Category Archives: Facility work

Elephant Seals and Northern Fur Seal

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Ecological Notes:

  • 2 Juvenile female Elephant Seals coming and going daily, Haven’t see the full adult female in a few days…… Last couple days she was here, she spent a lot of time bellowing from a high point on the rock, maybe she heard other animals in the distance(?)

  • The Northern Fur Seal was hauled out on the most north west rock in the reserve (reported to me by an Eco-Tourism vessel)… but is now on the rocks next to the crane shed (just east of the jetty)
  • Sunday, the Fur Seal spent most of the afternoon rolling and grooming in the water off the end of the jetty

  • Many of the Sea lions spent the afternoon rafting and thermo-regulating in the water

  • It seems each day I find new blooms

Visitors:

  • 2 technicians from Environment Canada  came twice, to service all relevant equipment and attempt to get the display unit in the Eco-Guardian residence up and running – returned a couple days later to reset the system

Facility Work:

  • reset the wind indicator/ reporting system up in the tower via phone instructions from EC
  • replaced the rest of the fencing on the jetty

  • Moved drums to prepare for diesel delivery
  • Weekly battery maintenance, including electrolyte top ups

DND events:

  • Several radio broadcasts simulating emergency situations….. the first couple were a little concerning, as they didn’t announce the simulations before hand!

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • Several Eco-tourism  vessels
  • A submarine travelled south of the reserve on the surface, un-escorted though.

  • Kayak group, I monitored while they were in and out of the various currents. The group leaders were very good, and responded well when ever anyone got caught in a bad current.

 Noted Infractions:

  • None. I’ve let vessels know the Sea lions around the jetty area seem to be extra touchy, and vessels all responded appropriately. There are lots of really small ones and females in the groupings.

Weather Events:

  • Wednesday, April 09:
    • Sky: High overcast with sunny periods
    • Wind: Variable calm – 5 kts
    • Sea: rippled to 2′ chop
    • Temperature Low 9oC, High 11oC
  • Thursday, April 10:
    • Sky: Low overcast, shifting to low fog to the south and west mid afternoon, scattered rain showers, followed by sunny breaks
    • Wind:E 5-10kts shifting to W 15-25kts mid day
    • Sea:  morning chop 1ft, flattening as the wind shifted to W, then rising to 3-4 ft swells and chop on top
    • Temperature Low 9oC, High 12oC
  • Friday April 11:
    • Sky: Although cloudy on both shorelines, the area above Race Rocks and the strait was mostly clear and sunny all day
    • Wind: W 20-25 kts
    • Sea:  2-3 ft chop and swell
    • Temperature Low 9oC, High 9.5oC
  • Saturday April 12:
    • Sky: Heavy clouds to the north and south, but mostly clear and sunny overhead
    • Wind: W 20-35kts
    • Sea:  light chop turning to high waves by evening
    • Temperature Low 7.5oC, High 10oC
  • Sunday April 13:
    • Sky: light haze,  but overall sunny
    • Wind: W 5kts shifting to E by mid morning
    • Sea:  flat calm plus current
    • Temperature Low 7oC, High 11oC

 

 

** Any wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

 

Weather – Current:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/current.php?id=72

 

Weather – Past:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/station.php?

More signs of spring and a surprise visit!

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Ecological Notes:

  • 3 female Elephant Seals, 1 adult and 2 juveniles, still coming and going, no full haul out
  • A surprise visit from a Northern Fur Seal!

  • In addition to the more regular Black Turnstones, noted some Ruddy Turnstones today

  • The Pigeon Guillemots are showing up in larger numbers, with many frequenting the rock pile where they like to nest
  • Not that long ago, we would say ” this is an all male haul out area” ….. sources tell me this is in fact, Male, females, and yearling pups(haven’t seen nursing yet today, although I’ve photographed a few here doing that too)

  • The Black Oyster Catchers are mostly paired up as well

  • It appears that 2 of the 3 pairs of Canada Geese have given up on egg laying for the season (the gulls have been raiding the nests), but the one pair by the crane shed still has 2 eggs they are taking care of.

Facility Work:

  • swapped out an electrical switch to restore light to the room I prefer to sleep in

  • Checked and topped up the battery electrolyte levels
  • Moved and stacked some of the split firewood
  • Done before I got here, but a straight forward “why didn’t I think of that” solution to the storm rattled doors on the water tank shed

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • Some Eco-Tourism vessels visiting the reserve.
  • 1 private vessel noted

 Noted Infractions:

  • Private vessel approached the haul out area by the crane a bit too close and straight on, startling all the animals off into the water, including the rare (to this area) Northern Fur Seal

Weather Events:

