The Sea Ranch
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Shell Beach, Sea Ranch, CA
This lone juvenile Common Loon was seen feeding in very shallow water close to shore (shown in the previous picture). Later it pulled out of water, sitting on the sandy beach behind a small rock about the same size as the Common Loon itself (presumably using the rock as a shield blocking line of sight from anyone approaching the beach from land), and preening profusely. Apparently its feathers were somehow dirtied by something tough to clean, and that had affected its ability to dive in deeper water.
Gualala Point, Sea Ranch, CA
Many Turkey Vultures and Common Ravens were seen soaring and gliding toward the beach right below the cliff where I was standing, scavenging carrion of fish and other animals that got washed up ashore by the ocean currents. From my vantage point and with the sun behind me, I had a (less common) downward and clear PoV to their backs while in flight and their outer webs of flight feathers were fully visible against the contrasting background of blue ocean.
Shell Beach, Sea Ranch, CA
This lone juvenile Common Loon was seen feeding in very shallow water close to shore. Later it pulled out of water (shown in the next picture), sitting on the sandy beach behind a small rock about the same size as the Common Loon itself (presumably using the rock as a shield blocking line of sight from anyone approaching the beach from land), and preening profusely. Apparently its feathers were somehow dirtied by something tough to clean, and that had affected its ability to dive in deeper water.
Gualala Point, Sea Ranch, CA
Many Turkey Vultures and Common Ravens were seen soaring and gliding toward the beach right below the cliff where I was standing, scavenging carrion of fish and other animals that got washed up ashore by the ocean currents. From my vantage point and with the sun behind me, I had a (less common) downward and clear PoV to their backs while in flight and their outer webs of flight feathers were fully visible against the contrasting background of blue ocean.
Shell Beach, Sea Ranch, CA
While I was photographing this scenic view at Shell Beach, my wife (sitting on a log near the upper left corner of this picture and scanning the ocean with her binoculars) called my attention to a bird (note the black-and-white dot) near the left edge of the ocean. It turned out to be a juvenile Common Loon feeding alone in very shallow water close to shore (shown in the next picture).
A friend had posted a series of images of coastal Tafoni in sandstone a while back, but I had forgotten all about it. One day while hiking Sea Ranch, Millie and I came across a field full of it at Salt Point, and I went bananas.
Dearest, my dearest, out of love for you, only out of love, I would like to dance with you. -Franz Kafka, 1912
Time to wrap up the Sea Ranch series, thanks for sticking with me.
Happiness is a light, an atmosphere, an illumination. It sets a personality. I always feel that it is a creation that is difficult for some and easy for others, but essentially an achievement, never an accident. Elizabeth Bibesco
The living room at a Sea Ranch house, with big windows looking out over the Pacific and comfortable seating arranged around a fireplace. The wood ceiling slopes up toward the sea, and the whole room feels open to the horizon. It's a good example of how the houses here are built around the view.
The hallway is photographed as a long, narrow instrument for carrying light through the house. Rough-sawn timber walls rise on both sides, their vertical texture contrasting with the dark slate floor’s rectangular grid. At the far end, a full-height window dissolves the corridor into a view of deck, wind-shaped trees, and pale sky. The camera is positioned almost exactly on axis, so floor joints, ceiling edges, and baseboards converge toward that bright opening. This strict perspective gives an otherwise modest passage unusual depth and ceremony. A thin console table and a few small objects occupy the left wall without obstructing movement; louvered doors and mounted artworks on the right keep storage and display within the corridor’s shallow depth. Above, the timber ceiling changes direction and height, marking the hall as part of a larger sectional sequence rather than a neutral connector. Exposure is balanced to retain detail in the dark slate while allowing the exterior to glow. The photograph interprets circulation as an architectural event. At Sea Ranch, where buildings mediate between shelter and an often forceful coastal landscape, even an interior hallway can become a controlled approach to weather and view. The corridor does not merely lead to another room. It leads toward light, and its compressed width makes the final encounter with trees and horizon feel expansive.