Heavy overcast with rain. Temperatures in the upper 30s and lower 40s. Light to moderate wind.
I saw a brief news bit on KCAW.org that Sitka’s December was the warmest on record at the airport. My daily website habits changed after the extended internet outage fall, and I was preoccupied with the observing work, so I hadn’t tracked how warm it was. I did experience it, however. There were a few chilly days, but mostly conditions were well above freezing (which was helpful for work purposes, but not so typical to have for such an extended period this time of year).
I had calls this morning starting at 8am. Very dim light dissuaded me from getting out. Instead I was able to work on setting up galleries for last year (a task which requires little verbal processing, so I can listen to a call while doing it).
I made it out this afternoon when conditions were only marginally brighter .Recent rains have been sufficient to raise the level of local streams. Cascade Creek was definitely flowing with more whitewater than I’ve seen on other recent drive-bys.
I stopped at the Kelp Patch pull out to check how bright it was with an app on my phone. My timing wasn’t the best, as I happened to catch a break in the heavy clouds.
After a swing by Starrigavan, I park at Harbor Point to check the shoreline south of there.
I noticed a different trail than the one I took last time. Trees blocked easy access before I reached the shoreline. I cut across to the trail I followed previously.
I thought the rock paintings might show up better without direct sunlight on them, but that was only partially true. I still had trouble seeing the writing in black.
The tide was down several feet compared to my last visit to the shoreline, which made it feel a bit more spacious.
The wet rocks seemed slippery, so I chose my steps carefully.
I checked where the trail that been blocked by deadfall ended. Someone had done cutting, and there was rope left. I suspect there had been a camp there, but I’m not sure.
After making some observations further down the shoreline, I called it good.
After today’s efforts, I have galleries set up for all of last year except January and February. They go reasonably fast, but I don’t expect to push through on creating all the ones from prior years right away. Instead, I think I’ll focusing on publishing photojournal entries from last year. Hopefully along the way I can refine my workflow if/as needed in such a way that I’m able to at least keep up with publishing through the busier time of this year.
My iNaturalist Observations for Today
