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A Steller Monday

What started out as a very foggy morning turned into a blue sky and sunshine kind of day with an unbelievable sunset!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Animal Notes:

 

 

A large male Steller sea lion has been hauled out on the rocks near the jetty all day and he make the makes the California sea lions look tiny in comparison! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A female elephant seal spent the morning sunbathing in the water behind the student house. I think this may be the same one that’s been hauling out on the South Island. She’s yet to come ashore here though. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I spotted 3 harbour porpoises just outside the reserve this morning, I see so many back home in Vancouver so I’m surprised that this was the first time I’ve seen them here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I came across a giant pacific octopus at low tide (deceased unfortunately) but it made a great meal for a young gull and an even better learning opportunity for the students that are currently on the island!

 

 

 

 

Finished the night off by watching the sunset with the blonder of the two new otters as it floated off the rocks behind the student house. (No photos, just enjoyed the moment).

Facility Work:

  • Filled the cistern 

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • One ecotourism vessel
  • Two private vessels

Weather Events:

  • Monday, March 18:
    • Sky: Foggy morning, clear blue sky until sunset
    • Wind: High of ESE 11 knots, Low of SE 1 knot
    • Sea: Glassy all day long
    • Temperature: Low 7oC, High  13oC

** 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?

Sea Otters at Sunrise

An early morning alarm clock to watch the sun rise paid off when one of our new sea otters popped up just off the rocks beside me. No colourful urchins to munch on today, just some sleepy floating and grooming. The weather was warm in the morning and cooled off later in the day with the wind. Despite cooling down, the sun was strong and I was able to run the desalinator off pure solar all afternoon!

 

A moment of appreciation for our lone boy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Facility Work:

  • Topped up battery electrolytes
  • Topped up generator’s diesel
  • Cleaned inside keeper’s house and prepped rooms for next Ecoguardian

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • Ecotourism vessels

Weather Events:

  • Sunday, March 17:
    • Sky: Clear, not a cloud in the sky
    • Wind: High of W 24 knots, Low of NE 2 knots
    • Sea: Glassy morning, whitecaps in the afternoon
    • Temperature: Low 8oC, High 11oC

** 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?

Sunny Saturday!

Warmest day yet! Rather uneventful as far as animals go today (or so I thought), managed to get some facility work done – lots of cleaning. Just as I was watching the sunset a pod of transient killer whales passed by just outside the reserve. A beautiful and exciting day way to end a Saturday!

 

 

Facility Work:

  • Cleaned solar panels
  • Cleaned windows of both houses inside and out
  • Chopped wood

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • Ecotourism vessels
  • One recreational vessel came to check out the sea lions, kept a good distance away.

Weather Events:

  • Saturday, March 16:
    • Sky: Clear, not a cloud in the sky
    • Wind: High of E 19 knots, Low of  SSW 3 knots
    • Sea: Flat calm
    • Temperature: Low 8oC, High 13oC

** 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?

Not a Fun Day to be a Sea Lion!

Another epic day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

This morning I spotted the darker of our two new otters feeding off South Island again. These two might need names if they keep sticking around. Bright red urchins were on the breakfast menu for today, personally I prefer a few less spikes with my coffee.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The afternoon brought transient killer whales past the reserve who spent 2.5 hours in the area hunting sea lion. While they didn’t come super close, they did put on a pretty unbelievable show!

 

 

Visitors:

  •  Greg and furnace repairman

Facility Work:

  • Keeper’s house furnace now working!
  • Prepped student house for visitors

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • Ecotourism vessels

Weather Events:

  • Friday, March 15:
    • Sky: Blue sky
    • Wind: High of 14 knots, Low of 6 knots
    • Sea: Whitecaps
    • Temperature: Low 6oC, High 10oC

Two Otter Thursday

It’s been a busy few days for sea otters! While I didn’t see Ollie today, the smaller of the 2 I saw a few days ago spent the majority of this morning near the South Island. Later in the afternoon what appeared to be the same otter came past the jetty before heading out toward North Rocks. I figured the two new kids on the block were just passing through but its been 4 days now so we’ll see if they stick around. I couldn’t get great photos but I’ll include a couple below!

