Celebrating the Marine Reserve - 7/18/15

Or: For the Birds

When I first heard Jack and Caren discussing this event, my first thought was the Marines, you know, the "United States Marine Corps, Semper Fi, Do Or Die" was having some kind of celebration. A reserve unit was celebrating something or other.

Uh, no. Not it at all. Not by a long shot.

What it was, was a celebration of the Friends of the Marine Reserve to bring attention to and to drum up support for their efforts in supporting the Marine Reserve.

What is a Marine Reserve? Ahh, good question, Laddie...

Fun Facts: Marine Reserves are areas of Oregon's coastal waters dedicated to conservation and scientific research. Removal of any kind of sea life is strictly prohibited in a Marine Reserve.

Wow, I had thought the Marine Reserve was near where we were at, at the Knight County Park on the Salmon River. I were wrong.

I outlined the approximate location of the Marine Reserve these folks are Friends with and it was not exactly where we were at. But, what the heck, it was a great place for a day out with some friends.

And it was a nice park...and a nice day. And we had a nice shady spot to set up our Audubon table at. You see, we were there to support the Friends of the Marine Reserve with some bird walks and, also, to promote our own group, too.

And I was there to get some pictures. Hahaha, no surprise there, right!?! Ain't no harm in combining a couple of good things.

While we were getting the table set, I took a moment to look around the park. It sets on the Salmon River not too far from where the river finally empties into the Pacific.

And, coincidentally, it's a good spot to watch yourself some birds, too. And our little troupe was fast at it even before the table was set. What's caught their attention was the eagle across the river up in the spruce tree.

Right there.

Long distances with an extreme zoom and a handheld camera is not a good combination for clear pictures.

Ah, someday I'll get me a tripod. Maybe. 

Probably not. 

Getting their eye on the eagle.

But we were there for some work, too. 

And, having said that, I have to qualify what I did. Not a whole heck of a lot.

I was there but I was more on the periphery. I wasn't a key player today. Moral support counts for something, though, doesn't it!?!

And I even got myself a genuine ASLC Tote Bag. Woo-Woo! And I even used it later when I made my Mercy Run.

Someone got an 'A' on this poster board presentation!! Hahaha, yeah!! We've all been there with these things from Hell!!

And in between, there was the river and the views.

Before the event opened, the sponsors, The Friends of the Marine Reserve, held a little get-together. Lots of volunteers there.

I didn't know they had this...it's for the Kiddies. Hahaha, I had to work at resisting the temptation to grab one for myself and begin filling it out. I could have done it. With a little help from Carol.

Whup!! There's that Kingfisher!!

Lincoln City ~ A Great Place to Try New Things!!! 

AND

A Great Place to Watch Birds!!

Who knew!?!

The view across the river. The tide was out.

And the Fair was on!! They had a live band in the afternoon and there were free barbecued tuna fish sandwiches which were, muy delicioso!!

These were the real McCoy's....a tuna steak done up with some olive oil and rub and then thrown on the Barbie.

Mmmmmmmmm....

Here's Caren working the table. Selling the ASLC.

I went on the first bird walk that El Presidente, Señor Jack, led. That's our President there, on the right.

#whatwasithinkingof

And they had the Scouts there, too. There's a Troop in Lincoln City that is in the southern council and another one sponsored by the LDS Church that is in the northern council. And they're both in the same city. Hahaha, I've always said that life isn't logical and I keep getting proved right every day.

Carol and I met with the Scoutmaster and, the upshot is, we'll probably be Merit Badge Counselors. I'm thinking Photography (quit laughing!!) and, maybe, one or two of the Citizenship badges. We'll see.

And, we were off!! A hardy band setting off to explore the Cascade Head Trail.

Once we got away from the crowd, Jack gave a quick orientation. The young lady with the binocs is already interested in birding. She knew the names of a couple and was actively involved for the whole walk.

Looking back at Knight Park.

Heading up the trail.

And afterwards, coming back down the road. 

Where we paused for a quick group picture. Guess which one was the happiest that the walk was over.

Hahaha, just judging by expressions, I'd have to say it was El Presidente!!

While I had been on the walk, Carol had made this impression of a fish.

They had a large fish there and Carol coated it with paint and then applied her paper to it to get an impression or print from it. The key is in keeping the paper steady and in one place. Another key would be to have a fish small enough to fit the paper.

CB

We'd been hard at work, hahaha, I couldn't keep a straight face writing that! We'd been there for a while now and I'd made my Mercy Run for pens, duct tape, clipboards, lawn chairs, aleve, water, beer and a Fish Sandwich from Mickey D's and so Carol and I thought we'd take a break and go for a river cruise.

There's a company, Westwind, that runs some kind of camp across the river from where we were. I don't know much about them but they had set up two pontoon boats to take folks on 1) an excursion up the estuary or 2) across the river to take a walk on the beach.

Well, we signed up but we weren't sure which one we were on so we just decided to go on the next one wherever it took us. 

Here's our hardy craft...

Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale,

A tale of a fateful trip, 

that started from this tropic port,

 aboard this tiny ship.

C'Mon, be honest! You'd have been singing that song too if you'd been there.

While we were waiting to board, other tiny ships passed us by.

And this one. She was wearing a sun dress while she boated around the river in her inflatable. I am hankering to get a couple of kayaks...pronto. 

Well, let's just say the river cruise didn't work out and so Carol and I went back to the table just in  time to say Hi to these two guys, a couple of Australian Cattle Dogs. The more mature one in the forefront was content, like me, to sit in the shade and enjoy the day while the younger one in the back was eager to run and play with his frisbee.

Now it was time to sit around the campfire, so-to-speak, and enjoy the company and a cold beer.

And so we did.

But all good things do come to an end and so did this day. It'd been fun and we'd had a good time. Got to meet a Scoutmaster and to see some community volunteers in action. All in all it was fun. A great day to spend the day with friends.

We got to see a couple of Eagles, a Blue Heron, some Robins, a Peregrine Falcon, an Osprey, a Flicker and some Starlings, Swallows and Sparrows. Oh, and gulls. Always with the gulls.

Life is good.

     Hooah!!