To Santa Cruz

On Sunday morning, Kate and I drove to Santa Cruz along the coastal highway, stopping along the way to enjoy the beauty.

Our first stop was at Devil’s Slide Trail where I took this is a photo of Egg Rock. The larger all black birds are Brandt’s Cormorants which I had seen while visiting San Diego. The smaller birds with white are Common Murres, a new species for me.

Traveling just a couple miles and a handful of minutes, the weather would frequently change from sunny and warm, to foggy and cool, then back again. But whatever the weather, the views were lovely.

Stopping at Half Moon Bay, there was a small island near the jetty that was absolutely covered in Brown Pelicans.

A bit south of Half Moon Bay, we stopped at Cowell Ranch Beach. To get to the water, we walked about a half mile through fields. This area turned out to be a prime location for raptors. In just a few minutes, I saw a Northern Harrier, an American Kestrel, and this Red-shouldered Hawk.

I was keeping my eyes out for a White-tailed Kite, a new species for me that could be found in this habitat. About 15 minutes into our walk, I spotted this one a long distance away.

And here is another view of the shore and the Pacific Ocean.

Black Phoebes have been very common on this trip, but my best Phoebe photo so far has been this one of the much less common Say’s Phoebe.

Here is a photo from our final stop before getting to Santa Cruz on Sunday afternoon.

Kate and I spent Monday mostly relaxing at our Inn and taking short walks. In the morning, we wondered onto the half mile long town wharf. Underneath the wharf was a large colony of sea lions.

There was constant commentary by the sea lions which reverberated off the water and the wharf.

At one point, it seemed as if they were putting on a show in the water.

To get out of the water onto the wharf required a massive jump. This sea lion was a bit short on this jump.

A bit further north from the wharf is Natural Bridges State Beach. We did not get there, but were able to see one of the natural bridges.

Finally, surfing is big all along the California coast, and Santa Cruz is no exception. I spent a few minutes photographing surfers, and this was my favorite photo.