rain water tank

Ecological 

  • wind NE 10-15 knots increasing to 20 later in the day
  • 3 elephant seals remain on main island, both males and the moulting female.

Vessels

  • 2 pleasure craft
  • 3 eco-tour including a US vessel From San Juan Island, Washington.  One eco tour vessel appeared to be within 100 meters of sealions hauled out on the South Islands.DSC_9474

Maintenance

  • talked we Chris re Race Rocks maintenance issues
  • worked on re-installing rainwater storage tank.  Installed two new cleanout caps on downspouts and added lanyards so that they can be opened but not removed. Added a 1 1/2 ” pvc ball valve at base of tank for a cleanout so that it is easier to cleanout the tank in place without having to cut pipes.
  • Removed electric fence insulators from jetty to avoid snagging on boat lines and damage from storms.

NE wind settles in

Ecological

  • Wind N 5-10 knots backing to NE.  Atmospheric pressure rising slowly.  With the N-NE Wind comes colder temperatures, more driftwood, and more swell on the boat landing. Forecast is for it to persist throughout the week.

Vessels

  • I went off island in the morning and returned just before sunset.
  • I could see one big eco-tour boat leaving from Race Rocks on my way back out.

Maintenance

  • I picked up 2 new boat rollers for the dolly at Trotac, one of the forward rollers had fallen apart and another was starting to fail.
  • Picked up 2 threaded cleanout caps for 3″ pvc for the cleanouts on the downspouts to rainwater tank, one had gone missing.
  • Installed 2 new rollers on dolly.
  • Reviewed Generator/battery logs for past year.
  • I have been running a watt meter on the composting toilet for the past week to get an idea of energy consumption. In one week it used 23 KWH of energy, roughly 3KWH per day, to heat and ventilate the toilet.  For comparison the fridge here uses about 1 KWH per day.  So it is roughly equivalent to running 3 fridges, 24 hours a day.

Storms and calms Dec 21-27

Ecological

  • Dec 21. Wind SE up 35-40 knots in the morning.  This combined with a higher than normal high tide. Barometer dipped below 990.
  • Dec 21. Nursing Northern sea lion seen on west side of Great Race, first time I have seen this here and apparently only the second time we have gotten photographs of this here.  Solo humpback west of race rocks. Barometer dipped below 990.
  • Dec 22. Wind shifted to West and increased overnight, by morning it was 5-10 knots W but there were still heavy swells coming in from the straight. Barometer dipped below 990 again today. At high tide the large sets of waves were breaking over the jetty and spray from waves was reaching above the helicopter pad.  Sealions were surfing reef break off South side of Great Race.  2 branded sealions: 409Y and 315Y (photo) observed.
  • Dec 23. Strong westerly overnight again and high tides. Wind picked up to 30 knots SW in the evening.
  • Dec 23.  A second female elephant seal came onto the island bringing total to 4 on Great Race, she is smaller than the other one and going through catastrophic molt.
  • Dec 24. Relatively calm day, partly clear, wind NE 5-10 knots. Atmospheric pressure on the rise.
  • Dec 25. Relatively calm day, partly clear, easterly picked up later in the day.  Over past few days there have been more sea-lions on Great Race than I can recall from previous years at this time.
  • Dec 26. wind NE 10-15 knots increasing to 25 N in the evening.  Atmospheric pressure reached 1030 early in the day before starting to descend.  Chuckles (smaller male e-seal, name short for Chunk-Holes in reference to the many tooth marks across his back caused by Chunk) sustained more wounds overnight from Chunk, he was hiding up at the base of the tower in the morning.
  • Dec 27. N wind over 20 knots and rain, pressure falling.  River otter around derrick deck.  Had to cancel transport for Christmas bird count  at RR due to weather. Chuckles still at base of tower, I dont think he has gone off island for about a week, at least its raining now so he will get a rinse.

