2017-07-29 Morro Bay

Sea Otter - Enhydra lutris
Morro Bay on the Central California Coast is a great place to meet Sea Otters.

After my meeting with the Guillemot in San Luis Obispo, I continued my push to Morro Bay a few miles north and I found suitable quarters to shelter me from the elements for the night. Cost of lodging along the Central California coast can be high. At about $100 per night, this town is about as cheap as it gets. Further north $200+ per night is the norm. If my business in Oregon did not involve registering the Samurai, I would be travelling in the RV, and motels would not be a requirement.

After an early morning rise-and-shine and breakfast at a popular local eatery I was ready to explore my favorite pass-time; capturing nature with my camera. I drove around the harbor to the parking lot near Morro Rock. The morning was heavy, under overcast skies, and shooting the gulls and falcons circling overhead would not yield images that would satisfy me.  I worked briefly with the Sea Otters loafing a few yards off the bay shore, before moving on the sparrows and wrens on the lower slopes of Morro Rock.

I met a couple (Pat and Larry) from Bakersfield while on my walk, and the ensuing conversation went on until noon, which made me late for my visit with my cousin Bill and wife Carolynn.

It was a 45 minute drive from Morro Bay to Cambria, and it was great to see my cousin and his wife after so many years. All good things must come to an end, and I needed to get my show on the road again. I planned to tent camp along the Nacimiento-Fergusson Road after one more photo stop at Piedras Blancas. I’ll save the images and descriptions of that leg of the trip for my next installment.

Three of the images below were captured the day before in San Luis Obispo when I met the Pigeon Guillemot.

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