The Orcas are Back!

Two days in a row now a pod of orcas has cruised by -- first heading south then yesterday heading back north. We think they didn't find enough salmon to eat down south so are heading for Hood Canal where they can feast on seals. They were traveling fast, breaking the surface with loud slaps. One in particular had a very tall fin that reflected bright red late afternoon sunlight. My little camera failed to capture any interesting images so I copied this one from Google images.

Orca Sighting

Today around mid-morning something out on the water caught my eye -- a small skiff, stationary, with a single occupant. Then, ah ha! three Orcas surfaced! The skiff had "Research" written prominently along its hull and was observing the whales as they made their way quickly north. Just a few days ago I'd been thinking of the possibility of seeing Orcas this winter here in Puget Sound, so this sighting was pretty exciting.

I'm happy to be back after a couple of days in Seattle. Had dinner with dear friends, struggled through Pilates, went shopping, cooked up a brown rice and vegetable dish for the monthly "Cena", dashed downtown to SAM to see the Hopper show and do lunch with Connie, more errands and finally, we got the ferry to Kingston. A funny thing happened. For the first time, by becoming so engrossed in my book, I missed getting back to the car and had to walk off the ferry and meet up with David further up the road. It was cold and dark but the holiday lights at the Port and all along the road were cheery.

It's so peaceful here. The sight of water so soothing. It's great to be back.