Views of Sequim, the Olympic Peninsula. . .and beyond
I can’t tell you how many harriers around here have harassed me by perching on a post, just so. If I don’t have a camera they let me get tantalizingly close. If I am packing a camera they either turn away completely or fly off before I get anywhere in range. I take it personally.
This one figured he was off the hook because he blended so well with the background. Or maybe it was the smallness of my new camera. But I’m not proud. I’ll take the best I can get. Take that, Mr. Harrier!
The boat above is the Saishomaru, a Japanese fishing boat that is on display in the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, Oregon. It washed ashore at Cape Disappointment, Washington, part of a pulse of tsunami debris that flowed to the U.S. West Coast after the 2011 tsunami that devastated Japan and killed over 18,000 people.
I was reminded of this debris when I read in the local paper Thursday that earthquake scientists who are studying earthquake faults in this region are puzzling over the inactivity of the Cascadia fault zone that runs along the West Coast from Northern California to Vancouver Island. Compared with other zones in the region, this one is “extraordinarily quiet” — not a good thing, geologically speaking. Most faults do some slipping and sliding, which relieves the stress that builds as the massive plates of the earth’s crust strike and move across one another. Scientists are concerned that the Cascadia fault may be “locked,” or stuck in one place as pressure to move mounts up, in this case over centuries. The more pressure that builds, the bigger the quake — and tsunami — that is eventually released. It could release a magnitude 9.0 quake, truly a monster tremor.
It might never happen in our lifetimes. I certainly hope it doesn’t. But the earthquake and tsunami in Japan is a frightening reminder of what might happen here.
I like the view of these houses perched on the bluffs above the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Like the trail I showed you yesterday, they’re close to an edge that moves ever closer. They have a wonderful view…but I’m not sure I’d care to be that up close and personal.
I’ve posted a number of shots of the eroding bluffs at the Dungeness Recreation Area. But I didn’t expect the south end to be completely closed like this. I don’t know if it’s a proactive effort to avoid further erosion or an attempt to keep people from climbing up a steep and particularly dangerous off limits area.
Another parallel trail further inland is under construction but apparently it’s not ready yet. Walkers are diverted to another trail, along the edge of a marshy area. It was pictured in my post yesterday.
It’s faint but this couple is walking towards a rainbow, to the left.
A relative came to town in October and we took her to Alder Wood Bistro for dinner. We couldn’t resist mussels, a favorite dish that we enjoyed in some memorable meals in California with our good friend Marie, who’d harvested them. “No one eats like fishermen,” I’ve been told. It’s hard to argue with that.
Today’s first of the month theme with City Daily Photo is “Worker.” I chose as my subject Olympic National Park Ranger Brittany, who led an informative walk at the former Lake Aldwell last summer. The public was invited to inspect progress on the restoration of the Elwah River through the lake bed after removal of two dams to restore an historic salmon fishery.
National Park Service Rangers protect and preserve the U.S. National Park System, many as educators, interpreters of natural and human history in the park units in which they work. They can, as well, fulfill law enforcement roles, act as first responders and emergency medical technicians, perform search and rescue, and/or act as fire fighters.
To see other workers from around the world, click here.