  • Sunday April 06:
    • Sky:Overcast, low clouds on the Olympic Peninsula, rain showers started in the morning, more squalls as the wind rose later in the day
    • Wind: N 5-10 kts, shifting and rising to W 25 kts by early evening
    • Sea: rippled to 2′ chop
    • Temperature Low 8oC, High 13oC
  • Monday April 07:
    • Sky: Overcast with sunny breaks, low cloud over the Olympic Peninsula, light rain in the afternoon
    • Wind:mostly N 5-10 kts, switching to west and rising to 25 kts in the afternoon before dropping back down during the evening
    • Sea:  light chop
    • Temperature Low 9oC, High 10oC
  • Tuesday April 08:
    • Sky: Overcast with sunny breaks, heavy cloud to the south, occasional showers
    • Wind: N 5-15kts, rising to 25kts, gusting to 25kts, from the West late afternoon
    • Sea:  2 ft swells from the north during the day, switching to 2-3 ft chop late afternoon
    • Temperature Low 9oC, High 11oC

High Tides and Logs Galore

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Over the past few days I’ve noticed how many logs and driftwood seem to be out in the ocean this time of year. I’ve heard its significantly worse than previous years but thankfully not too much has been accumulating at the jetty (as I’ve been told it can). Until today. 

Yesterday afternoon there were a few small bits of driftwood/logs but nothing out of the ordinary, however the tides and wind must have been combined in all the right (or maybe wrong) ways over night. This morning when I woke up there was enough logs and debris around the jetty to open up my own lumber mill. I’ve never seen anything like it. For the better part of the day the waves have been crashing directly into the jetty making it impossible for any of it to be pushed out. In the afternoon I pulled a few of the reachable logs up to use for future firewood but it barely made a dent in whats there. Hopefully some of it gets pushed out tonight! 

The fur seal has not shown up again, so I guess he was just passing by, although I’m hopeful we’ll see him again one day! Ollie is still around and a few humpbacks are passing by each day. 

I haven’t seen the entangled sea lions today, but the Cali was around yesterday and the Steller the day before. 

Vessels:

  • Ecotourism: 2

Facility Work:

  • Topped up battery electrolytes 
  • Cleaned/organized inside main house 
  • Hauled in logs for firewood 

Last Census of 2024 & 2 Entangled Sea Lions

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Gorgeous day today!

Since it looks like it’ll be my only sunny day of my trip out here, I spent most of it outside. It was also the perfect day for an animal census.

While out and about today I unfortunately came across two entangled sea lions. Both have been reported to the right groups and I will be monitoring them over the next few days to see if they stick around.

Facility Work:

  • Topped up battery electrolytes
  • Repaired electric fence
  • Dug up weeds
  • Washed main house windows

Vessels:

  • Private: 1
  • Ecotourism: 3

Dec 30 Census:

Mammals:

  • California sea lions: 182
  • Steller sea lions: 339
  • Harbour seals: 24

Birds:

  • Bald eagles: 25
  • Canadian geese: 15
  • Gulls: 531
  • Turnstones: 47
  • Cormorants: 132
  • Oyster catchers: 6
  • Harlequin ducks: 8

Clear skies

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Ecological Notes:

  • The Elephant Seals, the expecting female and the young female, left the ramp area and haven’t returned …. hoping they’re just off having a good feed and not looking at another haul out spot.
  • In the past, most of the Steller Sea Lions have moved to the outer rocks, leaving the main rock to the California Sea Lions… but this season there are many more Stellers remaining on the main rock, even some have ventured onto the pier

Visitors:

  • Parcel and supply delivery by the waterfront team

Facility Work:

  • got some of the deck algae sprayed down during the nicer weather…. until the sprayers broke!

  • Finally got some good logs in, shortened at the holding area, and moved up to the bucking area
  • Weekly Battery maintenance
  • Monthly Equalization charge to the Batteries
  • Month end reports and posting
  • The waterfront team brought out, and prepped a new door for the battery room, appears to now also need a new door frame

DND events:

  • regular blasting, a few times a day for the last week, no noted reaction from the wildlife.

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • In addition to a few eco-tourism vessels, there have been a few private vessels visiting the reserve, all with good behaviour

 

Weather Events:

The last week has been primarily N NE winds, leading to mostly clear skies and dry weather. Seas have had light chop, slight fog daily on the shoreline away from the reserve.

  • Thursday, December 05:
    • Sky: High overcast, fog on the southern strait
    • Wind: NE winds 10-15 kts
    • Sea:  light chop
    • Temperature Low 4oC, High 8oC

 

 

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

 

Weather – Current:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/current.php?id=72

 

Weather – Past:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/station.php?

After storm

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Ecological Notes:

  • 1 female Elephant Seal landed, still in the upper ramp area
  • all Birds thinned out, potentially sensing the upcoming storm
  • still finding deceased birds daily
  • working continuously to encourage sea lions to avoid the main ramp area

Visitors:

  • work crews working on the student/science center

Facility Work:

  • daily repair and updating fencing
  • battery fluid top ups
  • fuel transfers from fuel shed to generator building

DND events:

  • flags were up 2 days, but lots of Humpback whales right off the normal blast area …. did not notice any blasts

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • 4 to 5 Ecotourism vessels a day

 Noted Infractions:

  • overall, very good behaviour

Weather Events:

  • Tuesday, November 05:
    • Sky: overcast with occasional sunny breaks
    • Wind: Variable winds, rotating back and forth from  E to W 5-10 kts
    • Sea: rippled to 2′ chop
    • Temperature Low 8 oC, High 10oC
  • Wednesday, November 06:
    • Sky: high overcast
    • Wind: westerly 15-25 kts
    • Sea:  1 meter waves
    • Temperature Low 8 oC, High 10oC
  • Thursday, November 07:

    • Sky: morning – clear and sunny around the reserve….. low fog/mist in the distance gradually overcast by afternoon
    • Wind: N/NE 8kts shifting to E in the afternoon
    • Sea:  Flat and calm
    • Temperature Low 7oC, High 10oC

 

 

Weather – Current:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/current.php?id=72

 

Weather – Past:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/station.php?

