Category Archives: weather notes

Woaw!So many gulls to count!?

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Weather

At 5:00 AM :West wind 15 knots ,choppy sea , clear sky and visibility 10 miles. the whole was calm and just a few drops of rain in the afternoon

Ecological

3 elephant seals came back from swimming early in the morning .(the big males are losing a lot of weight). Like everyone around the elephants are tired of the permanent cries and aggressivity of the seagulls. and with the chicks around it’s getting worse.Even for us : we have 4 nests very closed to the path ,between the main house and the boat shed.. it’s always an adventure and they got me 2 times ! Hopefully I wore a helmet and I even don’t speak about those white splashes on my coat! Hatching is done almost for all the nests and some babies are already pretty big . it ‘s going fast.Today it was the census day and going to the top of the lighthouse ,we couldn’t stop smilling at the idea of counting so many birds ! looked like a joke! but with the small device we use, we managed to have a number.(1200)  We think that we have at least 2 kinds of gulls around. It’s really a dilemma even if you look at books .So to make things easier I look mainly at feet and beaks: so you have red beak and black feet (white head and black feathers ):those should be Heermann gulls and the whitish feet and black beak :one or 2 years young ones ?..The glaucous winged are easy to recognize (adults and young ones). Last year we had almost only those ones in Summer.This year it’s a mix of different ones and if they fit really well ,they stay together in groups .DSC_7529DSC_0378DSC_0320DSC_0353

 

Maintenance

We have now 620 liters of diesel in the student house . Guy put 400 liters more. the 6 barrels are empty ready to be filled up another time for Winter.The yellow tank (generator)is also full.

Boats 

Many watching boats .

Abundant waters

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Weather

The weekend has been a calm one ,except on Sunday where in the afternoon the wind increased to almost 40 knots .We got some rain on Saturday ; which is good for the island (cleaning) and in the afternoon the sky was overcast and a dark grey colour !DSC_0203

Ecological

Lately the difference between high and low tide is not big, from 4 feet to 8 and as a result the sea temperature is higher, above 12 degrees . It’s amazing to see all those flocks of birds fishing  all around .We even found a ball of small heering on the balcony…the smell coming inside the house was just as if we had opened a huge sardine can!

Maintenance 

Guy put 3 barrels of gasoil in the main house cistern ( 600 liters).It’s now full (1000l).Solar panels needed attention (LOL) and some sweeping had to be done , grass plucked by the gulls for their nests. We did some light proof curtains for the main bedroom. It will be appreciated by the eco -guardians community especially in Summer time . It’s clear at 4:20 in June without speaking when it’s the full moon!

Other

Watching boats like usual and an helicoptere (Coast guards )just above ,freaking out the birds.

6 barrels and 2 men

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Weather

At 5:30 West light wind 6 knots,no visibility :very foggy .Actually the fog horn has been honking from 3:00 Am to 5:30. It cleared up around 6:00. Sea flat the whole day. and sky :cloudy to sunny

Ecological

The seagull are the main actors right now on the rocks :they are busy and noisy.The little ones pops out everywhere ,even the ones closed to the camera 3. They were born Today but still under the parent’s wing right now…At least every hour ,especially this morning you could see clouds of gulls and listen their shrill cries,sometimes because of the presence of an eagle but not always . All at once ,around 600 of them (at least) at the same time  were taking wing in the sky and a few minutes later  back to the ground…Now I understand the expression a flock of seagulls. Still around 5 Elephant seals . Yesterday night we counted 10 oystercatchers before sunset and some very small and adorable seashore birds.A big pod of Orcas were closed to the green boyd around Noon

Maintenance

Kyle came early because of the tide with 6 barrels of diesel and they hauled them with the crank .Now we have 1200 litres of gasoil. I never saw the solar panels dirtier than Today. It was thick and smelly .One bucket of warm water for the top panels was not enough .I had to do it twice .The young ones under the low panels were born so it’s now getting tricky to do the cleaning job! The parents are getting mad …and we have to wear an helmet.