Marine Vessels

  • Dec 22. 2 Eco tour
  • Dec 24. I went off island in the morning and returned just after noon.  2 ecotour vessels in afternoon.
  • Dec 25. I went off island mid morning and returned mid afternoon.  1 ecotour in afternoon.
  • Dec 26. 1 eco tour.

Maintenance

  • Dec 21. Got prices on stove parts.  Lots of wood to clean up on boat ramp.
  • Dec 22. Stormy most of the day.  Checked water levels in batteries. Cut and chopped fire wood.
  • Dec 23. Stormy day. Lots of wood to clear of ramp. Sent stove parts price list to Chris for approval.  Sent photos of chimney in student house attic to Jeff.  Made parts list for town run.
  • Dec 24. Picked up plumbing parts (at Andrew Sherret) for rainwater tank and leaky water line in basement and bar oil for chainsaw (Slegg). Picked up pressure washer from shorefront. Pressure washed rain water tank and put tank back in place.  Brought in jerry cans for gas but marina was closed in the afternoon.
  • Dec 25. Lots of wood to clear off ramp.  Cut logs and ran derrick to haul a couple.
  • Dec 26. Lots of wood to clear off ramp. Transferred one barrel of diesel to tidy tank and filled day tank. Filled jerry can for derrick.  Topped up derrick engine fuel and oil (low and needs a change). Derrick battery was too low to turn over engine so plugged in trickle charger for 2 hours after which it started up.  Pulled several logs onto deck.  Got electric chainsaw sharpener running off a spare boat battery, sharpened chainsaw.  Cut firewood. Re-stocked firewood in main house in advance of cold and wet weather coming. Missing cap for downspout clean-out to rain water tank.
  • Dec 27. Cleared, cut and chopped wood.

Dec 19th and 20th

Ecological

  • Wind has continued to shift between predominantly West and South East reaching a peak of over 30 knots Sunday afternoon
  • Both male elephant seals have remained mainly on Great Race. Saturday morning there were signs of fresh wounds on the smaller male’s back.
  • Pelagic cormorants, with iridescent green and purple tinted black plumage,  were clearly distinguishable in the sunlight Saturday morning
  • A california sealion with brand number 8240 was seen Sunday afternoon

Marine Vessels

  • Saturday afternoon two ecotour vessels were seen in the reserve. They entered from around West Rock and proceeded up middle channel against a ~4 knot ebb while there were sealions hauled out on the West side of the Great Race.
    Traveling against the current as well as within 100 meters of marine mammals are both careless and unprofessional.
  • Sunday afternoon a group of sailing yachts circumnavigated race rocks passing inside the reserve occasionally.  They were out when windspeed was peaking at 30 knots.

Maintenance

  • Assessed wood stove and contacted supplier to get prices on replacement parts, two baffle tubes are burnt out, bottom brick liner is broken into several pieces and baffle is a bit worn.
  • Worked on generator fuel transfer, had some problems with transfer pump over loading filling pipe and backing up with fuel.  Spoke with Jeff about it and locating fuel gauge on day tank (its on the South side, against the wall).  Transferred one barrel of diesel to tidy tank then filled up day tank.
  • Sunday battery voltage was bellow 48V at 2 pm so started generator early and ran desalinator for 8 hours.
  • Oil level on desalinator high pressure pump was above fill line so drained some out before starting up.

Other

  • Went off island Sunday morning for some supplies and returned around noon.  Picked up a plug in watt meter to measure energy loads of appliances and re-stocked on newspaper for fire starting.

Victoria dive club members rescued after boat capsizes

JOANNE LEE-YOUNG, Vancouver Sun 

Victoria dive club members rescued after boat capsizes

Members of a dive club were rescued after their boat capsized off the coast of Victoria early Sunday afternoon.

The Joint Rescue Co-Ordination Centre said it received a call at 1:50pm indicating a boat had capsized at Race Rocks, an ecological reserve popular with divers. All nine members were accounted for at that time and the JRCC said two auxiliary Coast Guard vessels arrived within 30 minutes.

