June Haps

 The biggest news over the past two weeks was Gail's birthday on June 3.  The big Six O!  We shall be celebrating over the next few weeks with dinners out, little trips, and whatever catches Gail's fancy. She certainly deserves all this for all she does to make our home look artistic and cared for, inside and out.  Her pet project of keeping 8 miles of our road litter free also merits praise and some good take-out food!

Per Gail's request, on June 3, we picked up gourmet sandwiches at Le Maison in Newport and then drove the climb to Horse Creek Trailhead in the Drift Creek Wilderness.  It was a gorgeous day for a hike, being cool, but sunny.  

The Girls resting at the base of a capsized tree.

We descended about 1,100 feet to Drift Creek for our picnic.  There were crayfish by the dozens!

Three days earlier, we were walking down the 5300 when Gail spotted this Barred Owl.  I'm not sure if this owl is keeping his right eye closed or if it is injured.  We saw one in the same area 2 years ago with his right eye closed and we thought it was injured at the time.  I'm not sure now.

                                    He blends in very well with the trunk of this Douglas Fir.

                          The next day it was 85 degrees and time for our first float on the river.

The day after that we did a beach walk at Ocean Beach.  It was a crackup trying to get the 3 of us in a selfie!

Two years ago, Nick collected seeds from a columbine plant on our backpack trip outside of Durango.  He started a few plants and gave us a little one last September which I planted in our front garden.  It flowered a few days ago!  Thanks, Nick!

This week I took Daisy for a run at Ocean Beach and saw these tracks.  I was baffled and thought maybe sea turtle, even though I knew that would be a rare occurrence.  Upon checking my tracking books at home it proved to be a harbor seal.  They have claws on their front flippers.

A Week of Family Fun

 Andria, Nora, Soren, and Susanna departed back to Colorado Springs yesterday (Sunday) after a week here at River Song.  Nick, who came a day earlier, had to leave on Wednesday.  We had a blast catching up, hanging out, and going on little adventures.  It had been a year and a half since Nick and I had seen Andria and the kids, and quite a bit longer for Gail.  Andria's husband Dave couldn't come as he is currently deployed to Bahrain for the year doing USN intel.  He will get to come home in July for 3 weeks.

Soren was immediately drawn to the binoculars.

Susanna adds scale to our big Sitka Spruce.

Susanna was thrilled to find snails in the wild, as snails don't thrive in Colorado.  Back home she has a pet snail and has successfully bred thousands of the mollusks. 

Nora and Daisy checking out the pond.

Badminton was a big hit for all ages.

On Tuesday afternoon, we met Lorie and her dog Juno at the beach.  On the left is Nora, who is wearing a full wetsuit - she came prepared!

Daisy and Juno get along very well and make an amusing couple.

Juno embodies little dog personality and is a bundle of energy.

Susanna loved modeling Gail's hats.

On Nick's last night, Andria graciously treated us to dinner at The Drift Inn.

Gail taught Susanna how to make earrings.  She picked it up quickly and made several pairs.

We gathered around Snuffleupagus for some photo fun.

Susanna chillin' down at the cabana.

Nora enjoyed taking some hikes on her own for the peace and solitude of Yachats Valley.

Susanna and Gail made a couple delicious blackberry pies.

Lorie and Brian (and Juno) joined us for a barbecue on the back deck.  

Brian and Susanna hitting it off. 

The hot tub made a big splash with the kids.

Susanna, Daisy, and I on a walk down the road to see the llamas, alpacas, and peacocks at Starshine Ranch.

Hello Mr. banana slug.

Nick made a lasting impression on these two!

On Friday we all took a hike at Cape Perpetua.  Susanna poses on an awesome stump.

Gail and Susanna had an elegant tea party on Saturday morning.

Andria, Susanna, Gail, and I went to Ocean Beach on Saturday morning to catch one of the lowest tides of the year.  Susanna found several agates, and touched a sea star.

Soren helped out by splitting some logs.

Susanna split a couple, also.

Getting ready to leave on Sunday morning.  Daisy was rewarded with a new "squirrel" for her gentle and calm behavior throughout the week.

Family Visit Preview

 Nick, Andria, and the kids have been here this week.  Nick had to leave after a couple days but everyone else is still here.  This picture is just a tease for more to come.  It has been a whirlwind of fun and action!

May Update

 No big features, just some random shots so far this month.  That will change soon, however, as Andria and the kids plus Nick will be coming for a stay in about a week. Yippee!  Can't wait to see them all!

On April 29, we had a very low tide of minus 2.1 feet.  We took advantage of that by heading to Ocean Beach with Daisy.  We were able to see and go to spots that we had never seen exposed before.

The tide was still going out when we arrived.

I think it's safe to say that sea star wasting disease is no longer a problem here.

For several weeks my trail cams on the property were only getting rabbits and birds.  Finally, a couple days ago, a couple deer showed up, and then yesterday, a pair of coyotes.  I'm not sure if the lack of wildlife on the property was a good sign or not.

The coyotes came through at 7:43 A.M. after Gail had walked Daisy nearby a half hour earlier. Gail said Daisy was very excited and pulling hard on their walk.

Loving April

April has been sunny and dry with only 0.6" of rain.  We even  had a red flag fire alert for a couple days due to east winds with low humidity.  The upside is that we have had great conditions for yard work, hiking, and no messing around with rain gear.  This is the month that some of our favorite seasonal visitors arrive, too, including Evening Grosbeaks, Purple Finches, Tree Swallows, Violet-green Swallows, Turkey Vultures, and Steelhead Trout.

One of the raucous Steller's Jays hanging around our feeders.

An Evening Grosbeak eats while a Purple Finch waits its turn.

A chipmunk and a female or immature male Evening Grosbeak eating sunflower seeds.

Evening Grosbeaks are very social and I love their loud morning chatter.  

A lot of activity here to enjoy, with Evening Grosbeaks and Red-winged Blackbirds.

This Northern Alligator Lizard probably finds plenty to eat in our greenhouse.

We have some Trillium plants around the property.  They take years to finally be big enough to bloom, their seeds are distributed by ants, and the plants can be killed by picking off leaves.  It is illegal to pick Trillium in many areas.

Last Saturday, we participated in a beach cleanup just south of Waldport.  Gail displays her haul.

Steve Cook, in the center, spearheaded the cleanup and got SOLVE to help out with materials and publicity.  Steve sings and plays guitar several nights a week at our favorite Yachats restaurant, the Drift Inn.  It was a pretty awesome turnout of volunteers.

The following four pics are from our favorite beach to the south, Ocean Beach.  This day had a very low tide that allowed us to venture further up the coast than we had ever been before.  This is bliss for Daisy, who gets to run free and flop in the tidepools.

Zen Moment

The river by our big Sitka Spruce tree.