Tag Archives: Gualala

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On Thursday late morning I looked up at something white in a very tall tree on the east side of Highway One in downtown Gualala. And I had my long lens camera with me, though my photos could be clearer. Until I focused my camera I didn't realize there were two Bald Eagles - they were standing so close together.

They seemed very interested with the comings and goings of the humans far below. I entitled the first photo, "Watching over Gualala." The female is bigger than the male, so I think she is perched behind the male. What a treat to see them!

It's warm (low 60's) with thin high clouds today. Mushrooms are appearing. On a forage this morning I found two matsutakes (one over the hill), two clumps of sweet tooth hedgehogs, the first bellybutton hedgehog and a handful of candy caps. Gifts from the forest.

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Richard Hansen photographed Castle Rock, which is found on the north end of Gualala. A submerged rock in front of it causes some major white water!

Here is one of my favorite photos taken by Richard a few years ago. The wave looks like a monster. Is the monster going to hug Castle Rock? Or???

This first full day of winter is cold and cloudy here on the Mendonoma Coast. We have some rain coming in.

Thanks to Richard for allowing me to share his photos with you here.

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Paul and Jackie Brewer have a front row seat to watch for whales from their Gualala home. Last week a pod of Humpback Whales was seen feeding. Here you can see the spouts of three Humpbacks.

And here is the tail of a Humpback Whale.

In this next photo you can see another tail photo but there's a line of what Paul thought might be fish. Upon closer examination, whale expert Scott Mercer determined they were "many, many California Sea Lions." There must have been a LOT of forage fish in the ocean.

More whales were seen yesterday, including two spouts seen by me as Rick and I drove home from Santa Rosa. The spouts were seen south of Fort Ross. It never gets old see a whale...never.

Thanks to Paul for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Paul's nature photography, here is the link to his website: http://www.capturingnatureswonders.com/

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A group of subadult Gray Whales that didn't migrate to the Bering Sea has been seen off of the Mendonoma coast regularly this summer. Paul Brewer photographed a few off his home in Gualala.

You see a tail, a flipper, and the head and back with the remnants of the blow.

Thanks to Paul for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Paul's nature photography, here is his website: http://www.capturingnatureswonders.com/

We are having autumn-like weather, with lots of clouds scurrying across the sky. It's quite lovely.

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When you install a motion detector camera, you open a new window to the world of nature. In Pat Sorensen’s case, he has three outdoor cameras at his place on the Gualala Ridge. He has many nocturnal sightings, including Gray Foxes who sometimes drink out of his birdbath. On July 7, and again on July 17, his cameras picked up the sighting of a huge Black Bear. The photos are a little blurry, but you can see it's a big bear!

Pat said, “The bear did no damage and left no ‘calling cards.’ He walked by the shed and headed east into the brush.” The territory of a female Black Bear is typically 2.5 to 10 square miles. A male Black Bear’s range is between 10 and 59 square miles.

It’s not surprising to have a Black Bear sighting, especially with huckleberries ripening up. Pat noticed American Robins, in particular, were in berry-laden bushes, and Deer are eating the berries too.

Thanks to Pat for allowing me to share his photos with you here!