Eight of the nine dive club members were wearing dry suits, according to the JRCC. All were taken to Pedder Bay near Victoria where ambulances and one helicopter were waiting. One person was taken to hospital with minor injuries.

The boat was equipped with a handheld radio, making it possible for the members to quickly call the Coast Guard themselves, according to a JRCC spokesperson.

However, in a posting on its Facebook page, the “all-volunteer” Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue station in Victoria said it was tasked with a mayday call “for nine people in the water from an overturned vessel 300m south east of Race Rocks. The scuba divers were in a 14’ open aluminium boat with up to 10′ waves. They were extremely lucky to have been able to call for help and not have Dover’s (sic) down at the time.”

The post continued: “Two divers were treated for hypothermia by BC Ambulance and the Fire Department. This is our third call to Race Rocks for divers with 1 fatality. Please use extreme caution around Race Rocks and only dive there with very experienced divers.”

It also said: “(One person dove under Vessel to retrieve hand held marine radio to call for help) Weather was cause of vessel overturning – sea conditions 4/5 FT waves piling up into 10FT waves.”

Meanwhile, the home church of a British man killed while scuba diving at Race Rocks in July is calling on British Columbia to launch a coroner’s inquest into his death.

Kings Cross Methodist Church in London says an investigation into Timothy Chu’s death should happen both for the sake of public safety and for Victoria’s reputation as a prime tourism destination.

Chu was on vacation in B.C. when he hired a guide for a day of diving on July 5. The 27-year-old British Army lance corporal was carried away by strong underwater tidal currents and his body didn’t surface for seven weeks.

Chu’s family says problems with the business that organized the charter dive may have contributed to his death.

His family says the centre failed to equip Chu properly, proceeded with the dive despite the dangerous conditions and employed a dive master who was unfamiliar with the area.

With Canadian Press files

Strong Winds

Ecological Happenings

  • One whale (possibly humpback) spotted today, close to the reserve
  • Active salmon feeding (birds and Sea Lions)

Marine Vessels

  • Four tour boats today. We encourage boats to maintain a speed of 7kts max when within the reserve. Take the time to travel slowly out of the reserve when heading back to Victoria, and watch for wildlife!
  • Three pleasure vessels

Other

  • Four students made a brief visit to the reserve today
  • Strong winds of up to 36 kts today

Fog horn drum

Weather

Light fog early morning, building to thicker fog throughout the day with poor visibility (the fog horn sounded for a few hours). Winds were generally <5kts. The barometer was at 101.6 for most of the day dropping to 101.5. The marine forecast shows winds picking up to 10-15kts and rain for Monday.

Boat activity

  • Not so many fishing vessels on the water this Sunday with all the fog (total count of 4)
  • 7 tour boats, mostly in the afternoon as the fog faded

Ecological happenings

  • Two Californians spotted with relatively fresh gashes
  • Californian seal lion brand 8329 and 9776 spotted (need to verify whether this record has been collected)
  • Commenced looking for tangled sea lions in preparation for detanglment on Oct 28th
  • 3 Dunlins spotted

Maintenance

  • Cheeky sea lions continue to dismantle the electric fence and drop equipment into the water, so we’ve been on top of mending it.
(possible) Sandpiper and Black Turnstone

Dunlin and Black Turnstone

A Whale of a Day.

The weather on Race Rocks was variable today. We started with drizzle, overcast and fog. The fog came and went until early afternoon when it cleared. The wind, which was westerly, picked up a bit in the afternoon and was still blowing 15 – 20 west, as I finished up the log after sunset. The barometer started a descent yesterday that continued today ending at 1016 hPA. This matches the forecast which is calling for showers tonight. There is also a strong wind warning in effect and overall it looks like more good weather coming.

