Orca!

 Yesterday afternoon an Orca pod passed by headed south. We had a great view of them. Unfortunately, their arrival was preceded by multiple boats speeding over the water trying to position themselves for a view. I guess I can't blame them, it is an amazing sight and not everyone is fortunate enough to have a front row seat as we do. 

This morning around 7AM we spotted them again heading south down Pickering Passage and hugging Harstene Island.  We could see their blow and hear them as they passed under the bridge. No boats tagging them this time, just a lone paddleboarder who probably got some amazing pictures.  This pod has been identified as the Biggs transient group that eats seals. No coincidence that the seals have abandoned the floating dock. Not as dumb as they look.

Expecting another hot day in the upper 80's low 90's.

Phone Fishing and Orca Watch

 Jack was able to retrieve his phone at low tide yesterday. It sat in a bed of rice as suggested on You Tube but it seems to have given up.  His new phone should arrive Monday the 25th. Same phone number.

Orca pods have been spotted all over the South Sound recently with some pods spotted going under the Harstene Island Bridge. We saw them on July 4th. The last pictures taken of the pod from the bridge were at 11:52PM, obviously not by us! Who is walking across the bridge at that hour? Weirdos.

We woke up to heavy fog this morning. Currently 80 degrees and sunny with a slight breeze at 3:45PM. 

For some reason I am unable to download pictures onto the blog now. Working on it.

UPDATE three Orcas passed by under the bridge heading South. 

Sleeping with the Fishes

 Just an FYI that Jack's cell phone is at the bottom of the Bay. He'll have a new phone in a few days.

Fishing

 Launched the boat and headed toward the east side of Harstene Island, Case Inlet. We started out with an overcast sky and sweatshirts, but the sun came out, we saw porpoise, and had a great boat ride despite no fish.

Bite of Shelton

 The main drag in Shelton (Railroad Ave) was shut down today for 7 blocks while hosting the Bite of Shelton. Jack and I checked it out and enjoyed a beer at the Railroad Taphouse while we waited for street tacos and Texas Twinkies from another food vendor. 

Sequim Trip

                            Mt Baker from Port Angeles

                                    Ediz Hook Port Angeles

Mike and Patty C. were spending a few nights in a cabin at the John Wayne RV Park. We drove up Hood Canal to meet them for lunch in Sequim. Before lunch our first stop was to the beach at Ediz Hook, Port Angeles. Yes, I collected a very small bag of rocks because honestly my garden at home in California has more rocks than this beach now. Jack puts a weight/space limit on my rocks now. When we had the 5th wheel it was easier to hide rocks. Next a quick stop at Sunny Farms for melons and Eastern WA beef.    It was a beautiful clear day with dozens of fishermen out in the Straits.

Sadly, Sequim is being overbuilt like many other Washington towns. The roads, schools and medical facilities in Sequim are at capacity as it is, and any added population will put a strain on the community.

The Sequim Lavendar Festival is this coming weekend (July 15-17). Years ago, I enjoyed visiting the Lavendar Farms and checking out the street fair. Now I will avoid Sequim during this weekend at all costs. 

A Grey whale was spotted (not by us) cruising North under the Harstine Bridge yesterday. A telltale sign of Orcas or whales in the area is a sudden cluster of boats. I saw the Orcas on the 4th of July. A whale sighting would be amazing.

Crab

 Jack and his brother took a day trip to Sequim for some crab. There are no Dungeness in our Bay and crabbing is not open here anyway. The highlight of the day was watching a pod of Orca swim by heading down Pickering Passage toward Olympia.

Crab Louie last night, crab cakes tonight. Gave one crab to neighbor/landlord Brian.

The 4th of July started off with a bang at 4AM when some yahoo down the road decided it was fireworks time. We spend a nice evening around a campfire with Mike and Maryann B next door.