Around the Horn

 

Whimbrel at Heron's Head Park

On Saturday I rode out to Heron's Head Park by way of Golden Gate Park, the Panhandle and The Wiggle, then down 17th Street through the Mission and Dog Patch, and finally south on Illinois Street to Cargo Way. For the homeward trip I followed the coast all the way past the Giants ballpark and the Ferry Building, past Fisherman's Wharf and Fort Mason, past Crissy Field and the Golden Gate Bridge, past Baker Beach, Seacliff and China Beach, past the Legion of Honor Museum to Land's End and the Cliff House, then back home through Golden Gate Park where I rode past the Outside Lands music festival (which I can still hear -- our windows even rattle on occasion -- despite it being miles away, as I type this out).

Willet Siesta

I don't think I've ever seen a whimbrel lie down before.

A couple of black-necked stilts worked a mud flat with a lone American avocet.

A least sandpiper shows no fear as the dreaded black-necked stilt probes closer and closer....

A double-crested cormorant worked the shallows at Heron's Head Park.

My, what a long neck this willet has.

Home is where the fog is (view from Heron's Head Park).

A squadron of brown pelicans soars over the bay past Heron's Head.

The whimbrel returns to action.

There's an area just east of Illinois Street around 20th to 22nd streets that I always like to check out when I ride by. I like the decrepit old buildings, but I also like finding something new, where an old decrepit building has been redeveloped and turned into something interesting...

...like Building 12, where I saw padel tennis courts, a motorcycle shop, and some other kind of shopping area that looked like Open Studios, but about clothing instead of art.

Scuderia at Building 12.

I like how the street looks done before there's any reason to drive down here.

Salesforce Tower looms over Oracle Park.

Game day, as the Giants were about to beat the Detroit Tigers.

Wing foils slicing across the bay behind Fort Mason.

Wing-foilers off Crissy Field.

The leading edges and the central axis they hold onto are inflated with air. I only know that because I saw a guy pumping his wings back up in the parking lot.

I was watching the long-billed curlew through my lens when the herring gull darted into the water to snag a little crab.

Long-billed curlew at Crissy Lagoon.

There must have been a fair number of fish in Crissy Lagoon, as there were usually several pelicans diving into the shallow water to feed.

The pelican in the back is just opening its beak before taking a plunge into the water to try to snag some lunch. I wonder if the other pelican is mainly looking up, or down into the water. I wonder how the bird's mind even processes such divergent visual perspectives.

The orange beaks caught my attention: elegant terns.

Land's End cliffs (with pelicans) as seen from China Beach.

* * *

Seasons Fleeting

 

Oaks on Whiskey Hill, Golden Gate Park
(4/26/24 and 8/9/24)

One of my daily walks takes me along the spine of a low hill that parallels Lincoln Way on the southeastern edge of Golden Gate Park. I never knew the hill had a name until it appeared in a newsletter published by a neighbor who mentioned it in relation to some large eucalyptus trees that can be found there (upon one of which I saw a  large fruiting of chicken-of-the-woods back in 2023; photo below).

Back in late April of this year I was struck by the fresh spring beauty of the oaks and grass at the eastern edge of the hill and knew I'd want to make a comparison shot once the grass turned brown. Well, the grass is Earharta erecta, aka panic veldtgrass. It's a widespread invasive that San Francisco park staff and volunteers do their best to keep in check where possible. 

I had to wait a long time for enough of the Earharta to turn brown for the "after" picture. The grasses on Mt. Tam had been brown for weeks before this stuff finally went to seed, and I wonder if its ability to thrive while other grasses have gone to seed is part of its key to success.

Deciduous Street
(3/13/24 and 6/25/24)

I'm including the "Deciduous Street" now because I couldn't find the bare-branch photo in my files back in June, when I took the leafy shot. I probably thought March was too late in the season to look for bare branches, but I came across it by accident just the other day.

This is the chicken-of-the-woods that was growing on the eucalyptus on Whiskey Hill back on December 8, 2023 (it didn't make the blog at the time).

I photographed this pine near the start of my Friday morning walk, with the thought that it's winter now in Australia and the southern hemisphere -- and also in San Francisco.

These little Coprinus mushrooms were sprouting below a planted tree on the UCSF campus on Parnassus Heights.

A patch of Crocosmia lilies was sprouting colorfully through the slats of its fenced garden enclosure on 10th Avenue.

