January 23

Tuesday, my wife and I once again hiked the Bluff Cove trail on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, south of Los Angles. The early morning weather was sunny with a temperature of 60 degrees and a gentle breeze off the ocean. Leaving the car parked on top of the bluff, we hiked a few hundred feet and paused to admire the rugged beauty of this coastline. Next, we began a diagonal descent south along a steep cliff where I enjoyed hearing and seeing the waves pounding the shore below. Along the bumpy trail, I spotted a perching White-crowned Sparrow to my right and a bee pollinating a Bladderpod Spider flower, to my left. Further down the trail, I noticed the results of a rockslide referred to as a Talus Cone. Soon, we made it down to the rocky beach where I saw several clumps of seaweed, called Kelp, drying in the sun. Walking over to one of the clumps, I turned it over and was amazed to see dozens of tiny Kelp flies heading for cover. These insects, including both larva and adult, play an important role in decomposing the Kelp that washes to shore. Further down the beach, I spotted a group of Egrets walking on a large bed of Kelp feeding on these flies. While exploring the beach, I came across some rocks with large holes. These holes are burrows created by bivalve mollusks or boring clams called Piddocks. These clams use a set of ridges or "teeth" on the outer surfaces of their shells to grind into rock creating these holes. Turning north, we began our ascent toward the car where I noticed six California Sea Lions resting on a rock outcrop about 100 yards off the coast. Also, I took one last look as wave after wave washed into Bluff Cove. Finally, we made it to the car and headed back to our winter rental, 7 miles north.

Sights below

Waves of white

Indigo

Smells below

Briny soup

Guano

Sounds below

Gulls and terns

Stereo

Nature’s show

Ocean bluff

Afterglow

D. DeGraaf