A week ago Wednesday, a sundog appeared off Point Arena. Mel Smith captured the beauty.
Sundogs are a type of halo that appears when sunlight refracts off ice crystals in the atmosphere. These ice crystals are usually hexagonal and are often found in high-altitude cirrus clouds.
Thanks to Mel for allowing me to share his photo with you here.
ooo, it's hot at Rick's and my place today but it's perfect right on the bluffs. Bonus sighting: Humpback whales have been seen in numbers!
I'll let Ben tell the story. He wrote, “On Thursday last week, I went on one of my usual hikes in Gualala Point Park. This took me out to the north end of the bluff trail. I rounded a corner and to my surprise a doe and two fawns, still with spots, were crossing the trail right in front of me."
"I was able to get a few pictures and happy with capturing a family portrait, I continued my hike out to the Salal Creek waterfall. On my way back, I rounded the corner to find that ‘Dad’ had joined the party."
"He was staring at me from not 20 feet away, all four points of him. I am pretty sure I have seen him before, down by the big pool in Sea Ranch. We looked at each other for a bit, I got a few pictures and then I just said, ‘Thank you’ and I walked away.”
I too feel gratitude when I have an experience like this. And I think it's a great idea to say 'Thank you' like Ben did.
Thanks to Ben for allowing me to share his photos with you here.
Sunny and warm today, the wind picked up late this afternoon. We're going into a warming trend so now is a good time to head for the Mendonoma Coast!
It’s not every day a black bear comes for lunch. David Skibbins wrote, “My wife, Marla and I were just settling down to lunch when Smokey dropped by our meadow. After knocking down our woodpecker feeder, he put on a two minute show, wandering back and forth. We were thrilled to have him as a visitor! It is so amazing to live in this place!”
It’s a big, healthy-looking male. Marla got a great video, which you can view here:
http://www.mendonomasightings.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Black-Bear-by-Marla-Skibbins.mp4
Thanks to Marla for allowing me to share her photo and video with you here.
It's a beautiful clear day today, with a nice breeze. Mr. Fog has left and there is a chance for a sighting of a green flash at sunset tonight!
Bill Budge found this Great Blue Heron reflected in the water.
Aren't these beautiful photos?
I went to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's website to see exactly what these herons eat. They wrote, "Great Blue Herons eat nearly anything within striking distance, including fish, amphibians, reptiles, small mammals, insects, and other birds. They grab smaller prey in their strong mandibles or use their dagger-like bills to impale larger fish, often shaking them to break or relax the sharp spines before gulping them down."
Their calls sound like "awk!" You can listen for yourself at https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Blue_Heron/sounds
Thanks to Bill for allowing me to share his photos with you here.
This fawn has been seen near Robert Goldberg's home with his/her mom. I was struck by those oh-so-big ears!
Here's a photo with the fawn nuzzling its mom. The fawn's ears don't look quite so big from this angle!
Thanks to Robert for allowing me to share his photos with you here.
Foggy this morning but the fog pulled back over the ocean giving us blue skies and mild temps. Bonus sightings: Humpback whales were seen early this afternoon!