Other

Many watching boats Today and the same helicopter above 2 times. A tanker had to honk for a watching boat too closed…

 

Errands and groceries days

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Weather

2 very calm days,sea like a mirror and only 18 knots at 9:00 on Wednesday it rained in the morning just good  for a rock cleaning (the whole place is getting white ).

Ecological

On Tuesday I went back to the top of the tower and around the rock to double check the birds on the rocks:I discovered 2 beautiful Harlequin ducks always in the same area closed to the beach,2 oystercatchers couples,around 30 Seashore birds,3 sea lions and many harbour seals ,some with very small babies.

Other 

After 8 days on the rocks it was time for shopping and recycling. The days were perfect Tide ,currents ,visibility and …wind contributed to a quiet trip to shore.After those windy days we found many logs floating on the sea between here and Pearson College . Leaving Main, you could see two huge eagles on Middle ready for breakfast…Usual scenery in the morning or before dark.We took advantage of the trip to fill up the gasoline tanks for the boat.(95 litres) and I send (slow mail)the end of the month report for the Seawater .

Census day

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Weather

The wind has been blowing  strongly since 10:00AM ;before that it was around 19 knots At 5:00 it was calm with 10 miles of visibility. At Noon we had 26 knots ,38 at 4:00PM and down to 30 around 7:00. When we went in the light to do the census the effect of the wind and the tide was amazing and gave the feeling to be on a speed boat especially on South side. Going from the house to the tower for the census was like an adventure between the gulls above , the flying helmet, the binoculars and the wind climbing  the outside stairs but…beautiful up to the tower. By the way we have been steady on the rock for 8 days without going back to shore ! Not bad  really..now we just need more groceries…

Ecological and Census

Glaucous winged Gulls (mainly): around 870(mainly outside the main Rock)

Sea otter :1

Elephant Seals :4

Pigeons -Guillemot: 25.

Oystercatchers:2 couples seen today and 5 babies in the week (I will try to spot the other couple )

Harbour Seals : 65 +babies

Seashore birds: 10

Cormorants : 0

Sea lion:1

Geese : 2 (but not seen Today)

Eagles : 3

Seashore birds : a few ( I will try to see  on the beach( If the wind is not too strong )before  the sunset)

Maintenance 

Food inventory (emergency stock),some stuff discarded .

Generator ran 4 hours and half

Guy measured the door that needs to be changed (Derrick house)

Other

1 helicopter above and 2 commercial fishing boats , No watchers

 

 

No dust around this Week end!

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Weather

Almost a permanent gale warning situation those last days: a few hours in the morning around 20 knots and very quickly it increased to 35 to 40 knots for the rest of the day

Ecological

More chicken were born but no comparison with last year . Even if there are many birds on the rocks around we have maybe half of the nesting birds on main! same thing for the sea lions : not one ! 2 times we saw a sea otter: eggs and chicks!..No cormorants and 4 to 6 maximum Elephant seals. Maybe this is because of this very windy spring or/ and less fish.

Boats 

We saw some commercial fishing boats going or coming back even at night but otherwise no pleasure or watching vessels.On Sunday afternoon we spent 2 hours observing a sail boat with some engine problems in a 35 knots wind going towards Victoria .(they had already past the most dangerous area around Race Rocks)   We try to get in touch but nobody answered and finally they managed to enter Pedder Bay entrance and a fishing boat followed them and it looks like he changed its route .

Maintenance 

The desalinator has been on for 16 hours between Saturday and Sunday.The soft water tank is now full.

 

 

Happy canada Day especially for the new born!

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Weather

This first of July has been one of the only calm day of the week.17 knots at 5:00 AM and a sea calm with a good visibility over 15 miles but in the morning the visibility was only 2 miles looking to Vancouver Island but just for a while ,cool day but clear sky.

