October, 2022
Back down to the beach! There’s a ton of stuff to see and do around Bremerton, but with weather like we had this week, I couldn’t stay away from the beach and the water.
So down I drove again, down those switchback roads, back down to the beach and the pier and the water, and a to see few boats. 🙂
Below … the view of the pier from the parking lot. It was somewhere close to noon when I was here, but at this time of year the sun is pretty low in the sky even at noon, so I’m sometimes shooting straight into the sun for these photos. I know that makes the rest of the photo look dark. But I still wanted to show you. 🙂
While I was walking on the beach, I heard a power boat approach.
It pulled into the dock at the end of the pier.
It was a State Parks boat! Two guys were on board and were, I guess, checking things out by water. I’d like that job! Well, except in bad weather.
So that was on the north side of the pier. I then walked around to the south side of the pier (the side with the sun shining on it!). Hmm, seems there’s a sailboat out there on the float opposite where the State Parks boat was. In the middle of summer, those floats would be FULL of small boats.
Zoomed the camera in for a look-see. You can see a little bit of the State Parks boat there too.
So then I decided to walk out that long pier and check things out at the far end of the pier.
Looking to the left, to the north … what a beautiful day!
And looking straight down from the end of the pier … here’s that State Parks boat moored up nicely.
Twin screw (two props and two engines). Counter-rotating props, not surprisingly. One prop turns clockwise, the other turns counter-clockwise. I knew of one boat in Puget Sound that had two engines and two props but both props turned the same direction. The guys who owned that boat had a heck of a time maneuvering slowly in tight spaces because props not only push the boat forward (or in reverse), they also turn the boat sideways depending on the rotation of the propellers. So if you have both props turning the same direction, even with the “steering wheel” pointing directly forward, the boat will turn all on its own. Counter-rotating props are a must on a twin screw boat. Even my 1939 Pied Piper had counter-rotating props!
I stayed out at the end of the pier for a bit, listening to the birds. It was so quiet except for a few birds. And then I headed back in towards land.
Mid-way back on the pier, I looked to my left, south, hoping to see Mt. Rainier. On a clear day, that’s exactly where she would be. Too many clouds on the horizon today though. But, there’s a boat on a state park buoy out there … might be the same buoy that I had moored to some years ago with Pied Piper.
I got off the pier and then walked down the beach towards that boat.
I didn’t know the boat by the name that was on the transom, though the boat looked just like one I used to know. Maybe a new owner who renamed the boat?
I kept walking along the beach. The tree below had barnacles all over it so had obviously fallen quite some time ago such that the tide has gone in and out over the trunk many, many times. The base of the trunk was about 3 feet in diameter.
Then I started walking back towards the pier and the parking lot. But then I also started looking at the beach in more detail.
An empty clam shell below … lots of those hereabouts.
Below … a rock with a colony of barnacles on it. The barnacles that show a black hole have no animal in them any more. The barnacles that are closed do have a live barnacle in them … waiting for the tide to come back in and bring food!
And then there was THIS tree (below). The base of the trunk was at least four feet in diameter. The tangle of roots was fascinating.
Below … sometimes the beach didn’t have rocks, just sand and leaves and rivulets of water … fresh rain water run-off from the land just above the beach.
Here are a few close-ups of shells.
I don’t know what the one above is. The one below looks like an old, well-worn oyster shell.
More barnacles … healthy ones. There must be a billion trillion barnacles here in the Pacific Northwest.
And of course, the omnipresent red crab … the one below empty of life.
Sigh … and then I found I was almost back at the pier again … and the parking lot. I drove back up those switchback roads and back to my campsite right next to my friends’ campsite.
The sounds of walking on a beach like this … squish, squish, squish. And the need to watch your footing so you don’t step on an animal in a shell or slip on some slippery sea grass or a large rock. But also the need to watch everything else too … the beach, the water, the sky, the birds. There was an eagle there today who dove into the water twice, but I didn’t catch her/him quick enough on camera.
What a great day.
ADDED NOTE: So many barnacle questions in the comments! I love it. 🙂 Ok, HERE is a video of “acorn barnacles” feeding. We have “acorn barnacles” here in the Pacific Northwest. They are little, not even an inch tall. There lots of other varieties of barnacles, some really big ones that are eaten by humans. But I’m used to just these little ones. And HERE is a website with more information about acorn barnacles.
Whoop! Boats are the best. Ok, beaches are too. What a great day.