* * *

Riding the Wind

 

Brown Pelicans Flying Into The Wind

I had the unusual sensation of feeling a little groggy again during my walk this morning, but I think I figured out what's going on. I believe the reason is that I haven't been wearing my glasses on my walks. My vision is okay enough to walk around, but I need glasses to drive, and without them the world is just a tad fuzzy (my prescription is basically 1.5-diopter reading glasses). The grogginess seemed to coincide with my decision to walk glasses-free, and sure enough when I put them on part-way through today's walk, I brightened right up.

Weird, right? Seeing the world a little bit fuzzy makes my mind a little bit fuzzy! Actually, I love that kind of weirdness, and I was determined to keep walking without wearing glasses, so I put them back in my pocket and continued in a state of semi-fuzziness.

I put the glasses back on for the bike ride, though. Too dangerous to ride fuzzy, and too beautiful a day to settle for soft-focus. [UPDATE: The very next day I read an article about vision loss leading to dementia. Time to get more comfortable glasses for my walks!]

Many brown pelicans were flying along the coast. I'd forgotten that brown pelicans were headed toward extinction back in the '70s due to DDT poisoning, and finally recovered enough to be taken off the endangered speciest list in 2009. I was treated to some close fly-bys as I watched several squadrons wing past the Cliff House today. They were slowed down a little by strong headwinds, which allowed for an excellent view of these awesome birds.

Surf Scoters

The sea lions were boisterously barking today. I don't always notice them making noise out there.

Low Altitude Drift

* * *

Now & Then

 

The difference ninety minutes can make....

I was feeling a little groggy this morning as I stepped out the door for my morning walk, and I couldn't figure out why. So I blamed the fog. I mean, they don't call this month Fogust for nothing. I texted the first photo to my wife as I headed out (she's visiting her parents out of state), saying I wouldn't mind having a sunny day for a change.

This particular walk heads toward the beach before circling back, and the circuit takes about an hour-and-a-half. So I was heading out into heavy fog and chilly headwinds, but I was stoked to see clearing skies on my return trip.

This is Middle Lake's "then and now." The top photo is from October 2023, and the bottom shot is from today. (Although it's still sunny at home, it's still foggy near the beach, even now at nearly 2 p.m.) 

I was interested to see that all the sea lions on the northernmost Seal Rocks appeared to have recently come out of the water. When their fur dries it tends to become more golden. 

While their pals were napping on the rocks, these two porpoising sea lions seemed to be rushing toward an appointment. They were heading toward the southernmost Seal Rocks when my attention was diverted by pelicans and cormorants flying on a collision course, and I lost track of the sea lions.

Heavy Traffic Near Seal Rocks
(There were several surfbirds probing the sandy beach in front of Cliff House again today, but I accidentally scared them off in the same way I scared off the black turnstone the other day -- by popping up in my fluorescent-yellow cycling windbreaker.) 

* * *

Tamalpais Dreams

 

Dream Landscape, Mt. Tamalpais

I'd hoped the fog would be floating much higher on the mountain than it was this morning. The web cams looked promising, but a strong and dry, smoke-scented wind out of the northwest seemed to have pushed the fog to a lower elevation early in the morning. Interestingly, Windy.com shows the wind circulating in from the northeast. As the map isn't the territory, neither are the weather models.

With no fog up high, I drove past the entrance across from the Pantoll Ranger Station (which, at 6:50 a.m., had yet to open anyway) to descend into the fog and redwoods. It was nice and quiet down there, with only two or three cars passing by the whole time I was there.

After enjoying the redwoods, I drove back up the hill to Rock Spring where a covey of California quail and two black-tailed jackrabbits eluded capture by my lens. I hiked a short ways to set out a couple of trail cameras, and from there continued on to see if the leopard lilies were still blooming in their usual spot. I figured it was going to be a bit late in the summer to find them, but even so, I was surprised to find no trace of them at all. Not even fruited-out stalks. I hope they haven't been permanently choked out of that particular location.

Hiking off-trail, I waded through the tallest grasses I've ever encountered anywhere on the mountain. Thankfully, tick season seems to have passed. However, there were still lots of resinous grass seeds that infiltrated my socks and even stuck to my legs. Nevertheless, the early morning light was gorgeous. 

Despite the beautiful light, I wasn't finding any subjects to pose in it. I was reminded of an artist interview I recently came across in which Edward Hopper said all he really wanted to do was paint the light on the sides of houses. I tried to take that to heart, but I still didn't find anything I wanted to photograph, so I drove down past Muir Woods to Frank's Valley and poked around Redwood Creek for awhile.

