Here in California we have been praying for a rain. Most of our rain comes between December and April. This year we have had some good rains BUT we have had some lovely days with temperatures in the seventies. This wonderful weather necessitates trips to the beach. Our closest beach to Napa is Bodega Bay.
In early January we decided to go to Bodega even if the weather was not beautiful. We were in need of a beach retreat and the negative ions. We had just lost a lifelong wonderful friend to an auto accident and needed our souls refreshed. So off we went.
When we arrived at Bodega Head, the wind was blowing, the waves were crashing and the raven pair were sitting on the railing where we parked. What a great welcoming committee! It appeared they had been waiting for us and our treats. I had a great time feeding them peanuts in the shell. This is no mean feat as the seagulls are ever present and very aggressive. So I had devise to ways to get the peanuts to the ravens without seagull interference. This amounted to throwing crackers to the seagulls in one direction and peanuts to the ravens in another. The ravens appeared healthy and happy despite the rain coming down. Ravens can look mighty unhappy in the rain. Bold and Shy on Mt. Veeder often appeared to be sulking when it was raining in the redwood forest. Perhaps these sea shore ravens are more used to wind and rain and take it all in stride.
Three weeks later we again visited Bodega Head. It was a beautiful day, warm, no wind, lovely. BUT there were no ravens in sight. I have never visited Bodega Head without seeing ravens. Very often they are flying above the bluffs, doing acrobatics in the sky. This was very worrisome. There were however many whale sightings. The whales pass Bodega on their journey from the birthing areas in Mexico to the cold northern seas. We had our binoculars with us and could see the whales backs as they came up for air and then dove back into the ocean. What a sight! I was sorry to have missed seeing the ravens and hope they are enjoying themselves in another area of the Bodega coastline.
In February we experienced another wonderful 70 degree day. We were scheduled to take care of our 3.5 year old granddaughter that day in Sebastopol. Sebastopol is only 30 minutes from Doran Beach at Bodega Bay, so off we went to Doran Beach with all the accoutrements of a beach day with a young child. When we arrived we were greeted by the resident pair of ravens that live in the trees near the beach. I really want to get my granddaughter to be interested in ravens. I need a raven maniac buddy. So we threw peanuts to the birds and I talked up RAVENS to her. Alas the pull of the water was too much and off we went. She is a dare devil so she requires careful watching. She thinks she is a surfer and has her own wetsuit, very cute. It was a grand day but I did not have much time to admire the ravens as we were very taken up with digging and piling up sand. It was another lovely day at Bodega Bay.
In early January we decided to go to Bodega even if the weather was not beautiful. We were in need of a beach retreat and the negative ions. We had just lost a lifelong wonderful friend to an auto accident and needed our souls refreshed. So off we went.
When we arrived at Bodega Head, the wind was blowing, the waves were crashing and the raven pair were sitting on the railing where we parked. What a great welcoming committee! It appeared they had been waiting for us and our treats. I had a great time feeding them peanuts in the shell. This is no mean feat as the seagulls are ever present and very aggressive. So I had devise to ways to get the peanuts to the ravens without seagull interference. This amounted to throwing crackers to the seagulls in one direction and peanuts to the ravens in another. The ravens appeared healthy and happy despite the rain coming down. Ravens can look mighty unhappy in the rain. Bold and Shy on Mt. Veeder often appeared to be sulking when it was raining in the redwood forest. Perhaps these sea shore ravens are more used to wind and rain and take it all in stride.
Three weeks later we again visited Bodega Head. It was a beautiful day, warm, no wind, lovely. BUT there were no ravens in sight. I have never visited Bodega Head without seeing ravens. Very often they are flying above the bluffs, doing acrobatics in the sky. This was very worrisome. There were however many whale sightings. The whales pass Bodega on their journey from the birthing areas in Mexico to the cold northern seas. We had our binoculars with us and could see the whales backs as they came up for air and then dove back into the ocean. What a sight! I was sorry to have missed seeing the ravens and hope they are enjoying themselves in another area of the Bodega coastline.
In February we experienced another wonderful 70 degree day. We were scheduled to take care of our 3.5 year old granddaughter that day in Sebastopol. Sebastopol is only 30 minutes from Doran Beach at Bodega Bay, so off we went to Doran Beach with all the accoutrements of a beach day with a young child. When we arrived we were greeted by the resident pair of ravens that live in the trees near the beach. I really want to get my granddaughter to be interested in ravens. I need a raven maniac buddy. So we threw peanuts to the birds and I talked up RAVENS to her. Alas the pull of the water was too much and off we went. She is a dare devil so she requires careful watching. She thinks she is a surfer and has her own wetsuit, very cute. It was a grand day but I did not have much time to admire the ravens as we were very taken up with digging and piling up sand. It was another lovely day at Bodega Bay.
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