We’ve spent a wonderful three weeks back in the Santa Cruz area. We stayed longer than planned, even though it was strange being there without an actual house to live in. We did a lot of yard and driveway camping, thanks to our wonderful friends and family who didn’t mind having that VW camper top popped in their yards.

The call of the ocean was refreshing after being in the deserts of the Southwest.  Margarita’s and calamari on the Crows Nest patio a few times, long dog  walks and bonfires on the beach, camping and picnicking with family, bbq’s and good latte’s with friends. All was well.

A special thanks to dear friend Ken, for allowing us to use his house up the coast in Davenport as a sort of home base. Not only was that comforting, we got to know Davenport well. And loved hanging out there.

We miss our nesting Black Oyster Catchers, the Brown Pelicans, and the baby seagulls we discovered. We went often and watched the parents rearing these kids on the rocks off the coast, and spent hours enjoying the antics while sipping tea or eating lunches, wondering why these little birds don’t fall off the edge of the cliffs.

We’re now in Eureka, traveling up the northern coast of California. We had planned on traveling inland, but thanks to the hot weather we decided to avoid, we’ve kept to the cool foggy coastline. We’re meandering slowing toward Oregon for a large Northwest loop, and have decided to kind of make this part of the trip about birds and birdwatching. So far, so good. We’re keeping our lists, learning about bird behaviors and habitat patterns. It’s fun to wake up excited about where to go birdwatching and what we see next!!

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