Take the Long Way Back

Our trip back from the lighthouse at Dungeness Spit was much tougher than the five mile trip out to it. With an unusually high tide we were forced to walk in loose sand, rocks, and even on logs to keep dry. Even our sunshine disappeared, leaving us worried it would start raining before we got back.

Almost immediately, though, we started seeing more birds and animals, and I hadn’t gone that far not to take pictures. First, we spotted a large group of harbor seals. Although they splashed repeatedly, I only managed to get shots like this of them riding the waves and watching us:

Harbor Seals

Most of my attention, though was devoted to trying to get a picture of the terns that kept flying directly over my head and out to sea. It was nearly impossible to get a good picture of one in flight with the low-light conditions, but when I was forced to climb to the top of the ridge to avoid a large wave, I saw a massive flock of Common Terns on the other side of the spit.

Flock Of Common Terns

My favorite shot of the day was this one of a pair of Terns catching fish.

Common Terns

Birding wise, though, I think this is the first time I’ve ever managed to get a shot of a Whimbrel, or even knew what one looked like, for that matter:

Whimbrels

4 thoughts on “Take the Long Way Back”

  1. These are my new favorites. Especially the seals riding the waves and making eye contact with those of us on the shore. Among my favorite memories are those of walking alone on the beach in various places in Northern California and looking out to the waves and watching playful seals who watched me, too. That always made me feel welcomed. A reminder that I am never alone.

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