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Can you believe it’s been nearly two years since the Winter Wildlife Docent program has been operating? First, the government shutdown, then COVID, and throw in the Woodward Fire while we’re at it (even though the latter wouldn’t have affected our operations.  I am so grateful that out of this morass, you have decided to stick with the program and continue educating the public about elephant seals! Not to mention help keep the beloved behemoths safe. The season, of course,…

Last year, the Winter Wildlife Docent Program got off to a late start due to the government shutdown. This year, the program started but did not finish due to the effects of the novel coronavirus and COVID-19 locally and around the world. As you know, we unofficially cancelled the program this past weekend and, yesterday, the park officially cancelled volunteer programs. See text below from nps.gov/pore (emphasis mine): “Following guidance from the CDC and public health officials, and to comply…

ESEAL_20200131 Click the link above to get the update!

K-Barriers By Allison Culver, lead docent What are these “beautiful” concrete barriers doing here? These  4,000 pound k-barriers are here at the request of Sarah Codde, if Sarah has a title it belongs here. The barriers are to deter the elephant seals from going into the parking lot. As many of you may know, the elephant seals like to venture into the parking lot. Last weekend a sub-adult became tired of the comfy ice plant and wormed his way to…

Hello docent crew! Allison and I warmly welcome you aboard to NPS Winter Wildlife! Thanks for being a part of this year’s crew! It has been a start marked by waiting, waiting, waiting, Waiting for gray whale numbers to go up, waiting to see if pregnant cows show up at Drakes, waiting to see if all of Drakes will get closed like last year. Regarding gray whales, some of you might recall the numerous gray whale deaths reported last year.…

Greetings docent crew! This past weekend was busier than the previous one, with docent contacts at 844 on Saturday and 622 on Sunday. Dogs were 11 on Saturday and 10 on Sunday. These were dogs and their owners who would have made a beeline for the beach and would have certainly wandered right up to the seals had not traffic cones and docents been there (along with the actual beach closure). About a dozen surfers on both days. But the…

We had a fantastic weekend in at Point Reyes, while most of the adult seals have left Drakes Beach, the weather was beautiful, the wildflowers have begun to bloom and there were many whale sightings on the Chimney Rock Trail. In addition to this awesomeness, thanks to the effort and hospitality of several docents we had a wonderful meal at the boathouse on Saturday. I came to PORE three years ago, largely for the wildlife and wilderness. Funnily enough, it…

A quick thanks to each of the docents that were out in the park this last weekend. As Carlo mentioned, despite the mixed weather, visitation was surprisingly high. I was at KPVC Monday morning and she was still on the beach. Sadly Monday was the last elephant seal count of the season. There were lots of weaners playing in the water and still quite a few sub-adult males on the beach. Below the elephant seal overlook there were even several…

This past weekend was bittersweet as one cow remains and, with her departure, males will leave the beach in about a week or so. The picture above captures the alpha and remaining cow under a rainbow. We thought for sure we would witness the cow depart Sunday afternoon as she headed from the iceplant, lumbered on the beach, and towards the surf but her pup’s frantic and desperate vocalization held her back mid-beach and she stayed to nurse. It was…

Hi docent crew, Another successful weekend concluded at Drakes! The rainy weather kept visitation lower compared to previous weekends with docent contacts at 394 on Sat 3/3 and 679 on Sun 3/4. Did I mention it was rainy? It wasn’t a heavy downpour but a steady, chilly rain that persisted both days. Cows are low, five or less with at least two pups still being weaned. Saturday was quite active with that males; Sunday was pretty quiet. Carlo tried out…