Whale Watching Between Stories

It's the spring Whale Watch Week along the Oregon coast, in conjunction with Spring Break.  Everything's packed like the summertime, and there are lots of people who stop by, unaware of the annual migration north of approx. 17,000 Gray whales.

Yesterday was my first day, at Depoe Bay, and the weather was gorgeous.  Started getting cloudy towards the end of our shift, but right off the bat we saw 3 Orcas not far from shore, circling a bit before heading elsewhere.  A spectacular sight; unfortunately, later on the pod attacked a Gray outside Newport Bay. (Update: that was a rumor; possibly a seal, but still...)

Sure, we all know it's Nature, but still sad.  I can't watch nature shows any longer, I don't want to watch the necessary, inevitable end.

But that's why we do this...counting whales and anything else out there.  Someone, somewhere's keeping track and hoping to learn more about these mighty mammals. On shore, we count people.  Three hour shifts aren't too long, unless it's a cold, blustery day like today.  My back and arms hurt, and kids keep coming up to me.

Like cats.  You know how cats know when you don't like them?  Same thing with kids.