Hail YES, We Have Weather in California!

Earthquakes. Mudslides. WildFires. Tsunamis. Floods. Pestilence (okay, likely no worse than anywhere else). All Biblical-type horrors for which California has worked hard to earn proper title. Even snow. BIG resorts around Tahoe and Mammoth, and even in the San Gabriels above LA there is enough snow to ski. [Isn't that just the best? SKI resorts so close to SURFING?!!?]

But HAIL??? Which requires THUNDERSTORMS??? Hardly ever ever in California. Locals will find conversation in a thunderstorm for days.

Yesterday, 24Jan08 I was dead asleep in the very early morning hours, and was snapped awake by one of those lightning flashes that pierces your eyelids - followed a second later by a sharp loud and CLOSE clap of thunder. Peeking outside at 1:45am and thinking I would see who-knows-what...


THIS is the exact 'real-time' view from the door of 'The Bunkhouse' (our name for our 1966 14' Aristocrat Traveleer-more on that in a future post).


While this may look like snow... it is HAIL. About the size of peas.

This is the shed where we store firewood for sale to campers. The white dots in the photos are falling hail.


Grabbing my camera the next morning, I left the chilly (48 degrees) Bunkhouse and was surprised to see so much hail still on the ground seven hours later.


The views over the water at El Capitan State Beach (where we live) were stunning. Ice. Fire. Water. = Hail. Sun. Ocean. Powerful stuff.

Double-Crested Cormorants and Brown Pelicans gathered more closely to shore than usual, perhaps taking in the view of the 'white stuff' themselves!

Not too many people using the great picnic facilities that morning - and they missed a great view.

The hail even piled up in wind-blown drifts like snow.

The hail also stayed frozen in puddles - and this was about eight hours after it fell - so it was still chilly by SoCal standards.

These are the pellets themselves - lying on a picnic table bench.

Arriving back at the Bunkhouse about 8:30am, I found that some hail pellets had begun to take residence on our canopy - and the thermometer registers 40 degrees!

By the time I hit the road to see 'snow-on-the-mountains' above Santa Barbara, the clouds had settled back in, covering up much of the earlier sun-lit drama. However, for snow to appear here, the 'snow level' has to be at 2,000' elevation or lower. For snow to form the air must be quite cold for 'Sunny Southern California' - something you are not likely to discover in any brochures from our wonderful and local Chambers of Commerce!

Many thanks to the the Canyon Market gang at El Capitan Canyon for sharing their great WiFi that allowed for pleasant production of this post. I can also vouch for their moist & tasty carrot cake! This environmentally sensitive upscale cabin, yurt & safari-tent resort is located just across 'the 101' from El Capitan State Beach.

This is the view I had of El Capitan Creek and Western Sycamores (complete w/laptop at right) from my blogging seat inside the Canyon Market & Deli.

California Condors & Gray Whales!!

Birthdays - who needs 'em - and what in the world do you ever get someone for a birthday present? And not having any expectations for gifts myself - just about anything might be a surprise. Well, my birthday was yesterday, and I received GREAT present(s), and other than some travel-time today, there was not a cent involved!

Living at El Capitan State Beach, I have been very interested in trying to view whales from shore. While it may be much more satisfying to take a 'whale boat' (not the ones from Japan that are dodging 'green' ships in the Antarctic Ocean) and have professionals guide you to see these mammoth marine mammals, finding them yourself is just more satisfying. And saves $80 - each.

Yesterday, while walking along the picnic area above the beach, I saw a young family looking out to sea - and quite intently given that there were very young kiddos involved. Mom had spotted a whale, and they were all waiting for another 'blow'. I weaseled my way over and inquired as to their focus, and they kindly pointed me in the right direction. So Sunday morning, before the NFL Conference Championships, I had my first whale sighting from land. A gray whale, headed south to the Gulf of California for the annual winter gathering. I'm told by the lifeguards here who have a GREAT viewpost, that I can expect to see many more gray whales beginning in mid-February when the moms come northward, closer to shore, keeping junior shore-side while she provides some protection to the roving white sharks and killer whales. I might see several dozen Gray Whales a day!

I am quite fussy about the quality of photos that I post on this site. However, I am pleased to offer the big lump that represents a mature Gray Whale:

So, what does one do on the day following the Gray Whale-from-the-beach adventure? How about trying to see a California Condor? Having seen Reed Smith's posting in the Ventura County Birding site stating that he had seen CA Condors that very day, Jeanne and I decided to give it a try.

Lake Piru is about 80 miles to the east and north of the Santa Barbara area and is located in Ventura County. In spite of clouds and a chance of rain, we headed to Lake Piru. Arriving about 9:45am, we stopped as outlined in the posting at the pull-off just above the dam. Moments later, Kirk and Luke from Malibu stopped in, also having read Reed's post - looking for CA Condors. We looked together, both pleased for the good company for nearly a half-hour, while Kirk bottle-fed Luke (Luke is a budding birder at four months old).

Coming up empty, we both headed to new overlooks, with Kirk and Luke going on ahead into the $8/car Lake Piru Management District. Jeanne and I decided to forego the extra $8 and return to the first overlook - and were rewarded for our thriftiness! Jeanne has become an excellent "bird-spotter" and spied the soaring birds over a ridge to the west. While far from being right overhead, and moving farther westward, I was able to take some photos. Again, while not 'quality photos', they do CONFIRM that we saw California Condors at Lake Piru!

