.com/  It would be a great place to stay when you visit the Coast.

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Carolyn André was delivering meals on wheels when she came around a turn and there was this beautiful Peacock.

Carolyn managed to stop her car in time and take this photograph. We don't know whose Peacock this is or if it is living on its own. There used to be a Parrot farm, I'm told, in the area and perhaps these were from that farm. The bird sure looks handsome.

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

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Every winter for the past 17 years a wayward Laysan Albatross has over-wintered in the waters off the Point Arena Pier. Birders from all over the world come to the tiny city in hope of adding this bird to their life list. This year Al hasn't spent much time in the cove and we're not sure why. He, or she - we don't really know, is always absent when it is stormy, and today is very stormy here on the Mendonoma Coast!

Al has an affinity for surfers, often paddling over to "talk." Ken Holmes caught a photo of Al and a surfer and he's kindly allowed me to share it with you here.

There have been reports from fishermen that Al has been seen further north and several miles out. People in the Irish Beach/Elk areas should be on the look-out for this famous bird.

We know he/she is not a breeder as winter is when these large birds give birth. Ron LeValley was on Sand Island in the Midway Atoll, Hawaii on Feb. 7th. He photographed this Laysan Albatross mother as her egg hatched and has allowed me to share it with you here. So wonderful!

To see more of Ron's nature photography, here is his web site: http://www.levalleyphoto.com/home/
Last year Al left on March 28th so we know he'll be leaving us soon, hopefully to return again in late November or early December.

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Judy Mello photographed the full moon rising on March 7th at the B. Bryan Preserve in Point Arena. The Grevy's Zebras aren't paying any attention though, getting a little more dinner before darkness fell.

 And I took this photo early the next morning of the moon setting over the Pacific Ocean. A few wispy clouds decorated the moon. It was mesmerizing!

There have been lots of Gray Whale sightings this past week. I will share a few pictures with you tomorrow.

If you'd like to learn more about the fabulous B. Bryan Preserve in Point Arena, here's their link: http://www.bbryanpreserve.com/

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Rick and I, plus our golden retriever Huckleberry, took a hike at the Stornetta Public Lands this Thursday. You can see that it was a lovely day. A very low tide occurred while we were there.

 Sea Lion Rocks are only accessible at low tide. The photo below shows this rocky staircase. As this is a Marine Sanctuary, it would be better to stay off these rocks. And you wouldn't want to be caught when the tide changes!

 We kept Huckleberry on a short leash because of sinkholes like this one and the dangerously steep bluff-faces.

 The main access is off of Lighthouse Road, which is north of Point Arena. Before you see the Lighthouse pay station and parking, look on the left. You will see a portable toilet, parking and these rather uninformative signs. Notice that this one still has a picture of a fish, indicating that fishing is allowed. But it's not!

Here's the sign BLM added when this area was closed to fishing, including abalone diving, in 2010.

Tomorrow I will show you that there's been a BIG change in the Stornetta waterfall.