A MIRACLE and FREAKY NATURE

BIG BLUE

    A scientist who has studied Monterey Bay for 50 years says he doesn't know if he should be more worried than fascinated.  He was on KQED and the BBC's extraordinary live series Big Blue and was referring to the absolutely freaky and unprecedented events in the bay this summer.

    Birds that have never been this far north are roosting, Orcas and Humpbacks defining who's in control of a part of the bay, Dolphin behaving in skittish ways, great white sharks in unprecedented number, anomalies in harbor seal behavior, more otters being attacked by great whites and ocean water that is at least 5 degrees warmer than normal.

     The scientists are a bit stunned. It's a laboratory full of new behavior and experiences, but the down side is what it all means. Some of those options do not bode well.

     In addition to the warmer water there is also the Blob, a mass of even warmer water. Combine that with the predictions of an historic El Nino, the west coast is entering new territory. Mother Nature always has the last word.

MIRACLE IN KINGS CANYON

   It's being called a "miracle rescue."  62 year old Miyuki Harwood spent nine days clinging to life in the massive and rough Kings Canyon wilderness.

   King's Canyon is one of our favorite spots in the Sierra, but it gives me chills to think of Harwood's ordeal.  She separated from her hiking party. In attempting to get back she fractured her leg.  

  She spent two days crawling to a stream where she stayed, drinking water she filtered in her bottle. She survived the cold nights, avoided bears, mountain lions, coyote and snakes. The area is treacherous, rocky and dense and the idea of dragging yourself with a shattered leg to nestle near a creek bed is staggering.

   Harwood is not a big woman. A computer specialist she is an experienced hiker and clearly had a survival instinct. Teams of rescuers were hampered by a fire that was burning nearby limiting access and visibility. After nine days she heard rescuers and blew a whistle she carried, as all hikers should. She was rescued just in time. She is reported to be in stable condition and recovering.

   It maybe the 21st century, but it is still the wild west out here. Wilder than we understand, and maybe on the verge of getting even more so.

   See you down the trail.

   

BEARISH THOUGHTS

BRINGING BACK THE GRIZ

   There's discussion about bringing the grizzly bear back to California.  The symbol of the state and star of the California flag has been thought to be extinct here since it was last seen in 1924 in the area pictured here, Kings Canyon.

   Kings Canyon is a rugged area of granite peaks, canyons, river gorge, pine and giant sequoia.

    It is a great park, often overlooked by those visiting the giant trees of Sequoia or the heart throbbing beauty of Yosemite. According to the San Francisco Chronicle it is here where the Center for Biological Diversity seeks to return grizzlies to their former stomping ground.  Peter Fimrite writes the Center has petitioned the US Fish and Wildlife Service to populate Kings Canyon with the iconic beast.

   Civilization has barely made a dent in Kings Canyon but opponents of the idea say it would be like bringing back the T-Rex.  Grizzly bears now roam in Alaska, Montana, Wyoming, Washington and Idaho.

LOCAL BEARS

   Here on the Central Coast we have black bears, though some of them are brown.  And some are something else-

  Bears, chairs and other shapes often emerge where an old tree has fallen.

SUMMER SCENES

SEEING A LOT

  In rooting through a file for the shots from Kings Canyon I found these.

   In March of 2011 we met a Frenchman who belonged to this well traveled Defender.  A fascinating gent, he had been on the road for years, circumnavigating the planet. He literally traveled with everything he needed.  

    You can seen on the map he's covered a lot of this globe.

    This was his route in 2005 and 2006. By 2011 he was working his way up and through the American west. Ponder this, as you plan your next road trip.

   See you down the trail.