The weather has been wild - downpours, hail, wind, sun breaks. The ocean is riled up and quite loud this Sunday morning. Here is last night's rather unique sunset from Rick's and my place in Anchor Bay.
The setting sun looks like a flashlight shining on the ocean.
Sunday morning's temp is 38 degrees and hail pelted down for a few minutes.
Yesterday we had the first storm, which brought 1.94 inches of rain. I almost couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the color in the sky. I don't believe I've seen the sky look quite like this before.
The colors intensified for a minute as the sun began to sink below the horizon. I saw a green flash for a second or two. I caught a hint of it in the photo below.
At 4 pm on Sunday, we've had a little over 0.90 inches and it's still raining. My season to date roared past 41 inches yesterday. 50 inches is a "normal" wet winter at Rick's and my place in Anchor Bay. Hooray!
David Newhouse has watched Fish Rocks for many years. Fish Rocks is off Anchor Bay in Mendocino County. He wrote, "The first picture taken in the early 60’s is hard to see but there is no opening on the right side although it is hard to see."
"The second photo taken a couple of years ago shows the opening on the right side of the island."
"The last photo taken after the last storm shows where the rock over the opening has collapsed. Shows the force of nature over time."
The pounding storms take their toll, that's for sure. Thanks to David for allowing me to share his photos with you here.
No pounding ocean today. The drippy fog pulled back early this afternoon, and a sunny afternoon was our gift. Temps in the mid-sixties.
My brother-in-law, Mel Smith, spotted this rare beauty several years ago in Anchor Bay. It was mostly hidden under a huckleberry bush, but Mel has a very good eye! It did not bloom last year but appeared again this year, much to our delight. It is in full flower today. It's about an inch high.
And here are two that are up but not yet opened, growing in sandy soil. They look like little fir cones!
I was able to show these to botanist Peter Baye several years ago. He had never seen them before. He said sightings of these plants on the Mendonoma Coast are rarer than a UFO sighting!
I took these photos.
It was super foggy this morning, but the fog pulled back giving us a mild, beautiful day.
Gloria Wood caught the moment Saturday night's sunset turned purple.
We've had several storms, but Monday night's was a pretty big one - 1.7 inches in our gauge in Anchor Bay. This afternoon it is chilly, temps in the high 40's, which is cold for us. Beautiful clouds and showers are highlighting the beauty of the day. I took this around 2:30 this afternoon from our deck.
The Mendonoma Coast can take your breath away!
Thanks to Gloria for allowing me to share her photo with you here.