There is so much that is out of the norm with today's adventure. The first thing is my husband. He would NEVER take off a weekday in January. EVER. He is a VERY responsible CPA and this is the very beginning of a crazy busy time. He is so disciplined and responsible, my bizarro opposite or my model, sometimes I get so confused.
I have longed to go to Ano Nuevo and see the Elephant Seals up close and personal. I shared this with my husband (of over three decades) and he was surprised. He had never heard of the Elephant Seals coming to a local beach and did not know of my desire. I'm pretty sure we're doing something wrong. Why did he not know of my desire? And how could he not have heard about the Elephant Seals appearing each year at Ano Nuevo?
As I was sitting next to him, surfing how to make reservations for the walking tours (during the mating season you must have a reservation to walk among the seals) he said that he could go any day before January 8th. So I booked January 7th. The fee is $7 per person and then a $10 parking fee, such a deal.
Today turned out to be a lovely winter day in California, sunny and around 55 degrees. It was foggy when we left at 10 am, wild waves when we hit Pescadero, but sunny with a very slight breeze when we arrived at Ano Nuevo around noon. We checked in and got our tickets, then took our picnic lunch to one of the tables. We ate quickly, used the facilities, and then went to meet our group. You need to check-in to get your tickets about half an hour before the time because it takes about 30 minutes to hike to the staging area. Well, most people take 30 minutes. We walk quickly so it was less than 15 minutes. The groups are limited to 20, but we got lucky and we were in a group of 9. We did see much larger groups, some were school groups.
A docent leads the group down to where the seals are located, stopping to tell you about the area. Indians lived here and of course were wonderful stewards of the land...and we're so blessed that we didn't make the seals totally extinct in spite of our greed and stupidity. We listened and silently rolled our eyes. When you get to the seals, the ranger takes over.
If anyone knows why I'm getting that black border on top of some of my photos, please comment. I thought it was that my old lens was broken, but this is the new lens. What gives?
The males arrive around Thanksgiving and the females around Christmas. The pups are born within 5 days of the female arriving. We think we saw a brand new pup, since the sea gulls were circling and they get excited at the time of birth (they like to clean up afterwards). We saw elephant sex, new babies, screaming females, and plenty of seals just laying around. When we say laying around, we mean laying around...they look like giant fat blobs. And we mean GIANT. Even the pups are huge. We were on the early stages of all the activities, seems later in February is when more action happens.
We were walking right by them, but I would suggest you bring binoculars and a zoom lens.
The total walk time (getting to and from the staging area along with the tour) is at least three hours and three miles. Part of the walk is in the sand. I would not take a small child on this tour, or someone who is not in shape. It would be particularly difficult if the weather wasn't as wonderful as we had.
If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area and do not do this, HUGE FAIL.
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