There were 18 observed visits by whale watching boats to the Ecological Reserve today. Most of the operators work carefully, respectfully and sustainably, they slow right down on entering the reserve and go even slower when there are seals and sea lions in the water. If there are whales in the Protected Area they do not enter into the Ecological Reserve and if whale enter while they are inside they carefully and slowly leave using extreme caution to avoid interacting with the animals. They stay in the centre of Middle Channel going with the current and never try to wedge themselves between Great Race and South Islands (their insurance companies probably like this too). They are respectful of their distance to the animals and a role model for other companies and vessels on the water. In the long run, this is good for business and good for the animals. It means that this kind of commercial activity might be able to sustainably continue to use the Ecological Reserve for profit making.

Today was a day with lots promise for Southern Resident Killer Whale recovery. L-pod has another brand new calf, born sometime on or before September 5th. The significance to Race Rocks is its’ central location to this babies’ first few days of observed activities. This is the fifth Southern Resident calf born since last December and it renews hope for recovery of this very endangered population. To give you an idea of how significant this is: 1977 was the highest ever recorded year for Southern Resident calf production with nine calves born. According to the Center for Whale Research no calves survived in 2013 and 2014, so 2015 is a boon.

Killer whales and salmon are both almost iconic to our identity in this part of the world and of course they are completely linked together, especially here at Race Rocks, which is an oceanic salmon funnel, a condensed part of one of the planet’s largest salmon runs.

While celebrating this success, let’s also do more to continue their recovery by modelling more fundamentally sustainable behaviours, like using less water, eating sustainable seafood, recycling, using fewer harmful chemicals, electricity, fuel and plastic, doing shore cleanups and working for positive change through democracy. I have digressed, so back to biology: this new calf was seen with L91 (probably the mother) and has been officially named L122.

At this stage of writing the log, I looked up to see several Humpback Whales going through the Ecological Reserve from west to southeast. It looked like three animals; a very large one, (probably “Big Mama” a name used by whale watchers) and two others, one much smaller, which may have been a calf. I headed out to photograph the whales and witnessed some whale watching vessels making a bee-line for them, even though the whales were inside the Ecological Reserve. Speaking of sustainable behavior, the agreement states that if there are whales inside the reserve, the whale watching boats stay outside. Two vessels came up tight behind them and a third came in around the front of their path, the other vessels following the whales dropped off staying outside as per agreement.

The whales were in fairly shallow water between South Islands and Rosedale Reef, next to a kelp bed, so didn’t have a lot of maneuvering room with two boats behind and one in front. I went up the tower and took more photos.  I totally commend the vessels that left the whales and turned to travel outside of the reserve instead of following the whales and other vessels into the Ecological Reserve.

I did a few chores and went back to writing. This time when I looked up there was a pod of Killer Whales heading into the reserve on basically the same track as the Humpbacks but a little closer to Great Race. I went back out for more photos and saw a group of about fifteen Southern Resident Killer Whales, members of L-pod according to the whale watchers. There was a little calf travelling at the back of the pack with a small adult animal, probably a female (?). Not sure if it was the newest one.

I took a lot of photos today and will share them over the next while. It was a busy day with regular chores, spotting and phtotographing the 10 Elephant Seals that have recaptured the top of Middle Rocks and are scaring off sea lions, photographing sea lion tags and brands, gulls and of course the whale shows. With all that going on it seems odd to say, there were no visitors.

A Busy Day at Race Rocks

A northeasterly wind gusting 20 – 25 knots brought clouds and moisture in the morning and against the flooding tide it really made the waves in Middle Channel stand right up, creating a bit of a roller coaster effect. It was much nicer in the afternoon as the northeast dropped to ~ five knots and remained calm through sunset.

The barometer continued to rise today and reached ~1018 hPa before steadying. The forecast calls for light westerlies and some sun tomorrow with periods of rain on Tuesday.

