A Southerly Approaches - Nov 20

Today was our first in what's looking to be a long run of south winds: as of right now, there is nothing in the 10-day forecast that looks particularly enticing, but hopefully that will change. To our north right now is an incredible low-pressure system (a bombogenesis), and this weekend our first-of-season atmospheric river is forecast, which will bring rain and south winds. Today was dry at the count, but the wind built to 21 knot SSE at the outer buoy by count's close and was 7.4 knot at the count; sensing the storm to the north made everything feel atmospherically ominous, and a formidable wall of cloud built to the northwest over the course of the day.

The flight was the quietest we've ha all season: 46 Surf (and 1 Black) Scoters. 14 Rhinoceros Auklets and 205 Common Murres. 1 Black-legged Kittiwake, 1 Northern Fulmar, and 1 Sooty Shearwater. 319 Red-throated Loons and just 15 Pacifics. The Red-throat flocks were even higher than they typically are. For me, today's highlights were watching the surf seethe in, and also a very close blue whale--I think just the second one I've seen from Pt. Pinos.

See the full checklist here: https://ebird.org/tripreport/294286

- Alison Vilag