Motoring Across America

With James "Alex" Alexander

with James "Alex" Alexander



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Blog 324: Low Tides and Tall Cliffs

Seascapes
Views on or above the Oregon coast beaches are often dashing, sometimes dramatic, and most always delightful. Walking along the sand, you can sense the fog, feel the wind, and embrace the ever-changing hues and patterns of the waves. Here is a view from Coquille Point, one facing Elephant Rock, and one from Nesica Beach that Jan took overlooking the tide pools.

Coquille Point Seascape

Elephant Rock

Jan Nesica Seascape

Beach Action
Beauty spurs photography. Here is a pic of an early morning photographer on the beach searching for the perfect scene and a shot Jan took of me bundled up on a particularly chilly and windy morning.

Photog at Coquille Point

Alex at Coquille Point

Common Murres
Hundreds (sometimes thousands) of Common Murres come back from the sea once a year to lay their eggs on narrow shelves on tall rocks, feed their hungry chicks, then entice their growing youngsters to dive into the sea to start a life on their own in the wild. Here is a photo of a “penguins of the north” colony, plus a shot of an individual I took on an early morning walk with Jack on Bullards Beach.

Murres Colony

Common Murre

Western Gull
As you know, gulls seem to be everywhere on the planet, stealing food, constantly squawking, and spraying unwitting passersby with a white stain and a pungent scent at random. Yet, gulls are an integral part of the global cleanup committee that keeps beaches free of animal remains and garbage. Here is a good-looking adult Western Gull getting ready for a crab appetizer.

Western Gull and Crab

Tide Pooling
Begrudgingly, and only at very low tides, the seas pull back their liquid curtains to reveal pelagic jewels seen only by those who seek out treasure. Villages of living critters—anemones, chitons, stars, barnacles, crabs, sponges, and scores more of other species undulate in rhythm and display bright arrays of eye-candy colors.

Tide Poolers

Basket-Top Tube Worm

Black Katys Chiton

Chiton and Star

Crab for Lunch

Jan Pelagic Gooseneck Barnacle

Lined Chiton II

Merten's Chiton

Pretty Tide Pool

Red Encrusting Sponge

Red-Beaded Anemone

Root

Seersucker Kelp

Star Bazaar

Tide Pool IV

Tide Pool Scene

Two Mossy Chiton

Old Trucks

Meet Gwen

Gwen

Meet Nattie Girl

Nattie Girl

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