Panoramic Highway Descent Toward Stinson Beach

Sword Fern & Redwoods in the Fog

Lots of junior redwood sprouts were rising at mama's feet.

Redwood Road Trip

Morning Mists

Layers of Forest & Fog

I saw very few wildflowers up around Rock Spring, and even the rosinweed seemed to be winding down.

I got different answers when tried to get an ID on this tall grass from both PlantID and iNaturalist (even different genera), so I'll leave it un-named.

Whatever it is, the dark woods along Redwood Creek made a good backdrop for it.

I wasn't even thinking about banana slugs when I entered the woods to scurry down to the creek. And then I saw this longfellow cruising up an alder trunk. And then I saw more farther up the tree. And then I saw a half-dozen or so, little bitty slimers to full-sized mollusks, right around my feet....

I've never had to be so careful to not step on a slug, and thankfully I believe no slugs were harmed in the making of these pictures.

Alder Leaves in Redwood Creek

Color in the Crick

Panning for Gold

Reflections from Above

Hedge Nettle Intertwined With Horsetail

* * *

Of Tattlers and Pokeweeds

Wandering Tattler Below the Cliff House

Ever since the recent flash mob of whimbrels, I've been thinking it's been a long time since I've seen any surfbirds [UPDATE: I've been seeing wandering tattlers, not surfbirds!] or black turnstones foraging on the rocks down by Sutro Baths. Today I saw both. The one-and-only turnstone shot away like a bullet toward Seal Rocks as soon as it saw me, so it's safe to say they are not yet acclimated to human proximity. After the turnstone fiasco I was more careful with the wandering tattler and managed not to frighten it away. 

I began my walk today in ridiculously windy, foggy, and chilly conditions. What makes it especially weird is knowing that Yosemite Valley is forecast to reach 101 degrees today. Meanwhile it's 58 degrees outside my door this afternoon, and that's without the chilling wind.

After seeing the photography gear being used by many of the other birders looking for the slate-throated redstart the other day (apparently seen for the first time ever in California), my gear envy kicked in. When I got home I window-shopped a whole new mirrorless system to replace my DSLR. I'm still on the fence about actually making the switch, though, and will have to think about it some more. Meanwhile, I recall the wise words of an old friend who used to say that the "best" camera was the one you have with you. And for now, the little FZ80 is the one I can have with me pretty much all the time.

I keep forgetting what this plant is called. It's native to the eastern United States, and I first identified it (with an app) in Chicago, where it's common. It's called pokeweed, a name likely derived from the Algonquin puccoon. The berries are apparently good for making ink, but bad for eating, at least for humans. [UPDATE on pokeweed-pickin' below.]

Collecting pokeweed to make ink.

Drawing made with pokeweed ink.

Rooftops in the Fog

Waymos at Rest
(I'm not sure why autonomous electric vehicles need to rest, but I often see them doing so in and around the neighborhood. They are not charging. They're just occupying curbside parking spaces for their own inscrutable reasons.)

It's pretty rare to see a mouse out in the open like this. The poor guy was on the sidewalk, trying to get out of the way as I approached....

The cute little fella had apparently been poisoned, or at least that's how it looked to me as it wobbled and practically tipped over while trying to take a few steps. It  practically fell off the curb in order to take refuge under a parked car. I didn't see any hawks around, and hopefully the mouse, assuming it has been poisoned, will not be eaten by one.

Unliked poisonous pokeweed and a poisoned mouse, these little apples look good enough to eat.

These pink amaryllis flowers (Amaryllis belladonna), aka Jersey Lilies (not to be confused with Lillie Langtry), remind me of late summer, when the grasses have all turned brown and the heavy fog comes in. I usually first notice them along Panoramic Highway on my way to Mt. Tamalpais, but this time I noticed them in the neighborhood. It's native to South Africa, but I always appreciate its exotic exuberance when most other flowers have finished blooming.

The bison were out and about today, along with a surprising number of people enjoying Golden Gate Park despite the chilly weather.

Peaceful Beast

Wandering Tattler on the Hunt

Tattler Above the Surf

There were lots of pelicans and cormorants winging it along the coast this morning.

The surface of the water just offshore was unusually choppy and chaotic. There must have been some interesting cross-currents going on to make it toss about in such a strange way. The channel of the Golden Gate was placid in comparison.

* * *