Saturday, September 25, 2010

Port San Luis and Harford Pier

I installed a new header photo a couple of days ago and then I noticed it was a bit crooked.  You could see that the horizon line was askew.  I remembered reading on the Bayfield Bunch Blog a while ago that Al said he could spot those crooked horizon shots a mile away and was wishing he could tweak them just a bit to make them straight.  So, I attempted several times to get it the way I wanted and then back again to the size I wanted.  Finally made it right today (at least more right). 

Friday we drove over to the Port San Luis area, which is just a few short miles north of Pismo Beach.  We packed up our lunch to take with us.  When we got there we pulled our chairs and table out of the car and set out our lunch.  It was great to be out in the warm sunshine and be able to watch the boats and the folks on the beach.

                             Dog friendly, off-leash beach with some playful dogs enjoying the water.DSCF6774

                                 Riggs would enjoy being here in the water with these guys!DSCF6773

There are several dry camping spots right along the road by the beach.  You are fairly well crammed in together, but this is beach property in California….you’ll always be crammed in.

                These RVer’s are probably fishing people and have boats bobbing in the water out there.DSCF6775

We walked over to Harford Pier after we finished our lunch and got tired of watching the dogs romp in the waves.  Along with some fishing boats there were some nice looking sailboats to see.  Any type of water view is appealing to me.  I love the smell of the ocean and that probably goes back to my childhood when we’d visit my grandparents in Santa Barbara.  My Dad would always go down to the pier and harbor and let me tag along.  We’d walk around the pier watching the fishing boats go out.  The sounds and the smells of those times at the harbor will never leave me.

                                            This sailboat was a dandy!DSCF6779

As we continued our walk toward the end of the pier, we could see many Pelicans out in the water.  Looking closer we saw some adults and many young with them.  It looked like the adult Pelican would have each of the younger ones take a turn flying up over the water with them.  I think it was a fishing lesson.  The Mom or Dad (don’t know which) would fly around with the baby for a while and then dive-bomb to the surface of the water as if to see a fish to grab.  The baby did the same thing and then the adult would do it again with a different baby.

                  The adult Pelican just after it landed back in the water and the young swim up close.DSCF6783

                                                      Getting ready to fly again.DSCF6785

                                            Lesson was over and they just swam around for a while.DSCF6784

Throughout the whole area you could hear the barking of the sea lions.  These must be great fishing grounds in the bay because whenever we come here, the sea lions are all over the place.  Under the pier’s main level is a fishing deck and on this day you could see it was covered with many of the sea lions sunning themselves. 

                                                  Hey, who’s got the sunscreen?DSCF6792

                                            Hey, cutie.  How about a date tonight?DSCF6790

We saw several people fishing and then we saw this woman who appeared to catch something.  We waited for a minute to see if she reeled anything in, but it appeared to be a false alarm for her.

                                            Two poles for her.  Is that one for each hand?DSCF6796

We saw a sea lion in the water surrounded by some gulls.  I think they were all fishing together.  Every once in a while you could look out and see a sea lion’s head break the surface of the water.  There were several of them out in their own fishing grounds.  They were barking like they were happy about the situation.  We also saw a man launch himself in a kayak.  Hope he doesn’t fall in because that water might be cold!

DSCF6800 

DSCF6805

There are a couple of restaurants on the pier and then a couple more out in the parking area.  They were all busy with folks enjoying their lunches at the harbor.  Cars can drive out on Harford Pier, but there is also a large parking lot before getting to the pier.  Take your pick.

                                            Harford Pier at Port San Luis.DSCF6804

Hope you enjoyed your trip to the pier today.  It was just a simple day, but most of them are for us when we are around Pismo Beach. 

Until next time…..so long for now!

19 comments:

Rick said...

Your pics of the Pismo Beach area are 'killing me', I can't wait to get back down there.

Looks like you had another beautiful day too. Sure seems to be a lot of Pelicans around. I don't remember seeing all that many last year.

Gypsy said...

I like to watch adult birds teaching the young ones, and I've never had the opportunity to watch many pelicans. Thanks for the photos.

Karyn-Lee said...

I'm with Rick, your photos are excellent, the fishing lesson was awesome!
Cheers!

Dennis and Donna said...

As usual....great pictures....Thanks for taking us to California...

Travels with Emma said...

Your post makes me long for the ocean! Thanks.. :)

Sue and Doug said...

thanks for the tour around Pismo Beach..Tucker would have loved the dog beach too!!

Margie and Roger said...

Enjoyed my relaxing day at the pier with you...via your blog. Just can't beat a day at water's edge.

Who made the "rule" that a horizon photo has to be straight? I guess I enjoy things that are a little off balance.

Al Bossence said...

I noticed your change to the header photo & your composition is better this time as well with the beach fence moved 'off center;))' Although our Lake Huron here looks very much like an ocean it sure doesn't have all the marvelous sea life a real ocean has. Maybe one day we will get ourselves over to California's sea side if we could find our way through the maze of California traffic........

Sam&Donna Weibel said...

You are so right Margie, Rigg's would die for a day at the beach, Only trouble is with his fast and strong swimming, I'd hate to have to follow him to Hawaia to collect him up.Looks like you'all had a great day, hope you keep up the tour of the area. Be safe out there Sam & Donna...

Phyllis said...

Would have loved to watch the Sea Lions,

You say you love the smell of the sea. For me it is the smell of fresh turned earth getting ready for Spring planting.

pidge said...

You have a beautiful place to walk. I can't wait to get out there and see some of what you have been sharing. Thank you for that.

Kenny And Angela's Adventure said...

What a great place to visit.Thanks for taking us.

Freely Living Life said...

The trip to the pier was delightful! Thank you for taking us along. Beautiful photos! =0)

{{hugs}}

Along the Way with JnK said...

Thank you so very much for sharing your photos and stories. A little over a month, we will be going up the coast for my (Kimberly) first time.

Seeing it through your eyes first has made it even more exciting...it's as if I will be seeing it all over again!

But first we work the Pumpkin lot, something new for us, we have only worked the Christmas lots in the past. We are sure that taking the coast up to Washington from San Francisco will be a great ending to a perfect time!

Cindy said...

Oh my on the next trip I need to take some sunscreen..it felt like I was right there with you!!Thanks for sharing this trip!

Cindy and Walker

Unknown said...

What a wonderful day at the beach!

Carol K said...

I enjoyed reading about and seeing pictures of your excursion today!

Wayne and Roberta said...

What a wonderful day you had and great pictures! Thanks for sharing.

Lin said...

The photos and your new header are great! ;) Makes me long for sand between my toes.