Freaky Fish

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Good news! The storm didn’t leave us with any damage, and the fence withheld the strong winds with only a few minor repairs needed this morning (I’ve seen the sea lions do much worse).

There have been a few weak/droopy sections of the fence that tend to come down the most often so my dad spent his morning fixing those and testing to ensure the current is running strong all the way through, which it now is!

The wind picked up in the afternoon and the clouds rolled in so our afternoon was quite relaxed inside. At least for a little while until my dad decided to get back to work and clean out the wood stove which is now sparkling and clear.

I swear he’s going to take my job while I’m not looking if he works any harder!

While working outside today I found the dried up remains of a small dead fish, that I assume a bird must have dropped. Nothing out of the ordinary, that happens all the time, however on closer inspection it had more teeth than I’ve ever seen in a single animal.

My initial thought is that it could be a juvenile lingcod as they have many rows of teeth, but I am still trying to confirm that. I’ve asked around and I’m hoping someone might see this post and be able to enlighten me. Either way, its the stuff nightmares are made of!

Facility Work:

  • Repaired fence
  • Cleaned wood stove 
  • Chopped wood

Vessels:

  • Ecotourism: 9

Weather:

  • Sky: Sun and cloud, overcast in afternoon
  • Wind: Low of 2 knots, high of 14 knots, with gusts up to 35 knots
  • Sea: Whitecaps in the afternoon
  • Temperature: Low  11•C, High  14•C

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

Sea Lion VS Fence

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The never ending battle of sea lions vs electric fence continues!

They behaved themselves overnight with only a couple posts knocked over which in their defence…could have been the wind.

However today was not remotely windy and every time I went outside the fence needed some level of repair. Down by the jetty was jam packed with California sea lions, a few stellers, and even two elephant seals. Throughout the day they continued to rip down lines and tear out the screws, but I managed to keep up with it (or so I thought).

I had just come inside and sat down with a cup of tea when I looked out my window to see a giant steller lounging on the jetty with the electric fence resting on his back….a good indicator that it was grounding out somewhere.

Something tells me the fence isn’t very hot…

Back outside I went and found the source of the problem – a piece of fence so frayed it was hanging on for dear life and it was clear that no current could run through that. I fixed the fence with fresh fencing material and adjusted the other area around the jetty so that nothing was touching the cement.

Fixed!

I plugged the fence back in and crossed my fingers. No one was back on the jetty by the time it got dark so we’ll see how the night goes!

As per usual, whales everywhere today!

Facility Work:

  • Topped up battery electrolytes
  • Repaired electric fence

Vessels:

  • Ecotourism: 7
  • Private: 0

Weather:

  • Sky: Cloudy
  • Wind: Low of 1 knot, high of 7 knots
  • Sea: Mostly calm
  • Temperature: Low 9•C, High 15•C

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

Northern Lights at Race Rocks

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Last night’s northern lights were as incredible as I could’ve hoped for! This is the second time now that I have been lucky enough to witness them from Race Rocks.

This morning the sky was still colourful – this time with a beautiful sunrise accompanied by a logging humpback just off the south side of the island. It slept there as I completed my morning fence repairs, surfacing for a big breath every few minutes.

The sea lions had a hay day with the fence over night, and I’m sure there will be just as many repairs needed tomorrow. Good thing I love them anyway!

Both female elephant seals are still here which always makes my day, they aren’t big fans of the sea lions but manage to tolerate them.

Greg brought 3 loads of water over today – topping the fresh water tank up  4000L which means its now full!

I filled the generator up with diesel and we brought the small tank up as well so I won’t have to try and move it on my own any time soon. I spent the afternoon topping up battery electrolytes and rolling fire hoses before moving inside to get some work done.

Another beautiful day out here, sure doesn’t seem like October!

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

Tagged Sea Lions

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Scott spent some more time with the chainsaw today. He is putting a huge dent in the pile of logs down by the jetty, and the stacks of firewood in the basement are steadily growing for the winter.

As the numbers of sea lions on the island continues to climb we have been seeing quite a few tagged and branded individuals. These markings are implemented by researchers in Oregon and along the West coast of the US. They give the researchers an idea of animal movement, functional population size, and more. If you ever see a tagged or branded sea lion remember to report it!

Whale Watching Vessels: 18

Private Vessels: 4

Weather: Overcast all day. Winds W 6knts