October Lights

October can create some very exquisite afternoon lighting. Here are two shots from yesterday's encounter - both are L78 "Gaia".

      

Porpoises Make Great Toys For Young Orcas...

Today we had the unique opportunity to see something that I have only ever seen one other time in my ten years of observing these orcas - two whales playing with a young harbor porpoise. You might be thinking, "aww, that's so cute!" Well, not exactly. We all have to remind ourselves from time to time that these orcas are not circus clowns or big teddy bears for us to cuddle and fawn over nor are they vicious, nightmarish monsters. (When we are out the water watching them, they are most certainly NOT "putting on a show". They will continue doing what they are doing whether we are there watching them or not.)  The true nature of the orca lies somewhere in between these two extremes. First and foremost, they are WILD animals - 100% living nature. And what we as humans have to remind ourselves is that nature is not always fair and not always kind. We have given these orcas cutesy names like "Oreo", "Ruffles", and "Muncher". I actually think that giving the whales names is a great idea. It helps people connect with them on a different and important level - the level that promotes awareness, conservation, and caring. However, I feel that it is very important to point out that the cutesy-ness of these names may not always reflect the real animal. We have to keep in mind that these whales are the top predators in the ocean - they are very good at killing and eating because that is what they must do to survive. I apologize if I am offending anyone, but I am merely stating the undeniable truth...

Anyway, continuing on with the encounter... We were by ourselves off the south end of the island and we happened upon K14 "Lea" and her son, K26 "Lobo", fishing off of False Bay. After having some wonderful viewings of these two, I began to wonder where K14 "Lea's" other two kids were. Just then Captain Nancy spotted two youngsters farther offshore. They were exuberantly swimming at the surface and generally staying in the same spot. We shut off the boat near the two kids and observed them playing. It was very off how the two whales were staying in the same tiny area. Usually the orcas are constantly moving from place to place, but not these guys. Taking a closer look, I discovered that these whales were K14's other kids: seven-year-old K36 "Yoda" and her two-year-old brother, K42 "Kelp". After watching them for a while, I noticed something gray laying on the surface of the water. At first I thought it was a big salmon they were playing with. Captain Peter put on his binoculars and discovered it was a harbor porpoise they were playing with... a very dead harbor porpoise. To be perfectly honest, we don't know if the porpoise was dead when the kids found it and decided to make it their new play toy OR if they had harassed a living porpoise until it eventually succumbed to the rough-housing and drowned. Some of you may be appalled right now, but actually, this behavior is not all that uncommon among Southern Resident orcas - in fact it happens several times a year or more (however personally I have only observed the behavior one other time). The orcas sometimes decide that porpoises make a good toy and will play with them even after the animal dies. They are sort of like big cats playing with a mouse. However, the orcas are not eating these porpoises. Most of you know already that our resident orcas eat ONLY salmon. After the orcas play with these porpoises, they just leave them behind as they travel on to their next activity. We watched "Yoda" and "Kelp" play with their porpoise for 45 minutes and they continued to play with it after we left them. It was almost as if K14 "Lea" had said to them, "Ok, big brother and I are going inshore to fish. You two stay here and keep yourselves occupied with something." Which they did... and very successfully I might add. They were breaching around the porpoise, spyhopping next to it, slapping it with their tail flukes, and carrying it around on their heads. It was actually very fun and highly fascinating to watch once everyone got over the morbidity. Here are some photos from today:

K36 "Yoda" carries the porpoise on her head while K42 "Kelp" swims beside her:

K42 "Kelp" slaps the porpoise with his tail flukes:

K42 "Kelp" spyhops while K36 "Yoda" carries the porpoise on her head:

This was an incredibly fantastic thing to observe - K36 "Yoda" is being playful and spitting a mouthful of water onto the top her brother's head!:

Today taught an important lesson - nature is alive and well among these wild and wonderful orcas.

The Mullet Classic Fall Mountain Bike Race/Ride/Relay -

IMBCS #8 - October 10th - Lake Ahquabi State Park, Indianola, IA

Host Race Team: BikeIowa.com

Race Director/Promoters: Bruce Brown/Jed Gammell/Rob Versteegh

 

Written By Bruce Brown

 

On Sunday, October 10, 2010 the Iowa Mountain Bike Championship Series heads south.

Have you heard of the famous Chequamegon 40 in Wisconsin that is run on cross country ski trails, forest roads, snowmobile trails and wooded lanes? That's right!! We now have a "Cheqaumegon like" race in our very own Iowa series.

Coming for the third time is Iowa's very own backwoods, super fast, fat tire XC race held on a course loop that rolls on the multi-use cross country ski, snowmobile, and hiking trail that circles Lake Ahquabi. The race loop utilizes backwood sections of the wooded trails throughout Lake Ahquabi State Park to make for a scenic race filled with unique challenges.

