JDW Photos and Life

We did not take a photo of every fish caught (many more than this photo) but I put together this collage of the photos taken. We kept 5 fish for the freezer (and dinner that night). Halibut and lingcod are the favorite table fish and we were really fortunate that day with two halibut (15# and 10#), two lingcod (both about 15#), and one silver salmon (guess around 8#). All other fish were released to fight another day. My Gulf Coast friends will notice a very nice flounder that was released. When you have halibut, who needs flounder! Their supply of fish in the freezer was just about depleted due to the poor spring/summer weather. This was easily their best day fishing for the year and I was very grateful to be a part of it. This one day put several dozen 2-person meals in the freezer. Yes, they also put Penny's fishy dinner morsels in the packages. I have said it many times - they are going to miss the fishing of Kodiak! Every time I had the opportunity to fish there, I was not dis...

Just as I was about to put the camera up and get back fishing, we spotted a sea otter swimming along on its back with something on its chest. After a few photos, it was clear he was having lunch of some sort. We have seen sea otters cracking clams on their chest before but this meal was much larger. I took way too many photos over a couple of minutes watching but here a few at various stages of lunch. It appears to be some kind of large snail-type meal. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

We are about to the end of photos taken in the middle of our fishing trip. While rocking along, I found myself just sitting and enjoying the beautiful landscapes surrounding us. The first photo is another view of the little island jutting out of the water. It must be where the gulls and cormorants go to rest after their feeding frenzy. The second photo shows the beautiful green mountains with patches of snow still present. You get another view of just how overcast the day was. Having just left 100+ temperatures and a severe drought burning everything to brown in Texas, this trip was beyond wonderful. I don't believe we had a high over 65 in our 3 week trip. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

This sequence of five photos takes place in less than a half-second. The subject gull has his needlefish and is working to get airborne again. You also get a more clear photo of what's for lunch. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

The action got pretty intense in flock feeding frenzy. Again, each photo has detail that I like to study. These photos are cropped for aspect ratio but that is about it (very close to in-camera size). I believe they were feeding on a school of small needlefish. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

As we drifted a little closer to the gull action, I was able to get a few closer shots. You already know that I admire the agility of a bird and their precise control of wings and feathers. I can stare at these photos and see something new practically every time I open them. From the hovering to spot prey, to the start of a dive, the splash of water entry, the re-surface and struggle to get airborne again. It is all there in these photos. The sky and background mountains sure don't hurt the photos either. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

A few more photos of the gulls in action, with a few puffins scattered in, on bait fish. We drifted that way a little but this action in 100 ft water does not mean the same as similar action in shallow water like Lake Sabine or Rockport. We continued to use our baited jigs along the bottom hoping for halibut and lingcod - the favorite eating fish needed for their freezer! The spring/summer weather had been really rotten this year which limited their fishing time and the freezer stock was getting thin jeopardizing fish availability across the winter. Though L&J like fish, their dog, Penny, goes wild over "fishy dinner". If you come home from fishing with no fish, she is clearly more disappointed than the fishermen could ever be! And yes, she knows you are going fishing because the boat gets packed and unpacked at the house. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

All good fishermen/women keep an eye out for any and all bird action suggesting a pool of bait fish. While drifting along, we spied some pretty good seagull action with a few puffins in the mix. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

I'll stop with the puffins - but I have so many photos that I like.... The first shot is a frequent scene when out on the ocean. Puffins spend much of their time on the water - after all, that is where their food is. They nest on cliffsides on the rocky islands but they don't spend a lot of time otherwise on land. The other typical scene is seeing them swimming away from you - resulting in butt-shots like this one. The other two photos are some more in-flight views with the great water colors and reflections. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

A few more shots during a lull in the fishing activity. We drift fish using baited heavy jigs trying to pick our spots with the depth/fish finder. Sometimes it's a bit hit or miss but if you don't get activity fairly soon, you pick up and go to another location. L&J had lines in the water while I took a few photos. The camera was secondary this day and would have been put down had fish been biting right here. You see some of the beautiful landscape in this first photo. You also see a full overcast sky. That overcast provides the best light diffusion possible for photos as long as you still get some light through the clouds. Clouds minimizes glare on the water and helps capture the deep blue clarity. You see one of the tiny islands full of seagulls in the middle of the photo with Kodiak Island in the far background. The other two photos are "just" a puffin in flight skimming the top of the ocean. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

You might get tired of seeing puffins. If so, appreciate some of the backgrounds in these shots! These birds are not made for soaring nor are they sleek with their stubby bodies and very little tail. They have to fly fast to stay in the air. As seen here, they often fly just above the water in their mad dash. I was really looking forward to photographing these fast birds with the better camera than I had on our first trip two years ago. The camera and surroundings did not disappoint.  These photos were taken during a slow period in our fishing day. Though close to the island in the background, the water depth was around 80 feet here. The last photo is a tighter crop of the first photo to see more bird detail. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

A few days after the photo shared yesterday, we got back on the boat and saw a few horned puffins mixed in with the tufted puffins. The two varieties are easy to distinguish. The sun, clouds, and reflections were very different this day resulting in a darker water tone. Thanks, Doug White https://jdwarchive.blogspot.com/

Howdy again after a 3 week vacation to Alaska to visit Lauren and Josh. We spent the first two weeks pretty low key on Kodiak island. As this was our third trip to the island, we didn't have a lot planned other than visiting. We picked this time as summer was winding down in Alaska yet the puffins had not migrated. We are so fortunate that L&J have a boat that let us get close enough to the birds to get a few photos. We were also fortunate that the weather was pretty good for most of the trip. Kodiak had an unpleasant spring/early summer with a chilly / heavy overcast and rain. We heard the same observation from everyone we met on the island. Our first 1-2 days were typical of that less-than-great weather but we then had a week of very pretty weather allowing us to get on the boat to enjoy the ocean views. I have just begun to look at the photos I took so you only get a single photo today. Hopefully, I'll get some more editing done in the near future. I fell in love with th...