Summer has ended...

 

My official summer monitoring duties ended with this little monk today. Gary, our regular volunteer  is back from his summer mainland job. So I will be monitoring another seal area beginning later this week.   It was a bittersweet walk from the beach back to the car.  I so enjoyed watching our 4 seal pups grow and explore.  Don't worry, I will still go and check this area occasionally, it just wont be the 3 times a week that I've done for the past 4.5 months.  Hey RG58, I'll be down the coast a bit if you wanna come visit 

 

Be safe "Rocko" 

 

Going to miss this little face.

Sea Cucumber squirt gun !!

Showing off his bling....stay safe "Rocko"

Friends...

Nature is so amazing and yesterday proved that once again.

Our little seal RG58 or as I like to call him "ROCKO" continues to explore the world. Yesterday he had time with a green sea turtle. The interaction was right out of NATGEO.

Excuse me Mr. Honu, mind if I share the beach with you for a nap?

Sure Kid, Just give me a little space okay!!

Okay Dude!!

Do you know any good places for tako?

Mr. Honu, I really am sleepy!!



Hey Kid, just go to SLEEP

Sweet Dreams Mr. Honu

and this my friends is how it should be.....PEACE!!

 

Ladies and Gentlemen....

We have a WEANER!!! Our little Hawaiian Monk Seal known as PK4 was weaned today at age 6 weeks. Here are some of my favorite shots of the day. This little monk sure does make me smile.

My mom left me today.....

I got sand in my mouth!!!

I found a stick

Looks at all my sticks

Tidal wave!!

hey, where'd all my sticks go??

Sticks make nice pillows

My Summer....

Sorry for the absence this summer.  I've been spending 3 days a week out monitoring 4 new Hawaiian Monk Seal pups.  I know, tough job, but heck somebody has to do it.  Actually, there are many volunteers that have spent countless hours watching these adorable little monks. Wanted to share some of my favorite shots (thus far) of them. They all have distinct personalities and just make me smile.

RG22

RG58---calling for lunch!

RG58 --surf rider

RG28

RG58 and Momma RH58

RG28

RG28

RG22 and RG13

RG13

 

RG28

 

 

and this my friends is what has kept me from blogging....

Wordless Wednesday

Been busy with seals....more about this one soon!!

 

Val

what a beautiful face....

8 month old Hawaiian Monk Seal known as RF30

 

The Under Side...

A couple days ago I was making my way to the beach in search of seals. This particular trek takes me through a long tunnel of shrubbery called a hau bush. The hau is a true hibiscus, the leaves are heart shaped and the flower is bright yellow in the a.m. changing to a reddish color by days end when it falls from the bush. As I was strolling along I noticed the sunlight peeking through the foliage and was able to capture a few cool shots. Hope you enjoy.

Week #2 Music {52 Snapshots of Life}

A bit late in posting my {52 Snapshot of life} this week, but I was wanting to post shots from the Whale Welcoming celebration that was held yesterday afternoon. It was the 5th annual Whale Welcoming event to be held here on Kauai. I am fortunate that the venue is a quick walk from my house. So we camera in hand I headed out.
The sky was a beautiful blue and the ocean was so calm making it easy to spot the various whale spouting in the near waters. It was a celebration of our ocean, the earth and our relationship with both. It was interesting to listen to all the wonderful music, which included drums, heart flutes, dideridoo, rattles and  shakers. Many gave heartfelt  testimonies of their relationships with the whales. It was a very moving musical celebration.

 

This is a blog hop hosted by The Lazy Pit Bull

 

What's in the bag...

If you read yesterday's post you saw that  I once again went to the beach. Now I know some of you are thinking, gosh she sure goes to the beach a lot. Well yes and no, you see my treks to the beach during the week are "work" related. I am a volunteer for NOAA and do weekly beach surveys to monitor the endangered Hawaiian Monk Seal. So those adventures do not include a beach umbrella, towel, beach chair or a cooler full of drinks and snacks. The gear is a bit different. My goal yesterday was to cover 3 beaches on foot.  I gathered my gear and hit the trail.

 As I was watching the beautiful waves on the north shore of Kauai, I glanced down and  realized  I'm a walking advertisement for several industries. Items include: #1 Binoculars from Cabela's  a must for identifying a seal from an appropriate distance, #2 a camera (Nikon) with a good zoom. See #1 for justification :) #3 Water bottle, this one is from HydroFlask (best water bottle ever) no warm water for me. #4 the day pack (Outdoor Products) Inside that pack is: cell phone, personal identification, pen, seal id book, seal cards, sunscreen, extra camera battery, money, car keys, snack, lip balm and bandaids!! Yes, that's all in that blue bag!!

Being a volunteer doesn't pay well (not paid one cent) but the benefit package sure is priceless. I get to see parts of Kauai that many folks only dream about. Take a look at what I captured and experienced yesterday.

Surfer headed to the waves

cool rock cairn

another surfer

a freshly molted Hawaiian Monk Seal hiding in the bushes

a honu basking in the sun

Laysan Albatross over head

opihi shell collection

nesting albatross incubating her precious egg

the waves

I'd say I had a pretty good "Pay Day"!!

Disclaimer: I am not being compensated for endorsing any of the above products, they just happen to work for me.