CategoryNature

I had a WHALE of a time today chasing Orca!

I had a WHALE of a time today chasing Orca!
Orca Network is the amazing non profit that posts about the sightings. Then other people comment each time they move to a new location. Such a cool way to be able to capture these individuals. Who knew it was something so simple as a Facebook page could help you track the resident and transient population.
I started volunteering with them in September 2020 and took some very educational classes via zoom. We got to learn about all the different types of whales that visit the Salish Sea. So far I have been able to see Orca as well as a Grey Whale that is visiting the area. There are a group of about 30 individuals that visit year after year. I am excited so see more as they begin to arrive in larger numbers. Last I heard it was up to 9 individuals identified so far! I don’t have a photo of them yet but its bound to happen any day now!
Living on Whidbey Island has been an adjustment of its own. I wouldn’t say its warm by any means. If you bundle up its very pretty, sometimes I even get out of the car! I know this is so sad. But I’m a very cold person and when that wind hits you its like I’m back in Chicago waiting for the bus at the lake front. I will say they don’t have Orca in Lake Michigan. I think they are one of my favorite animals.
They tell you to wait for Summer, it will be SO HOT …. they said …. Well I was here for Summer and it never actually got HOT here. This island has a natural island breeze but its also only 52 degrees out and then in true Washington fashion it will start to rain.
If you live in Washington or you are looking to put together a road trip across the state you should check out my post about the Coho Campground at Wynoochee Lake. You could spot Orca on the ferry across the peninsula. They are all over the Salish Sea and pop out when you least expect it.

Coho Campground at Wynoochee Lake

Last month I got to spend some time in the peace and quiet of the Coho Campground at Wynoochee Lake. This is the same place that I stayed last year during my marathon camping trip of the Olympic National Forest.

They offer small walk up sites as well as larger sites for a camper. We were lucky enough to stay in the same site both times! The first time we drove up and got the last spot open. This time we went online and reserved the same site in advance because we loved the site. #55 was ours! The website only lets you reserve the sites a certain number of days in advance so start planning early. But you can also get lucky if someone cancels. So keep checking and have alternate dates is my best advice. Getting there is a challenge. I learned that if you take a road that is labeled private but really is public you will save 3 hours. When your directions and or GPS leads you to this same spot – road and there isn’t a nice lady mowing the lawn to tell you that it really is a road you can take. The GPS really isn’t leading you off the deep end. It’s trying to show you a MUCH shorter route. The road is called Cougar Smith Road and its about 30 to 45 mins from the campground. Use the address given in your reservation to navigate with your phone, GPS or I recommend both!

The is also a boat launch, picnic areas and 3 yurts over looking the water. Those are the rental prize! That’s what I want to reserve if I ever go back to this place again. To rent a yurt is very difficult unless you are 100% flexible with your dates. We rented a boat and did about 3 days of fishing without catching much. From what we can tell they don’t stock the lake so the small trout we did catch was a VERY tasty one! I wouldn’t recommend this lake for a small boat. It seems like the winds can pick up quick and a small boat can get blown around.

Camping alone and then camping with 3 kids are 2 completely different things … I am very lucky to have a best friend that has 3 kids I adore and love spending time with. They make camping more fun for me since I know these are the memories they are going to have when they grow up. I have those same memories but I was with my Mom, Dad and brother Wes. I think I get the best of both worlds. There are 3 adults and 6 little hands to help get dinner ready and that really matters when you first need a fire to make said food to eat. This year the campsite next to us had 3 kids too and it was awesome how they all bonded and played together. We even invited them over to our campsite for smores! YUM! The middle son of my friends told me before we went camping that he was excited to meet new friends. That came true for him. I hope that comes true for everyone.

For more information about the campground or for rates and rental info here is the official site for the Olympic National Forest.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/olympic/recarea/?recid=47807

***All photos were taken by me Victoria and are the sole property of TORsAdventures Media LLC. If you would like to use any of my images for any purpose the watermark MUST stay on the image. For more information please email me at TOR{at}TORsAdventures.com

2018 Clients – A look back ….

Here are a few of MY favorite client photos from 2018!

Happy New Year

These 6 photos were taken on 6 different days in 2018. The first photo is very special to me because it is of me but it was taken with my camera during a photo shoot by a very dear friend of mine. The second was somewhere in the Olympic National Forest. I say somewhere because we were camping for 3 days and didn’t have cell service for at least 2 of them. The third was taken while I was working for a client in Arizona last month. The fourth was taken during our adventure for Kingston’s 4th birthday. The fifth photo was taken at Illahee State Park in Bremerton, WA. The sixth photo was taken at the Hubert Christmas tree farm in Seabeck, WA.