 

Weather for Thursday, March 14:

    • Sky: clear
    • Wind: High NE 11 knots, Low WNW 3 knots
    • Sea: Flat calm, slight ripple with afternoon current picking up
    • Temperature: Low 6oC, High 10oC

 

 

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

Animal Census and Blog

Time is flying by here! Nothing too wild to report today, the weather is definitely getting warmer and the solar panels are working hard. See below for more details!

March 13th Census:

Birds

  • Harlequin duck: 13
  • Bald eagle adult: 5
  • Bald eagle juvenile: 1
  • Turnstones: 16
  • Gulls, Glaucous and Western: 130
  • Cormorants: 27
  • Pigeon Guillemots: 86
  • Oyster catcher: 21
  • Canadian goose: 11
  • Surf Birds: 8

 

Mammals

  • Steller sea lion: 23
  • Harbour seal: 40
  • California sea lion: 27
  • Elephant seal male: 1
  • Sea otter: 1 (+ additional sighted March 11th)
  • Animal Tracking and Injuries: 
    • Injuries: Steller sea lion with head wound (see photo) 
    • Tracking: California sea lion with small red flipper tag, no numbers or markings on tag

 

Ecological Notes:

–          Two sea otters observed near the South Island on the morning of March 11th. One was larger with a dark face, the second appeared to be young with blonde cheeks and lacking the nose scar that Ollie is known for. Watched them both for 3-4 hours, they were eating urchins, crab, grooming, and exhibiting other common sea otter behaviours.

–          Still just one male elephant seal on the rocks. Female was reported on Middle Rock by an ecotourism vessel.

Visitors:

  • Greg to drop off supplies

Facility Work:

  • Gardening/weeding
  • Repaired some gaps in the electric fence
  • Full clean inside keeper’s house (on bad weather day)

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • Ecotourism vessels, the same 2-3 seem to pass by each day
  • Wednesday, March 13:
    • Sky: Blue sky with some clouds 
    • Wind: Low of WNW 4 knots with high of WSW 18 knots
    • Sea: Relatively calm today 
    • Temperature: Low 6oC, High 9oC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

** 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?

Ollie the Sea Otter

This morning started with strong winds, dark skies, and sideways hail. The wind didn’t let up at all throughout the day but there were brief periods of sun here and there. The darker sea otter from yesterday was happily eating urchins off South Island again but the smaller one was no where to be seen. Although it was hard to spot much out there among the whitecaps. I finally saw the true Ollie, nose scar and all near Turbine Rock this afternoon. He took a quick jaunt over to the South Island but the other otters were not there, on his return back to Turbine rock he passed right in front of the jetty allowing me to get a photo and confirm my suspicion that there have truly been 3 different otters here the past 2 days. How wild is that! Ollie’s light blonde head and prominent nose scar easily distinguish him from the other 2. I wonder if I’ll see them tomorrow!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Weather:

  • Tuesday, March 12:
    • Sky: Dark, hail, rain, brief periods of sun
    • Wind: High of W 32 knots, low of ENE 3 knots
    • Sea: Large whitecaps, strong current
    • Temperature: Low 6oC, High 9oC

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

Two New Sea Otters!

What an unbelievable day. I woke up to one of the most beautiful sunrises I’ve ever seen. As I do first thing each morning, I locate the lone male elephant seal, so I’m not caught off guard at any point. This morning he was asleep on the boat launch just out of reach of the incoming waves. I did my usual perimeter walk before sitting on the rocks overlooking the South Island with my coffee and camera. For the first time since I arrived here 11 days ago, I finally spotted Ollie the sea otter…or so I thought. I was ecstatic to see him so close and as I was snapping a few shots something else caught my eye. A second sea otter! About 200m apart I watched 2 individual sea otters crack open urchins and crab on their bellies, dive, and groom in the current. After spending nearly 3 hours watching and photographing them, I finally went inside to go through my photos. One of the otters appeared larger with a much darker head and narrow face, the second was smaller with blonde cheeks and in my opinion appeared to be a juvenile. Could it possibly be two otters that aren’t Ollie??? The blonde one was also lacking the nose scar that Ollie is known for, and he has been reported hanging around the North Rocks lately, so my hunch is these are two new animals. Will keep you posted!

