Around the island . . .

A recent visit to the marina in Langley gave me a variety of photo possibilities, including this extremely large Dungeness crab caught by an extremely happy fisherman.

Off to the north the sky was overcast and bright, giving me the opportunity to purposely overexpose the shot, keeping the lightness and brightness intact.

Two women began paddling out, unable to see the drama below them. What they missed, and what we were able to see from the dock above, was a huge "herring ball." Millions of herring, their gills showing a bright red, were swirling in a densely packed ball, sometimes splitting apart, but quickly coming back to center. The fish were moving fast, in tandem, seemingly as one large organism.

One of the dock workers told us that "there are two harbor seals in the area that sometimes swoop in for a quick meal, and that's always fun to see."

No seals in sight, the herring ball slowly moved away, and so did we.

©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh.

Around the island . . .

A very good day yesterday. We went exploring.

For the past year we've looked across the passage into the distance to see a large-ish mountain. Looking at maps, we couldn't quite find it, didn't know what it was, so we just referred to it as the "un-mountain." As in, "Look, there's some snow on the un-mountain."

Turns out what we've been seeing is Mt. Erie off in the distance, and yesterday we drove up to the top. It was high noon, so please forgive the first two awful photos, but they do show you the lay of the land. We live way out there on the horizon line (red star in the second picture).

The views from the top are quite spectacular, stretching from Naval Air Station Whidbey and the coast along the west side of the island, south toward Coupeville, and then the Skagit Valley to the east. This is a prime sunrise location. Prime.

Back down the mountain and then to Anacortes to meander among the boats. "Red" was the theme yesterday, apparently.

Returning home, we saw a regatta taking place in Penn Cove -- 56 sailboats with spinnakers billowing out. I texted my friend Paige, "Sailboats in Penn Cove! Sailboats in the cove!" I get a very laconic "Yep. They were there yesterday, too. Stop by for a beer?"

We detoured to the wharf, but the race was almost over and the boats kind of too far away. No matter. Colorful and fun. Walking back to the car, bumped into Eric, husband of the woman who cuts my hair. He's an excellent photographer, had a longer lens than I (damn!), and had also been shooting the boats. He was off to Oak Harbor to see if he could photograph them arriving at the marina. Meanwhile, there was a beer waiting for us at Paige's house, and that's where we ended our day.

The best part of the day? Sitting quietly on top of a mountain hearing/watching eagles soar above and below us. Watching a raven soar, then suddenly tuck in his wings, flip almost upside-down, chortle, then right himself only to do it again. And again. Having a bird's-eye view of this land where we live.

And then, of course, serendipitously encountering a fellow photographer. And having a beer with Paige wasn't too shabby either!

Wishing you a moment of silence today, as you watch something miraculous right in front of you.

©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh.