Date: 10/10/25 6:34 pm From: Barbara Kossy via groups.io <bkossy...> Subject: [pen-bird] Morning kayaking, Pillar Point
Driving to the harbor to launch from the Half Moon Bay Yacht Club I spotted 2 American Kestrels on the line at Hwy 1 and the turnoff. I later saw them hunting over the airport fields. Paddling along in the harbor spotted numerous birders looking for the Lapland Longspur. Enjoyed great views of Willets, Black Turnstones, and Whimbrels up on the breakwater during the rising tide. Out on the ocean waters of Half Moon Bay we saw small groups of Common Murres, Brandt's Cormorants , Western Gulls, and lots of Brown Pelicans. In the kelp beds we banged our paddles on moon jellies (oops). We saw sea lions, (one long dead) seals, and a humpback whale. Elegant tern fished a bit closer to shore. On our way back in, a fisher flushed hundreds of pelicans and Heerman's gulls from the breakwater as he walked to the end to get to a good spot to fish. The flushed birds rested in the waters inside the harbor. Picnicking after the paddle an Osprey landed up on the flagpole of the Yachtclub. It looked pretty grand.
I hoped to see the Belted Kingfisher I'd seen recently in the harbor, but no luck today. A few days ago I saw a Black winged kite perched on a small tree in the Princeton marsh. A robin popped up in my yard. It caught my attention since I hadn't seen one in awhile.
It was a beautiful morning to be outside! Barbara Kossy Moss Beach
