April 14, 2021

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I walked north from Lone Ranch beach, crossing over, I believe, into mile 11/ Cape Ferrelo. All of the people and dogs I observed were clustered in mile 10. Most were on the beach. Two couples sat on rocks, ocean-gazing. A group of three people with two dogs had the dogs off leash near tidepools. Once the beach gave way to rocks, I saw no more people. There were footprints along the trail above the rocky shore. This area had many, many more turban shells on the beach and in the pools. There were dozens of hermit crabs, some tiny and one as large as a silver dollar. They were very active, zooming around. The tide was dropping (low tide would be in about 3 hours). There was a gentle current flowing through most of the pools. I was surprised not to see any small fish or sea stars. I did not venture far out into the tidepool zone due to safety concerns, but there were enough wet, exposed rocks with crevices and kelp that I would have expected to see at least one. I observed a small flock of surfbirds feeding on the kelp-topped tidepool rocks. I had never seen this bird before. They are chunkier than sandpipers and behave like backyard chickens, chasing each other off from feeding spots, vocalizing. They were vigorously mowing through the kelp, plunging their heads into it.In one of the small rocky coves I saw what looks like a truck axle. It appears to have been there for a long time. Litter was not notable. I picked up one (clearly abandoned) plastic turret mold for building sandcastles, and some random bits of plastic cup.