Kayaking Coastal Rivers

While we were at Sea Ranch we took a few kayaking trips. We just paddled flat coastal rivers and enjoyed the scenery and wildlife along the way.
Our first stop was the Russian River where it meets the ocean at Jenner by the Sea.  A lovely name but not much town. 

 We had a quick lunch at the Visitor's Center and then pointed the kayak toward the mouth of the river.

 This cabin looked charming from a distance.

 Calvin always looks good

 We paddled under Highway 1 and started seeing lots of wildlife.

We had seen harbor seals near the mouth of river, but I'm not fast enough with a camera to get their pictures.  This guy was perfectly happy to hang out oh his log for a photo.

Then in a trip highlight we saw a squirrel swimming across the river. (He made it safely across)

We also enjoyed a flock of white pelicans and comorants sunning on some logs.

The next day we drove to Mendocino to paddle the Big River estuary. This was more of a paddle through the forest.

I always take a picture of Calvin at the start of the trip so I can see where we've been.

And a couple to see where we're going

There was lush growth all along the river. But not a very good place to stop for a picnic.

We had hoped to paddle the Gualala River, but the water was too low to travel without a couple of portages, so we decided to try Bodega Bay. It turned out to be colder and windier than the rivers, and not particularly interesting to paddle. It is best at high tide, but we were there at low tide. 

We found a big group of harbor seals sunny in the mudflats at the start of the paddle. They we in a little water on the way back but didn't mind if we took pictures.

The pelicans here are brown pelicans

Once we turned around and had the wind at our backs I could enjoy seeing the mist rising from the beach.

Kayaking is a great way to see the world.

Sea Ranch 2019

We first went to Sea Ranch in 1985.  It was one of our first family vacations that included everyone in the family.  We spent most of the time just hanging out in the hot tub, but I still remember it as a wonderful relaxing place to be.

The kids have grown up but I still love to visit Sea Ranch when I can talk Calvin into the drive. This year we celebrated our anniversary there and it is still a relaxing place to be.

While Calvin rode his bike I took a few walks along the bluffs.

I came through this tunnel of trees and met these charcters.

We took a day trip to Mendocino and stopped to photograph Point Arena lighthouse.

We've been there before.

We also spent an afternoon at Schooner Gulch Beach. Beaches are not crowded here.

The walk to the beach was full of beautiful wild flowers, but Calvin discovered that there was a little poison oak hiding in with the flowers. Fortunately he just got a few spots.

Lake Tahoe evenings

When Rosie's family came to visit we made an extra effort to spend a little time at Lake Tahoe. We all met up at the lake at about 5pm Monday and enjoyed a beautiful evening. In no particular order, fun on the beach.

and a beautiful sunset

On Thursday we went with the Wrights for a walk along the Truckee River in Truckee.  This is a great trail.

Then everyone else went for a sail while I enjoyed a little beach time with Leah.

And a little hanging out in the dinghy when they got back

After sailing we drove to Sand Harbor for a little more beach time with Peter's family where Sylvan and Jimmy had a great time crawling all over the rental kayaks.

I tried to get a new picture of Rosie's family but once again it was an epic fail, for so many reasons.

So I will content myself with new pictures of the kids for the wall