Now that's a great 'back-to-back': 45 tons of Gray Whale on 20Jan and the 9' wingspan of CA Condors on 21Jan. Now let's see... what shall we look for tomorrow???

Strong white coloration on the leading edges of the underside of the wing, plus a white spot in the center of the underside of the tail are diagnostic. [Turkey Vultures are about half the size of CA Condors and have black leading edges & white secondary feathers.]

This view shows that the head is without feathers and has red skin.

We saw a pair.

Typical dihedral shape of California Condors - disappearing to their Sespe feeding grounds.

A New Year at El Capitan State Beach

The beginning of a New Year can't happen until the old one is finished. This year finds Jeanne and me still in Santa Barbara County, thirty miles west (northward on the 101) of the Rincon where we were so fortunate to 'over summer' in an apartment of most-generous friends, our 'housing benefactors' as I described them to others.

We are now official State of California Campground Hosts at El Capitan State Beach - and still seeking our next adventure - and being certain to enjoy THIS adventure in the meantime! More on the search in another posting.

Always a bit of 'a naturalist' since my youth without television in St. Pete, FL, my work over the past twenty years has taken me more inside the office and in front of the computer. Over the past ten months I have had much more flexibility to be in nature and have reveled in that opportunity. I hope I do not lose that natural connection to a new adventure.

This photo shows the very last flash of sunlight on the very last day of 2007. Looking westward over the Pacific on El Capitan Beach, the foreground is busy with the 'cairn work' of holiday campers. Sort of Stonehenge-like, I think.

Now looking to the eastern sky, the 'rock people' welcome the very first light of 2008 at El Cap State Beach. These celestial bookends celebrate a coming and a going of time at the turn of a New Year.

The Mae West of Trees?? Well, close...

Seems to me like Mae West would be VERY proud to be associated with this Floss Silk tree - or the Kapok tree. Both are very large, very showy and can surprise you with thorns! The flowers are brightly colorful, and appear as the leaves are dropping at the onset of the dry season (fall in the warmer parts of the Northern Hemisphere).
The brilliant flowers are large, to nearly 5" across and can carpet the ground when in full flower. In the same Order as Hibiscus, the Bombaceae or Bombax Family is mainly a tropical and Southern Hemisphere group of plants, with some trees of bizarre shapes and sizes.

There are many 'cultivars' of the Floss Silk Tree that include several different colors. This unusal tree is located on property once owned by Sumida Nurseries in Santa Barbara, California and is not only an older tree, it was grafted with at least three different flower types! In the news today, the Sumida Nursery Property is undergoing changes of its own. Let's hope the developers respect the most superior of Sumida plants.

But back to Ms. West... and the connection to this odd tree. You may recall a type of life vest used in the first half of the 20th Century? First used at the time of Ms. West's prominent career, sailors wearing this bulky vest felt they immediately had added girth above the waist to match the shape of the legendary Mae West. It is the silky fibers in the ripening fruit or pod that were used in making the flotation vests. These fibers were naturally coated in an oil and encapsulated the air within the fibers. Only if the cover of jacket was punctured could it fill with water and fail. This type of flotation was later superceded by much more dependable foams.

Flower closeups

And just where would the 'thorniness' occur? Varieties have been found or selected for use in landscapes that have very few if any thorns - for obvious reasons. This variety is nearly thornless a few feet above the ground.

Small thorns can be seen near the ground, as well as a carpet of fallen flowers.

THIS is why thornless varieties are popular in personal landscapes! Personally, I very much favor the striking (ouch!) look of the thorns of Chorisia speciosa. The thorns are very much a part of the tree's character and identity.

Can you see the nickel slipped in next to a large thorn? That will give you some idea of the size of the thorns! These are some SERIOUS thorns! The bark itself is also unusual in that it is green - an adaptation that allows for some photosynthesis to occur even after the leaves have fallen. Clever, eh?

In every way but ONE, this would be a great climbing tree. However, that ONE way is truly the end of that idea!

So thanks to the fibers in the fruit of a tree native to southeastern South America, lives have been saved at sea, snuggly wrapped in the embrace of Ms. West!

Zaca Fire Out, and the Effects Linger Still

When I last wrote about the Zaca Fire 16Sept07, this huge fire was contained, and not yet out. While today's heavy rains, in addition to 2"+ of rain of two weeks ago has the fire out the fire is still causing problems.

Many of my friends in Santa Barbara, Montecito and Carpinteria have reported huge amounts of Zaca Ash being deposited on their homes, patios, decks and cars. The culprit? Sundowner and/or Santa Ana winds. These strong winds pick up the ash on the ground left from the Zaca Fire and can deliver it for dozens of miles downwind. From my new home in El Capitan State Beach 15 miles west of Santa Barbara, I could see the dark cloud extending into the Santa Barbara Channel all the way past the Channel Islands - 25 miles to sea to the south.

The photo above was taken a bit closer than El Cap State Beach, from Goleta near Atascadero Creek overlooking a remnant patch of agricultural land. Streets in Santa Barbara have looked like the "Old West" with dust being kicked up by passing cars. Today's rain should settle the dust, and wash it out to sea.