A Rookery for Elephant Seals

The day after I went to Silver City I went back to Silver City. I was going to the Gila Cliff Dwellings beyond Silver City, but the fog was very thick. I turned the corner just before Silver City and then turned back. Even though I had my binoculars just in case I didn't think I could climb the cliffs, what help would they be if you couldn't even see 2 car lengths ahead? So I visited Silver City again and went into the pink store. 

A much bigger version of this store is in Mexico, and people at LOW's go there once a week to eat, shop, dance, etc. They had a great skeleton for the Day of the Dead. I walked around, had lunch, and waited until 3:00.  Still foggy, so I gave up. 

I figured I had 3 days to get to the LA area. But, I figured wrong and arrived a day before I was due. If I had calculated correctly I would have spent 1 night in Quartzite. That was where I began to feel warm. They found me a site for that night. Then the next day I moved to the assigned site. I spent a great time with Sean, April, Quentin, Mason, Chuck and Tyler. I also met April's parents, and enjoyed their company and our conversations. Sean, April, I and the four kids went to Venice Beach.

We saw a few muscle men, lots of street performers, skateboarders and people, people, people. It was Martin Luther King Day so we celebrated the holiday together with the kids. 

The next day Sean, April and I toured a Russian submarine and the Queen Mary. I think the Russians left quite a few submarines in our water. As Valerie and I toured further up the coast we saw another Russian submarine. Of course the Pacific coast is closer to Russia. I remember Sarah Palin could see it from her back porch. The Queen Mary was one, if not the, biggest and fastest ships at the time it was built. And it was beautiful!!!! I would have enjoyed cruising the Atlantic on such a beauty. During the war, it was transformed to a troop carrier, and then back to a cruise ship. Quite a history. It claims to be haunted, and we looked hard for ghosts, to no avail. But we thoroughly enjoyed our day on the Queen Mary. 

The one thing I regret not doing with the LA gang was playing pitch. We always have some good games. I guess next time.

After LA I went to San Diego. My friend Valerie flew in and we went to see what I think is the best  zoo I have ever seen.

San Diego Zoo is so nicely laid out, and has good space for the animals. As soon as I started viewing the animals I was missing South Africa. I really do want to go back there. As in South Africa, I liked the big cats best. Probably because I can see the same traits in my little cat.We also took a tour of San Diego. I love the hop on - hop off tours. We went to the Seaport village, the Gas Light village and ate at a great old hotel and saloon. 

And, of course, if you're in San Diego you have to go to Tijuana, right? So now both of us can say, "Been there; done that!" 

The next day we drove and drove - more than 8 hours. We found the most tremendous campground in Paso Robles. It was clean, had great services and amenities, and accepted Passport America, so we paid half price. It was a long day and just as we were going to our respective beds, we couldn't find Tawny. We searched the coach and found a window open in the cab. So off we go in our pajamas, carrying flashlights. We found her in about 45 minutes, but by then the adrenalin kept us up for a while.

I had said that I definitely wanted to see the Hearst Castle this time in this area. We planned for that the second day. On the first day we started driving along the coast, going north. There were plenty of ooohs and ahhhhs. The California coast is absolutely eautiful. I can see why so many people want to live here. We saw a sign for elephant seals with an arrow toward the ocean. We went there and read some of the information. There were many people on a structure beside the beach. As we started to walk toward the beach we saw many rocks on the sand. As we got closer, we realized these rocks were elephant seals. We had come across a rookery for elephant seals.  

 I learned that in late November, December the male seals come to this beach and fight for sections of the beach. Then in January, pregnant females come to the beach, decide which section they want, and join the harem around the male who won that section. Then the females deliver a pup, and turn their teats to the pup's mouth, and the nursing begins. The pup nurses for about a month. Then the female seal mates many times and goes into the ocean for a few months. The pup stays for a time and builds up muscle and skill. When ready, the pups go into the water also. A few months later the mothers and juveniles return to the beach to molt. And then later in the year the whole process begins again.

Watching these seals was fascinating. One little pup kept trying to nurse from a big alpha male. He wasn't too happy with that. This made my day; made my trip. Who wants to go to Hearst Castle when you can stay by the ocean and see things like this?

The next day we saw another miracle of nature. We went to Pismo Beach and saw the Monarch Butterfly grove. This grove is home for thousands/millions of Monarch butterflies every winter. These butterflies come from the western parts of the states and Canada. The eastern butterflies go to Mexico City. All the orange specks on the tree pictured to the left are butterflies. 

I knew that butterflies migrated, and about 40 years ago saw some wintering in a tree in Pacific Grove, CA. What I didn't know and found fascinating was that it is the fifth generation that returns to Pismo Beach to winter. I realize that butterflies don't live that long, so 4 generations have died before it is time to  go south, but how do they know where to go? 'Tis a puzzlement!!!!!

After viewing the butterflies we walked to the end of the pier in Pismo Beach, and spoke with a fisherman fishing for sharks. He had a 3/4-prong gaff which was huge. If he hooked a shark he was going to lower the gaff to grab the shark and take the fight out of it. We left wondering how he was going to pull all that out of the water. Here's hoping there were a lot of people on the pier to help him if he did catch a shark. He said they tasted great and it was worth the trouble and risk.