Boats! 🙂
Loved the “squish, squish, squish” sound of walking on a beach like that. I haven’t been on a beach like that in years but it absolutely does sound like that! At least to my ears. 🙂 Stupendous. Thank you.
You are welcome, David. Your comment reminds me that I could take a bit of video during times like this beach walk. I’ll try to keep that in mind so you really CAN hear the squish, squish, squish. 🙂
We from Michigan know nothing about barnacles. We’ve heard all kinds of things but this is the most info we’ve ever read or seen. Hubby has gone online and read all sorts of stuff and ALL of it fits with what you say, Ann. I keep telling him just to listen to Ann. 🙂 Question … do they get very big? How big?
Ha! Thanks Marge. 🙂 Hi Hubby, I’ll try to keep my facts accurate, but I sure don’t mind you checking up on those facts. Keep me in line.
How big do barnacles get? Well, there are small acorn ones, like the ones in my photos that are mostly less than an inch tall. But then there are other varieties in other places in the world, although some are here in Washington too. I believe the largest barnacles in the world are Giant Acorn Barnacles which can grow up to 6 inches in diameter and 12 inches tall! They are found in the northeast Pacific Ocean (including some of the waters around Washington State), from Alaska to Baja California (Mexico). Lots of people harvest and eat these big-uns!
Gorgeous!
Thank you. 🙂 Indeed.
What do barnacles eat? HOW do they eat? Are those triangular shell pieces their mouths? So many questions!
Good questions Olivia! Go take a look at my added NOTE in the blog post above. I added a couple of links to more info. Those triangular pieces that close up the opening are still pieces of “shell” that are attached to their bodies … they are the double-doors to their tiny home. 🙂
Oh gee, we didn’t know all of that about barnacles and we’ve lived here all our lives! They are upside down inside the shells and their “feet/feathers” collect food for them. How weird is that?
But we do know they are EVERYWHERE here. Million trillion quadrillion of them live here in Canada/USA west coast.
Beautiful day on the beach. Jim thinks the pink shell is a worn out oyster. Love the roots, and the state park boat. Thank you. 🙂
Janey
Have to admit that I didn’t know most of this barnacle stuff either, Janey, until I researched it online for this blog post. How much else in life I think maybe I’m just not seeing. Stop, look and listen … and research and learn. 🙂
Thanks Jim.
I do like your very precise, mathematically computed estimate of the fact that there are a “million trillion quadrillion” barnacles here. I believe it!
Using its feathered legs, one barnacle can filter 50 gallons of water a day of sediment and bad stuff in the water. We pollute … they clean up after us. Barnacles are our friends. I volunteered for a bit, years ago, with an organization that studied barnacles and mollusks and such here in the Pacific NW. As a boater, I used to hate barnacles that always attached to my outdrive or other parts of the boat. But they really do a world of good for us. They’re weird, to be sure. 🙂 But we need them.
Good research and info, Rob. Thank you! I didn’t realize they clean the water. Ok, I’ll still remove them from the bottom of my kayak if they decide to stick themselves on the bottom, but I will thank them while I’m removing them.
I bet you have photos of your boat’s bottom and/or outdrive, me too, covered COVERED in barnacles.
Love the beach and the water and the sun. Love the overview, and the detail, and the human interest, all of it. Really cool. I didn’t know anything about Pacific Northwest beaches but I’m loving them. 🙂
Most folks think of Hawaii or southern California or Mexico or Caribbean beaches, when they think of nice beaches to visit. But Washington and Oregon and BC/Canada beaches are beautiful too, aren’t they? Thanks for the nice words, Babe. 🙂
From your photos and descriptions, I can even smell the wonderful freshness of the beach. A beautiful place to be in!
Oh that’s so nice, Mary. Not everyone likes the smell of low tide on a healthy beach, but I do. It is indeed a freshness that is wonderful.
Barnacles are weird! ha! 🙂 Can’t say that I’ve ever seen one in real life, but I’ve seen them in photos or movies with beaches in them. I like what Babe Darby wrote about you sharing a larger overview, and the details, and human stuff. Gives me a pretty good picture of how things are where you are. This beach was great!
Thanks Greg (and Babe). 🙂 I’ll keep on doing the same. I sure like that you’re part of this group.
Boats are cool, but I like that first image of the long pier with the long shadows on it! 🙂
I didn’t even notice the shadows when I was standing there taking that photo. When I was looking at the photos later, that’s when I saw the shadows. They are dramatic and emphasize the length of the pier. Wish I’d done that on purpose! 🙂