Tag Archives: Whidbey island

Old and the New in the Pattern Over Whidbey

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I was down at Fort Casey on Whidbey Island one sunny afternoon.  I had been to Ault Field first thing in the morning and some of the shots from then will make it on here at some point.  I was down near Coupeville awaiting some FCLP training but, since I had time on my hands, I was wandering down near the shore.  The wind must have changed because some planes from Ault Field were coming down our way as part of their patterns.  One was a P-8 – the latest that the Navy has for maritime patrol – while the other was a P-3 – the type that the P-8 has almost completely replaced in service.  It seemed quite appropriate to have both of them working overhead at the same time.

Sea Lions Off Fort Casey

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I was strolling along the ridge above the beach at Fort Casey when a group of people ahead of me called out to each other about some sea lions off the shore.  Sure enough, there they were when I got to the edge and I could see three of them swimming around.  Looked like a male and two females from a distance.  I was heading down to the beach anyway so wondered if they would still be around when I got down there.

It turned out that they were not moving too far, and they were close to the shore as I walked by.  The sun was almost directly behind them, so it wasn’t an ideal time to be watching the wildlife, but I sometimes found myself offset enough to get a glimpse of them.  Of course, when you are close to sea level, your ability to track them and get good shots is a bit limited but still worth a go.

Fearless Deer

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I have seen deer in the grounds at Fort Casey before.  When I was there recently, they were feeding on the grass near the gun emplacements.  At first, I was disappointed because they were in the shadow of the emplacements as the sun got lower.  This made for shots that were just not as interesting.  Then, they gradually made their way out into the sun and the shots got a lot better.

What amazed me was how they really didn’t seem to give a crap about the humans wandering around near them.  I was trying to get into a position where I could get a good shot but was moving very cautiously to achieve this.  Then a bunch of people would walk by on the trail and the deer might look up briefly but would then return to munching.  I imagine that they see people so often and are never threatened by them so are not worried at all.  I could probably have walked a lot closer to them without them flinching!

Fishing Boat Versus Gulls Versus Bald Eagle

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I started my morning of a trip to Whidbey Island at Moran’s Beach.  This is a good location for morning arrivals at the airfield but it also provides a nice view out into the water.  You can get some wildlife passing through if you are lucky and I was.  A bald eagle was hunting in the area.  It was hanging out in the trees just north of me and then heading out to the water.  There was a fishing boat working not far offshore.  It was attracting a ton of attention from the local gull population and they were swarming around the boat.  The eagle was also interested, though.  It would swoop through periodically, looking for a cheap snack.  The gulls were not too impressed by the interloper!

More Logs Than the Average Beach Has

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Taking a day off on a sunny day is such a lucky break early in the year.  Getting good weather is not guaranteed.  While my main goal was getting some Growler flying at Coupeville, when I had some spare time, I went down to Fort Casey and wandered along the beach.  The beach there has a ridiculous number of tree trunks that have washed up over time.  I don’t know why they end up here but, given how far up the beach they are, I assume the storms force them in this way.  Even getting past them to the shoreline requires some effort.  The almost endless number of them is quite amazing.

A Retired Ferry In Storage

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I am known to take the occasional photos of ferries.  I have even been known to search them out from time to time.  However, I recently got a photo of one purely by accident.  We were on Whidbey Island and in the town of Langley.  We drove down a side road to a dock area to see what was down there and we came across a retired Washington State ferry.  The MV Evergreen State was in the WSF fleet for decades but was finally retired from service in 2015.  Apparently her disposal did not go smoothly and she was in Olympia for a while before a new owner bought her and moved her to Langley.

Supposedly, the new owner is in the process of converting her to electric power.  Working on a vessel as old as she is sounds hard enough as it is but converting it to new technology seems like a major undertaking.  Maybe it will all work out well but I have a feeling that another troubling time could be ahead.  Meanwhile, she is moored in Langley and this is where I shot her.

Formation Kite Flying

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During a visit to Whidbey, we stopped off at Fort Casey to have some lunch.  After eating, we walked downtown the hill from the lighthouse towards the main fort area.  There was a ground of people flying kits on the grass down there.  They clearly were experienced flyers and were flying routines in formation.  There were three of them at first and they were very slick.  A fourth joined in but I think was less experienced than the others.  Even so, they were still doing a good job.

I got a few photos of them as they practiced.  However, stills are not so good a way to give the feeling of kite flying so I went with a little video too.  A little of the video is below.

Meerkerk a Little Early This Time

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A couple of years ago we made a visit to Meerkerk Gardens on Whidbey Island to see the rhododendrons in bloom.  We decided a return trip was in order.  We were possibly a week later than our previous trip but were optimistic.  The gardens were open even with the restrictions in place at that time but we did have to pay online because there weren’t any staff at the entrance.

We had a nice time wandering around.  There were some of the plants in bloom and the colors were very nice.  However, it appears that things are blooming a bit later this year.  Presumably the spring didn’t warm up as fast.  Plenty of the trees had yet to bloom.  I suspect a week or two later might have resulted in a lot more color.  Even so, it was still a very pretty place to walk around.

We hadn’t previously explored as much of the garden as is available.  There is a woodland trail that goes around the back and over some of the steeper areas and we went through all of this.  With so few people there – we did get there early – we were not encountering many other visitors.  I wonder whether it would have been a lot busier a couple of weeks later as the flowers really came into their own.

Deception Pass Bridge Maintenance

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While on our trip to Whidbey, we made a short stop at the North beach in Deception Pass State Park.  This is the beach that is closest to the bridge across the pass.  I was hoping it might be possible to get a nice shot of the bridge but I was disappointed to realize that the maintenance work underway on the bridge has resulted in the structure being covered in a ton of material.  No chance to get anything exciting from that.  If you looked closely, you could make out some of the maintenance team up on the bridge in their hi-viz clothing.  That is not a job for which I would be well suited.

Buzzed By A Bald Eagle

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We had a day out on Whidbey Island and we stopped off at Fort Casey to eat our lunch.  We parked up near the lighthouse and there was a bald eagle hanging around along the cliff tops.  The updrafts made soaring around a piece of cake for it.  It landed in the top of a tree near us as we walked along the cliff.  When we turned around and headed down the slope towards the fort, it started flying high above us and then appeared to swoop down into the bushes – presumably to catch a snack.  We lost track of it at that point but a short while later it emerged from the bushes flying just above head height and straight towards us.  I had the camera on the wrong settings to maximize my chance of getting a good shot but I still managed to get a few slightly blurry ones as it buzzed by.