 

Our elephant seal friend soon also found himself cruising by the South Island and just as I was wondering where the otters went…guess whose big head popped up in the current!? Poor guy scares off every animal he approaches. I look forward to tomorrow to see if the otters return or were perhaps just passing through.

 

Just need another elephant seal or 2 to keep him company!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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

Trevor Anderson , former Light Keeper at Race Rocks dies at 103

Obituary: Trevor Anderson: James Bay fixture was a lighthouse keeper, sailor and war veteran

It was in the late 1970s that Trev and Flo Anderson convinced us at Lester Pearson College that we should seek some form of protection for the unique ecosystems at Race  Rocks. It was as a result of their urging that we worked to get the Archipelago of islands at Race Rocks  designated as a provincial Ecological Reserve in 1980.


 Link to the Victoria Times Colonist article

For more than 15 years, Trev Anderson was a fixture in James Bay, sitting in his favourite chair on the front porch of his Niagara Street home in his signature black hat, waving, chatting and even blowing the odd passersby a kiss.

In return, Anderson, who died Monday at the age of 103, got to pet all the dogs in the neighbourhood and a chance to taste a sampling of brownies for his sweet tooth.

Those he greeted would have little idea of the colourful life the friendly senior had lived.

That life included narrowly escaping after his plane was shot down in the Second World War, becoming a lighthouse keeper in the early 1960s, and building a 55-foot sailboat to live on board for eight years — despite little knowledge of how to sail.

“My dad was vivacious up to the end — that’s just how he lived life,” said Adrianne Lowden, the youngest of Anderson’s four children with wife Flo (Florence), who died in 2017.

“He was as tough as nails but he also had an incredible sense of humour.”

Trevor Maxwell Anderson was born in Regina, Sask., on Oct. 22, 1920. His family moved to northern British Columbia when he was around six and he spent some of his teenage years in Shawnigan Lake, finally moving to Victoria in his late teens.

He enlisted in 1941, receiving training as a wireless operator and gunner. He was stationed in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Sicily, flying in B-25 bombers attached to the Royal Air Force.

When not operating the Morse code machine, he was responsible for two 50-calibre machine guns in the bomber’s belly.

His plane was shot down on his fourth mission, crash-landing in the Mediterranean Sea — there is a picture of the stricken plane, taken from another plane in the formation, on the wall of his James Bay home.

“Dad told me that the only way out was through a 10-inch [square] window — he remembered kicking it,” said Lowden.

She said that her father can’t recall how he managed to fit through the small opening, as he was wearing heavy gear to keep out the cold and an inflatable jacket as well.

All the crew survived the crash and scrambled onto a life raft. They were picked up by a fishing boat, but the engine died, delaying their return to dry land for three days.

The experience did not deter Anderson from returning to the air. He completed a total of 55 missions, with the usual number for gunners typically running 25 to 30.

It was during his tour of North Africa that he began to write to Flo, his future wife.

In one of the letters, he asked her to marry him — and she accepted. They married in 1944 and the two were together until Flo’s death.

He enlisted with the Air Force upon his return from North Africa, retiring in 1960.

The following year, with Flo and two boys and two girls in tow, he became a lighthouse keeper, initially on Lennard Island, on the southwest entrance to Templar Channel, north of Tofino.

The family became “rock ­hoppers” stationed at various lighthouses, including Green Island, 40 kilometres northwest of Prince Rupert, the ­northernmost lighthouse that was staffed.

In 1966, they were assigned to Race Rocks, where they remained until Anderson retired for the final time in 1982.

While he was on Race Rocks, he got the notion of building a sailboat, though he was a novice sailor.

It took the couple seven years to build a 55-foot ketch — a two-masted sailboat — which they christened WaWa.

They learned to sail, cruising the Gulf Islands and circumnavigating Vancouver Island before heading to the South Pacific in 1985.

“My parents gave us incredible lives,” said Lowden. “My siblings and I had the fortune to grow up fully and share the adventure.”

She said both her parents wrote books about their experiences. Her mother wrote an autobiography called Lighthouse Chronicles about the lighthouse years, while her father wrote The War and I about his wartime experiences, with both of them collaborating on All At Sea about their time on the water.

