Skywatch Friday 10/31/08

And the sea swallowed the sun . . . Shore Acres 10/24/08 (with a nod to Penni for the idea)

Almost Wordless Wednesday

For Shelley and Chris . . .

For Robin and Roy and Craig and family . . .

Tasty Fishes and More

More from the Oregon Coast Aquarium

Anchovies!

Can you see which of the green strands have eyes?

Photos by Tom

Jellies

More from the Oregon Coast Aquarium. Photos by Tom.

Tragedy at Shore Acres

What a wonderful time we had and once again I'm ready for a full-time road trip. I have weeks worth of pictures to share, but wanted to post these while they were still timely. We have been going to the Oregon Coast and to Shore Acres for some 30 years. The weather this weekend was perfect, sunny and (relatively) warm, but with the highest seas we have witnessed there. And this is in an area known for spectacular surf. This is the little beach (Simpson Beach) that's below the botanical gardens at Shore Acres State Park. I took these pictures at around noon yesterday (Saturday 10/25/08). They are taken from the beach trail, fairly high on the bluff above. We have actually walked down to this beach in the past. But even on a day with lesser seas, it was frightening. The surf seems to tower over you as it builds before rushing toward you through the narrow mouth of the inlet.

Tom has even better pictures, which I will nab later. But you can get an idea of the size of the waves and of how far up on the beach they come with each surge.

From the Eugene Register Guard:

Large wave sweeps man, boy into ocean

"CHARLESTON — A man and boy playing on the beach at Shore Acres State Park were swept into the ocean by enormous waves Saturday afternoon. Rescuers pulled the boy from the water and were still looking for the man at nightfall.

“They were swept into the ocean by a wave,” said Vee Elliott, a volunteer coordinator at the Shore Acres gift shop. “We had huge waves on the ocean today.”

A passer-by notified the gift shop, where a volunteer called 911, Elliott said. A crew from the Charleston Fire Department found the boy in the water and pulled him to the beach after the 3:40 p.m. call, officials said. A Coast Guard helicopter airlifted the boy to an ambulance. His condition was not known, but the Coast Guard called him “unresponsive.”

Elliott said it was a warm day at Simpson Beach, just south of Charleston on the Southern Oregon coast.

“I would say the waves were 10 feet or better,” she said.

A Coast Guard spokesman said the man remained missing and the search, aided by a 47-foot motor lifeboat and an HH-65 rescue helicopter, continued after dark."

Above is the Coast Guard helicopter circling and searching, picture made shortly after 5 p.m. At that point there would have been no hope for finding the man alive due to the temperature of the water. The search was continuing this morning, still in progress when we left about 10:30 a.m. Those things that are the most beautiful are often also the most deadly.

Shore Acres - Japanese Garden

First three photos from Tom, bottom two from my camera. I love the sense of peace captured in the scene.

Fuchsias are among my favorite flowers. I wish I could live where they flourish.

Shore Acres - Formal Garden

Saturday, 10/25/08 in the morning and early afternoon. A wonderful time of year on the Oregon Coast. The bulk of the tourists are gone, but the weather is only a little cooler than it is in the summer. Actually it was much warmer and dryer than it was for our tent-camping trip in August of '07.

 You can see how the fog was drifting through as it became a bright and sunny day.

You can see me way in the background in a red jacket.

Photo credits to Tom and his Nikon for the above images. The pictures below were from my little Panasonic Lumix which really does a pretty good job for a baby.

View past the fountain to the gift shop.

Looking for help: what is this bush with the

single blue berries? The foliage was becoming quite colorful.

Another splash of fall color.

Tom found this frog sunning himself. I managed a picture of him as well.

Looking down into the garden from the gazebo.

Gardener's cottage and gazebo.

I sometimes pause to consider how it is that we live so near to some of the best places on earth. Peaceful. I could have spent days sitting on a bench in the sun with a good book and/or with some knitting to do. We need to remember to spend more time there. And we will next month when we go back for the holiday lights.

I have many more pictures of different areas of the garden which I will be sharing in the days to come.