About 15 minutes or so from our condo in San Simeon - very near the Piedras Blancas lighthouse and the well known landmark of Hearst Castle, there is a stretch of beach that has become the wintering and breeding grounds for the California Elephant Seal. It was not long ago that these silk soft sand beaches were grounds for hearty picnicers (or die hard locals that wanted to make their way down the short inclines) and the rare and elusive windsurfer (don't worry, they've found another cove where the winds are JUST right for them). My family and I used to go to this exact beach and have picnics and just enjoy the waves and maybe do a little shell hunting. But, a few years ago massive male Elephant Seals started to show up here to rest up and wait for the females to show up for the breeding season. A few thoughtless souls didn't stop to think that these massive mammals are still wild animals, and, dispite their bulk, can really MOVE OUT when ticked! I can't tell you how many times I saw people go up to 800 to 1200 pound bulls to put their children on the backs of them to take pictures. And then raise heck when the animals retaliated (go figure). A few years ago one even managed to wander up to Highway One and get struck by a car (as far as I can recall the seal made it away okay, but the car was totaled). Now the beaches that the seals use are protected, fenced off and overseen by Docents who are only too happy to talk about the seals. This shot was taken early on when the males were just starting to arrive (yes, those are all males!), and soak up the sun waiting for the females, and later, of course, the pups. This area of the Califonia coast line is ideal for the seals to make their breeding and feeding grounds for the duration of their rut. There are large, thick kelp beds just off the coast that keep most predators like whales and most importantly, sharks, away from the rookeries. In these images the seals still have the tapered muzzles folks associate with seals. It is not until the females arrive and the rut really begins that they develop the elephant-like proboscas. Right now all they want to do is sun, sleep and get nice and fat. Later in the season you're lucky if you can so much as catch a GLIMPSE of sand as every inch of real estate is effectively taken. Even as they are here, you can hear some of the more....boisterous....males issuing challenges in the water. A sound something like an outboard motor and someone beating a stick against a hollow bamboo tube. The bluff in the distance is where the Piedres Blancas lighthous proper is and to the far left is the famous 'white rocks' that gave the area its name. If I can find other images of the seals from our last trip, I will gladly post them if there is interest. (and do forgive me for not posting renders...feeling exceptionally lazy these last few days...but I hope you like the pictres none the less! I promise I won't torment you with them for long!) Photo (c) 2008 Twilight Productions