COURSE: The 7.5+ mile loop includes a trip around Lake Ahquabi's multi-use trail with additional sections that include backwood trails. You will encounter gravel, dirt, roots, ruts, grass, logs, wooden bridges, railroad tie stairs, climbs, fast descents and the best nature has to offer on this scenic course. The loop will be the perfect test of one's fitness with all of the full throttle speed and all of the climbing, but will not be technical in nature to scare off the entry level racer. In fact, this will be a perfect venue for first timers and experts alike.

RACE DAY SCHEDULE: [12:00 Noon - Mass Start for 2010]

CAT 1 Expert Men/Women's Open - 12:00pm (prizes: 100% expert entry fee pay out for top 3 in Expert Open and Women's Open categories)

CAT 2 Sport Men/Sport Women/Singlespeed/Sport Junior - 12:00pm (prizes for winners)

CAT 3 Beginner Men/Beginner Women/Beginner Junior - 12:00pm (prizes for winners)

Open Marathon Category (40 miles) solo or 5 person tag team.


Awards Ceremony: After the completion of all categories

REGISTRATION INFORMATION:


Registration is on the day of the race starting at 9:00am and closes 15 minutes before each race begins. Or you can register at http://www.bikeiowa.com/

Entry Fee: $25


MAKE IT A FAMILY OUTING:
The start/finish line area will be near the swimming beach and boat rental. Bring the entire family, but it will be too cold to swim. How about building sand castles? Due to it being off season, I doubt one can rent one of the many canoes, kayaks, double kayaks, row boats, or paddle boats that are available during the season (ends 9/30). There is a concession stand with food and drinks as well as lots of shade and picnic tables for those seeking to avoid the sun. Again - I believe this will be closed.

DIRECTIONS: Lake Ahquabi State Park is five miles south of Indianola (17 miles south of Des Moines) on Hwy. 65/69 and one mile west on G-58. Enter Lake Ahquabi State Park through the main entrance where G-58 ends and the entrance gate is located at the 4 way stop. Parking and registration will be at the Lake Ahquabi Lodge (once you enter the park, take the first left at the Lodge sign). We have the Lodge rented for the day of the race and restrooms are located inside.



View Larger Map


YOUR IMBCS Lake Ahquabi State Park XC Race Director/Promoters:
Bruce Brown
Jed Gammell
Rob Versteegh


More Information: brown.bruce@mchsi.com


515-961-0251; 515-205-4295

A Water Puppy

~What is it about baby seals? Yeah... adorable!~

Learning How to Fly!

A beautiful, gray day here in the Pacific Northwest. I hadn't been out on the water or seen the orcas in several days so it was very nice to cruise out on the boat this afternoon. We met up with J pod, K pod, L7 "Canuck", L53 "Lulu", and L87 - the wonderful, beautiful "Onyx". Today must have been the day for everyone to practice their breaching. Why do I say this? Because EVERYONE was doing it! I stopped counting after 30 or so. One little baby breached no less than nine times in a row - almost as if he was saying "Look at me, mom! Look at me! Look what I learned how to do! WATCH ME, MOM!!!" Over and over and over ...and over again - and very uncoordinated I might add ;)
My favorite is when the big males breach. Their sheer size, grace, and power is enough to send your jaw dropping to the deck of the boat. Lets just say seven tons shooting clear of the water's surface with perfect ease is nothing to criticize!

 Here is a shot I captured today of young adult male K25 "Scoter" practicing his flying skills:

The whales probably spent most of last night at the Fraser River gorging themselves on salmon. Full bellies = happy whales and today that was proven true!

IOWA DNR ACCEPTING PUBLIC COMMENT ON STATE PARK RESERVATION SYSTEM CHANGES

The Iowa DNR is currently accepting public comment regarding proposed changes to state park reservation system rules.


Proposed changes include: increasing the percentage of reservable campsites in each park from 50 percent to 75 percent; removing the three percent credit card processing fee; adding the ability to make online changes for a fee of $5 and increasing the call center change fee to $7; adding an online cancellation option for a fee of $5 and increasing the call center cancellation fee to $7; and changing the last day to make a rental facility reservation in the off season to seven days prior to the arrival date.


“For the past four years we have had a very well-received reservation system in place,” says Kevin Szcrodronski, DNR State Parks Bureau chief. “We would like to move now to the next generation of a reservation system, with enhanced capabilities for our park visitors.”


A complete copy of the rules and their proposed amendments can be viewed online at www.exploreiowaparks.com


Suggestions or comments on the rule changes can be made in writing or by phone on or before Oct. 26, 2010 to Sherry Arntzen, State Parks Bureau, Department of Natural Resources, 502 E 9th St., Des Moines, IA 50319-0034; Fax 515-281-6794; Phone 515-242-6233; Email Sherry.Arntzen@dnr.iowa.gov


Interested persons may express their views orally or present them in writing at a public hearing to be held Oct. 26 at 2 p.m. in the 5th floor conference room of the Wallace State Office Building, 502 E 9th St. in Des Moines.


For more information contact Kevin Szcodronski at Kevin.Szcodronski@dnr.iowa.gov or 515-281-8674