There was quite a bit of whale-watching activity today: 20 visits by commercial operators were observed in the reserve. The sea otter is a definite attraction as are the sea lions. Island Explorer out of Port Angeles takes the sustainability prize for the day, travelling at a very low speed, staying in the middle of the channel and giving the wildlife a respectful distance. Seven sports fishing boats were observed in reserve today. Of those, four of them were speeding and one was fishing and then speeding in reserve. Time for more communications to the boating public who might not be as aware as the commercial operators about rules of conduct in the Ecological Reserve.

The sea lions continue to crowd ashore to moult and wedge themselves in tightly together in order to raise skin temperature for their important hair change. The soil here is full of sea lion hair, moulted Northern Elephant Seal skin with very short fur and is rich in guano from the nesting seabirds. No wonder the spring flowers are so spectacular. A Great Blue Heron visited Great Race today, an unusual sight here on the rock.

No visitors today. Chores were routine and entropy fighting.

 

Steller Sea Lions sparring in the water. Note the forward pointing vibrissae (whiskers). These animals spend hours play fighting.

Steller Sea Lions sparring in the water. Note the forward pointing vibrissae (whiskers) of the animal on the right. These animals spend hours play fighting.

Collection of sealion brand observations continues. This Stellers was branded as a pup in southern Oregon.

Collection of sealion brand observations continues. This Stellers was branded as a pup in southern Oregon.

It is possible that this California Sea Lion is recovering from having a plastic strap removed from its neck. Veterinarian Marti Haulena of the Vancouver Aquarium removed straps from several individuals last year. Aquarium

It is possible that this California Sea Lion is recovering from having a plastic strap removed from its neck. Veterinarian Marti Haulena of the Vancouver Aquarium removed straps from several individuals last year. Aquarium

Sea lions silhouetted by a beautiful Race Rocks sunset.

Sea lions silhouetted by a beautiful Race Rocks sunset.

 

 

 

 

Making Sense of the Census.

The sun shone through a bit more today even as clouds and much needed rain continued. West winds blew at about 10 knots most of the day as the clouds were pushed steadily inland. The barometer is now back up to where it was last Friday before the big nose-dive into Saturday’s storm. The forecast looks a little brighter for Friday and Saturday before a return to wet and cool.

Whale watching activity in the Ecological Reserve was very subdued today as the black and whites moved north and east yesterday. Only four visits by commercial whale watching boats were observed in the Ecological Reserve. One sports fishing vessel and a couple of rental boats also came through obviously oblivious to the speed reduction zone within the reserve boundaries .

Thursday is census day and here are the results of this week’s animal census.

Steller Sea Lion 497

California Sea Lion 522

Harbour Seal 81

Northern Elephant Seal 2

Sea Otter 1

River Otter 1 seen (probably more)

Southern Resident Killer Whale 7 (during count week)

Biggs (Transient) Killer Whale 5 (during count week)

Humpback Whale 1 just outside of reserve but may have transited border

Canada Goose 4 full time (2 adults 2 goslings) (24 visited once during count week)

Harlequin Duck 1

Double-crested Cormorant 11

Pelagic Cormorant 12

Brandt’s Cormorant 1

Black Oystercatcher 29

Black Turnstone 95

Ruddy Turnstone 1

Western Sandpiper 3

Kildeer 1

Dunlin 1

Glaucous-winged Gull 276 (193 – adults; 83 juveniles)

California Gull 61

Western Gull 1

Heerman’s Gull 26

Peregrine Falcon 1

Common Raven 2

Savannah Sparrow 3

It is of note that there have been no Pigeon Guillemots seen since I arrived. Last year there were chicks, still  being fed by their parents, on the nests in the rubble area just west of the jetty at this time of year and later. I am hoping that the river otters have not been visiting these ground-breeding birds and will look for evidence of what has been going on there.

Maintenance work was routine and the only other visitors to the reserve were the Pearson College students having their orientation by vessel. Courtney kindly delivered paper, which was appreciated as there was none.

Pearson College students doing orientation week activity at Race Rocks Ecological Reserve.

Pearson College students doing orientation week activity at Race Rocks Ecological Reserve.

super friendly philosophy teacher