After their South Seas adventure, they returned to Victoria in 1987, living aboard WaWa for another eight years. After selling the boat, they jumped into a camper and travelled around North America until 1999, when they returned to Victoria.

The couple settled into the 1904 house on Niagara Street that Flo’s parents had originally bought in 1959.

That’s where Anderson would sit on the front porch and greet passerby from his favourite old armchair. Once he determined that the neighbourhood was safe and secure, he would retire for his afternoon nap.

“He was up and about until about two weeks ago,” said Lowden

Since his 100th birthday, Anderson’s children, Adrienne, Beth, Stan and Garry, have been putting up a banner on the front porch saying “TREV, Happy Birthday,” followed by his age.

This week, the birthday wishes were replaced with Bon Voyage as a send-off for a life well-lived.

parrais@timescolonist.com

>>> To comment on this article, write a letter to the editor: letters@timescolonist.com

Elephant Seal!

I’ve officially been on the rocks for 10 whole days and every single one of them have been incredible. I can’t walk by a single window in this house without staring out of it in awe.

I have learned so much in such a brief period and although I’ve always been a rather solitary person, this is a whole new level of living alone. While slightly overwhelming at first, I think I’ve found my groove and there is always something to do.

Elephant seal

He’s always watching!

Each morning I awake to the sound of my new alarm clock – the singular male elephant seal on the island who is bellowing for what I assume is a female (or maybe he does it solely to wake me up). The gulls enjoy chiming in which usually sets the geese off too, by then the 3 California sea lions by the jetty are annoyed and they begin to holler along with the whole choir. Honestly, I wouldn’t want to be woken up any other way!

Looking back through previous logs and animal census it is obvious that this is a slow time of year for animals, the census I did this week is far outshined by most of the others. I look forward to more animals arriving.

The weather the last few days has been warmer than when I first arrived and despite some strong winds last night, the wind seems to have calmed down as well. The evenings are still chilly, but the fire warms the house perfectly.

I haven’t spotted any cetaceans in the last few days but I’m hoping I will soon. The same 2-3 ecotourism vessels pass by each day and the passengers always give me an excited wave. I feel as though I’m the star attraction when they do that – or maybe it’s more like I’m one of the animals to spot? There haven’t been a whole lot of pinnipeds around either, but from what I’ve experienced so far, all the operators are very respectful when showing their guests the reserve.

It’s daylight savings today which means we get a whole extra hour of daylight and a whole extra hour of solar power, woohoo!

 

Here are some additional notes from the past few days:

Ecological Notes:

–          Still just the one male elephant seal. There was a brief appearance by a female on March 7th but she was quick to return to the water when the sole male came barrelling towards her (a full speed galumph if I’ve ever seen one!!)

Visitors:

–          Greg, Cedric, and furnace repairman

Facility Work:

  • Gardening
  • Station refuel
  • Furnace maintenance
  • Wood bucking and splitting (extra thanks to Cedric!)
  • Washed house windows inside and out
  • Topped up batteries with water

Noted Vessel Traffic:

–          Ecotourism vessels
–          Group of 6 kayakers

 Weather Events:

  • Thursday, March 07:
    • Sky: Overcast with the sun coming out later in the day
    • Wind: High of NNE 15knots, low of NNE 5knots
    • Sea: Calm
    • Temperature: Low 1oC, High 6oC
  • Friday, March 08:
    • Sky: Overcast, on and off drizzle
    • Wind: High of N 21 knots, low of ENE 9 knots
    • Sea:  Calm, strong current coming through in the evening
    • Temperature: Low 6oC, High 10oC
  • Saturday, March 09:
    • Sky: Dark skies, brief period of sun with a big rainbow!
    • Wind: High of ESE 31knots, low of WSW 4 knots
    • Sea: Relatively calm with swell picking up
    • Temperature: Low 7oC, High 9oC
  • Sunday, March 10:
    • Sky: Mix of overcast and sun throughout the afternoon
    • Wind: High of E33 knots, low of N5 knots
    • Sea: Strong current in the reserve today but calm outside
    • Temperature: Low 7oC, High 10oC

 

** 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?