Ecological 

Busy life around: 4 to 5 elephants on main,2 geese ,1sea lion on the jetty (the first and only one in weeks ) and the birds :we discovered the 3 first gull chicks .2 were at least one or 2 days old and the other one newborn.It must be why the eagles are so active and we had 3 serious attacks.They spent a lot of time on Middle and South rocks.The oystercatchers after the gust of Tuesday came back but no chick. I keep an eye on them.

Maintenance 

Usual chores and I did the end of the month report and get the seawater datas ready for Peter Chandler. Guy had to clean the oxidized cable connected to the generator battery.  The desalinator and the generator were on for 8 hours.

Boats 

Almost no watching vessels. A few commercial one: always different and so majestic : a pleasure to watch them steady in the wind

Seagull’s nest on live

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Weather

West wind moderately strong the whole day: 28 knots at 5:00AM to 31Knots  at 7.30 PM;sky :sunny ; sea :choppy to white caps.

Ecological

The oystercatcher’s nest being empty we put the camera 3 on a seagull’s nest closed to the boat shed and at the same time we can have a look on the railway.  A friend of mine got a flipper going to the sea…It will be very interesting in the coming days because the gulls are really active birds. From the top tower I could observe a baby oystercatcher with his mum and it’s really not so easy to follow it its color is exactly the same as rocks around and they are small..the 2 geese are still there and the usual 4 Elephants.For the first time we saw a sea otter attracted by the coming chicks

Maintenance

Guy removed the old battery box from the whaler and put a new one .he put also a new battery and installed a new belt to have the whole thing secure.The bilge pump will be changed pretty soon.

Other

No visitor and not too much traffic around

Oystercatchers chicks …seen!

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Weather

Windy day :Already 28 knots at 5:00 .This situation stayed stable to Noon but we were expecting a gale warning for the afternoon and yes we got it . the wind increased steadily to 7:30 PM where it get 50 knots . What a beautiful scenery around the rocks .Actually with the tide rising we almost couldn’t see the adjacent ones.It kept windy part of the night but at 1:00 when I awake ,it was just silence around .What a pleasant sound!

Ecological

For the first time we found our two adults male elephant seals closed to the lighthouse in the raging wind. In the morning we finally managed to see 5 babies oystercatchers . The nest closed to the boat shed has 1 and the 2 other nests closed to the crank and closed to the horn have 2 chicks . 4 elephant seals on Main (not always the same ). The 2 geese came back.

Visitors

Chris and Kyle came around 10:30 with 4 people from New York.They left just in time before the gale.

Other

DND activity :3 strong blasts  and a Corvette (Number:338) was at Rocky Point for admonitions (I guess ). I know that some international military exercises in the Pacific  are coming soon or have just finished . Anyway the ship was helped by 2 tugboats and slowly she sailed back to Esquilmalt.

Boats

3 beautiful identical sailboats running closed to the Vancouver Island coast. Late in the day a RCMP zodiac went around the Rocks. 2 big fishing boats, always the same one ,going fishing despite the strong wind.No watching vessels.

 

Windy days

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Weather

The weather was the main concern around here . On  Monday :A light fog at 6:30 PM only on the U.S.coast later .The wind has been around 20 knots at 5:30 AM and during the day increased to 35 in the afternoon with a gale warning for the evening and actually the wind went to 45 knots around 10:00 PM.

On Tuesday:we had 30 knots at 5:30  with a choppy sea and a good visibility .The wind diminished in the morning but increased after Noon and we had a gale warning in effect for the rest of the day at a maximum of 37 knots . Beautiful  dark blue sea and white caps everywhere.

Ecological

We had 4 elephant Seals on main Rock  (the 2 big ones and,a young male and an older female). They all managed to get protected from the wind and came closed to the boat shed. The birds are more and more protective of their nest and we got some helmets in case.

Boats and visitors

No boats around except Second Nature in the morning with Chris and 2 journalists from CTV. They spend 2 hours and tried to understand what is the life around the Rock. We brought them on the top of the lighthouse and explained the best we could.