Many a Jumping Orca

Breaching whales are always a spectacular sight.  They may do it for communication, socialization or just playing around.  Orcas, dolphins and humpbacks as well as other dolphin and cetacean species can project themselves right out of the water.  A fully grown orca can get the power to do this with about 4 tail waves.

The orca below has done such a big spy hop that it is practically a breach.  Spyhopping is used to help them see around the surface of the water.  They could be orienting themselves using the land or checking out what is around them including observer boats and the shoreline.

Sideways breachs occur when the animal propels itself out of the water at an angle to land on its side.  The orca below looks like she is stretching her paddle shapped pectoral fins up towards the sky.  I think we all wish we could move in the water like them.

For Bob

 This past week our good friend Bob Taylor passed away. A brilliant photographer with a sharp eye and a long list of published books, he was a passionate voice for conservation and nature. Running tours through the Canadian arctic (particularly the bears of Churchill) as well as Eastern Africa he was always on the move and always charming, professional and patient.

 My father toured Kenya with Bob in 1986 and took me with him in 1996. The incredible experiences I had in that country were directly responsible for Kathryn and my tour with him in 2010. Bob strongly recommended the Galapagos and Quest tours to us at the time which obviously contributed to our end decision to visit the islands with that very company. Furthermore, Kathryn has been incredibly inspired by his efforts in photography and conservation and his influence certainly contributed to her working as a naturalist this past summer.

Through decades of tours in Eastern Africa, Bob built up a special rapport with many of the safari drivers and lodge staff. Henry Nzioka poses at Sweetwaters with him in the photo below on one of their many tours of Kenya over the years. Henry was a driver when I went with my father in 1996 and their friendship was already long established then.

 

I think Kathryn summarized it best:

A wonderful man of the world and naturalist died. Bob Taylor you opened up another world for me. No thanks will ever be adequate. I know that there are more worlds for you to explore.

Indulging my Plant Lust

With Geordie and I's move to the 4th floor on the west side of the building I can finally indulge my plant lust..... oh yes....  My geraniums have exploded.  I thought I was going to lose them for awhile but they rallied and have been blooming non stop.  I see alot of balconies with geraniums so they must like this side of things.

I also got some marigolds.  Now I have something for Day of the Dead for my skulls and bone dolls!  It started with one flower and then more came.  The English mint that I took out of that pot and put in another is bent on world domination. I sense a Dr. No scenario only its an English Mint stroking a white spider mite. 

Best part is the T O M A T O E !  I have been wanting home grown tomatoes near forever it seems.  I found a patio roma variety so I got it and it has been producing like nobody's business.  I have done BLTs, and fresh toms with home grown basil, fig infused balsamic vineger and mozza cheese.  Hmmmm Baby!  I'm a bit worried about it now because of the heat wave and the yellowed leaves but I continue to enjoy the wee bit of gardening I can do out there.  The orchid continues to struggle..... so the epic continues.

"Roughing It" in Qualicum Bay + Bonus Vancouver Island Timelapse

A bit late in stating the fact but we have had a lot to post about lately.  So lets go back to the Easter long weekend where Geordie and I headed to the very sweet community of Qualicum Bay.  We stayed at the below place which was beach front.  We saw LOTS of Harlequin ducks, sea birds and even some whales waaaaay off in the distance. 

It also had a BBQ where Geordie and myself gorged ourselves on free meat. For some reason a lot of the time we get given free meats when we visit Vancouver Island. Last year it was fresh caught Sockeye Salmon. This year free shishkabob.  So we filled it with delicious carcinogens and ate it all up.  So much meat!  It was a great place to stay and hope to use it again.

And because that is what we do here is a timelapse taken from the fence in the first picture. It captures the tides in a wonderful way and you can see bunches of different ducks and even a seal in it.  Very lovely misty mornings.

G: Since the video above is actually a collection of timelapses, the clip she's talking about is the 2nd one. We also have some nice shots from Telegraph Cove and Tofino in there to round out the set. As always, if it won't play on its own, right click to open the original file in Vimeo :)

Galapagos Port Towns

So we are going back to 2011 in November when Geordie and myself were in the Galapagos.  There were many port towns that were fun to explore and they were stunning from the water. Below is Puerto Boquerizo Moreno from the boat.  Generally we would moor in the harbour and than take tenders to shore.

Below is the Fish market in Punta Ayora. Those are very expectant brown pelicans hoping for fish scraps from the fisherman who are gutting and cleaning a catch from earlier in the morning.  Sea gulls would skull by low to try to steal a piece. Bad birds.

 The Galapagos Sea Lions behaved much like pigeons do in North American cities.  Basically they are everywhere. Including on this park bench not giving a damn about Geordie and I having our picture taken next to it.  This is in Puerto Boquerizo Moreno where sea lions were rampant along the sea front. Much like gulls, pigeons and Canadian geese are in Vancouver.

Hundreds of Dolphins!

Geordie and I got to scratch one off our bucket list the week of July 10th.  We went on our annual pilgrimage to Telegraph Cove to see friends, beautiful scenery and gorgeous wildlife.  Out with Stubbs Island Whale Watching there came a report of a super pod of Pacific White Sided Dolphins, so we set out to find them.  To count them try to estimate how many you see out of the water at once and them multiply it by 3-5.  There were over 200 in this super pod which is rare for this time of year as it is kind of early.  The photos do not do them justice.  Video is forthcoming.

They were very active. They went all around the boat. Mating, half breaching, tail slapping, jumping and as the fellow below is doing: popcorning.  Just like popcorn popping he shot straight into the air near vertical to land on his right side. He did this repeatedly in about the same spot.

 

In addition to the above activities they were also bow riding.  Pacific white sided dolphins often engage in play with boats and boat wakes.  The wake of the boat gives them surf to play in.  The wake at the side and the push wave at the front gives them a speed boost which must be extra exhilarating. Putting the hydrophone down got us some extra great vocalizations as well.

Happy Canada Day to You All

 Canada Day has come once again and while Kathryn was spending a sizeable day out whale watching, I took a chance to brave the crowds and take some pictures of the locals celebrating our great nation in all its weird and wonderful ways. Like these two chaps below, happily posing for pictures with passersby and generally being weird looking but absurdly patriotic at the same time.

 There are always street performers of many kinds with musicians, skateboarders, buskers and mascots among them. This year I chose this photo of a person dressed as an inukshuk to highlight the weirdness and neat costumes that fill the streets on July 1st. A worthy second place goes to the women wearing dresses made of cans that were arranged like drums and were encouraging passersby to play their drum dresses.

 

I always like to wander through the area around the old Olympic Torch by the convention centre on Canada Day since it gives you a neat perspective above the crowds. I have infact posted panoramas from this very spot in years past, but not with my weird little planet tweaks, so here's a new look on an old favorite to round out the day.