Tag Archives: sailing

Guess what? lots of snow

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Ecological Notes:

  • Very large, pregnant Elephant seal moving around on the main island. At one point I thought she was in labor, but then she calmed back down

She got here before the snow

Flicking snow up onto her back

Her packed down trails are the best to walk on

  • many Sealions have left in the bad weather, not sure if they will be back
  • Still seeing occasional Humpback Whales around the reserve

Visitors:

  • Last week had visitors for Royal Roads
  •  Seafront coordinator to deliver fuel, joined him on a quick trip into the Victoria Fuel dock

Facility Work:

  • Installed new, high efficient  heater in the Desalinator Bunker

NOT the grey one!

  • Serviced the chainsaw and put on new chain, bucked up available firewood
  • Continuous repairs to the electric fence system
  • Weekly battery maintenance, 
  • Checked heat tape on exposed waterlines, was working but eventually failed, no water to the main house now

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • A group of sailboat did a run around the reserve

Ecoguardian  Notes:

  • Great care taken to navigate around in the high snow drifts, it all changes hourly, and shoveling is futile, other than to keep doorways passable

Weather Events:

Blustery Day

  • Primarily N/NE winds for the last week, overcast with lots of snow
  • Monday / Tuesday December 19/20:
    • Sky: Overcast with snow flurries
    • Wind: N/NE winds 20-30 Knt
    • Sea: 1 meter swells
    • Temperature Low -8 oC, High -3 oC
  • Wednesday December 21:
    • Overcast with a mix of sunny periods, clear skies after dark
    • Wind:N/NE 20-30knts
    • Sea:  1 – 2 meter waves
    • Temperature Low  -8oC, High  -6oC
    • Very cold windchill
  • Tower weather electronics are still down, so wind numbers are estimates.

 

Weather – Current:

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

 

Weather – Past:

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

A view from the top

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Ecological Notes:

  • 1 Female Elephant Seal
  • 1 Male Elephant Seal, appears to be last year’s Beachmaster
  • First time I’ve personally noticed this type of tag …. On the Female Elephant Seal

Tag with holes in a pattern

 

harlequin ducks

Facility Work:

  • Cleaning and firewood prep for the next Ecoguardians
  • Looks like tomorrow morning will be all about clearing the pier area of debris and redoing the electric fence. The swells and incoming wind knocked concrete blocks right off the pier.

DND events:

  • 2 days of blasting with noticeable reactions from the Scea Lions.

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • 3 different Ecotourism vessels
  • Several Sailboats back and forth, cutting between the reserve and Bentinck Island

 Feature Event:

  • Took a few Pictures from the top of the light while I was doing the animal Census.

 

Weather Events:

  • Mostly average winds from the west. Wednesday greeted us with 30-40 knot southeasterly wind, with very large swells!

 

** 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?

Census, sailors and kayakers

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Weather

  • Visibility: 15 Miles
  • Wind: 0-20 NW
  • Sky: Partly Cloudy
  • Water: Calm

Boats/Visitors

  • a few ecotours went by today
  • along with two kayakers and a bunch of sailboats

Ecological

  • about a dozen elephants, quite a few different birds and not a lot of sea lions about today
  • a possible sea otter in the north kelp bed but I couldn’t see it, but there were boats circling around there
  • saw an oyster catcher nest as well

Census

  • stellar sea lions – 12
  • california sea lions – 25
  • harbour seals – 32
  • elephant seals – 11 female, 1 male
  • gulls – 180
  • cormorants – 18
  • pigeon guillemots – 220
  • harlequinn ducks – 12
  • oyster catchers – 14
  • fox sparrows – 10
  • geese – 16
  • eagles – 2
  • sea otter – maybe 1

Beautiful day

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Weather

  • Visibility: 15 Miles
  • Wind: 0-10 NW
  • Sky: Sunny
  • Water: Calm

Boats/Visitors

  • a lot of boat traffic today, from ecotour to fishing boats and sailboats, great day to be on the water

Ecological

  • about 9 elephant seals around, all female, and all in the process of molting
  • the eagles were chasing around the seagulls today and there were quite a bit of pigeon guillemots around

 

Swiftsure Race Today

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Weather

  • Visibility: 15 Miles
  • Wind:  5-10 NW was a bit less in the middle of the day but picked up a bit again
  • Sky: clear and sunny
  • Water: calm

Boats/Visitors

  • A lot of ecotours today, along with countless boats sailing by and fishing

Ecological

  • 12 elephant seals scattered around today, mostly around the jetty to cool off in the water

Other

  • The swiftsure race started today and hundreds of sailboats went sailing by the lighthouse today

Archive: CoastWatch Photo Gallery

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Included here are some of our archival photos of the various activities that students were involved in the CoastWatch Program

 

 

In April of each year while CoastWatch was operating at Pearson College , the students of CoastWatch directed a clean up of Victoria area beaches. This usually involves students of the college as well as up to 20 other volunteer groups in the community .

Beach clean up at Trial Island near Victoria.Here Pearson College students pile beach debris on Trial Island near Victoria, B.C. and bring a load back for disposal at Pearson College.

Beach clean up at Trial Island near Victoria 

Grade 7 school children boarding the DUEN for a sailing trip

Over the years , our sailing program has involved taking those with mental and physical disabilities out on the ocean. The program has involved going to sea on the “DUEN”a classic sailboat that Mike and Manon Hobbis ran for field trips from the College. On it visitors in wheelchairs, and our friends from various community challenge programs got to try out different stations on the DUEN.

Renald Cousineau showing a sea cucumber to elementary school students.

In the spring and fall terms, we have had programs with the grade seven classes from local schools in our Schools Program visiting for trips in the Race Passage area of Southern Vancouver Island.

 

See the posts on the Schools Program in the later years.

 

The seafront at Lester Pearson College with the DUEN — taken from the air

The Duen is no longer with the college but up to recent years Mike and Manon, seen here with Phillipe Cousteau operated  Duen Sailing Adventures  along the Coast of British Columbia and Haida Gwaii

 

 

Return to the CoastWatch Introduction

 

An end of term party at Taylor Beach for some of the students of CoastWatch