Mexico to Alaska?

A Humpback whale breaches near the Farallone Islands just outside the Golden Gate - click to enlarge
Photo: Frederic Larsen, San Francisco Chronicle www.sfgate.com

Each year the Grey Humpback Whales travel the Pacific Coast, from Alaska to Mexico and return; and each year whale watchers and scientist are thrilled - at time over-thrilled!  Take a look.

Whale watchers get a close up near San Luis Obisbo, California in August 2012
Photo: AP via www.sfgate.com

Two whales (count them) are too close to this man in the kayak in October 2011
Photo: AP via www.sfgate.com

Just a couple more.

A cold ride. - click to enlarge
Photo: National Geographic favorites

  I found just a few more of these spectacular photos.  The top one must be somewhere off Newfoundland, or maybe Norway.  I don't really know there is little information given.
  Maybe tomorrow I'll do some homework and write about something that makes sense; but that would be a radical concept for me.

Yikes!
Photo: National Geographic favorites

If this wasn't from that magazine, I'd say it's fake, actually I do think it's fake.

Drying off and holding on
Photo: National Geographic favorites

Just a short look

All the fish in the sea don't swim in the same direction - click to enlarge
Photo: National Geographic

  Here are but a few of National Geographic photos of the year for 2012.  You can see a whole lot more by going to Google and searching National Geographic pictures of the year.
  Make sure you enlarge these photos to get the full effect of each.

East of Iceland
Photo: National Geographic

A fox has pounced on a mouse, suppertime
Photo: National Geographic

Even rocks get old!

The archway at the beach
Photo: Robert Wills

  At Tennessee Beach in Marin County, California (just north of the Golden Gate Bridge) a Cal-tech student and his parents were walking and heard a noise.  The student, Robert Wills, caught on camera the whole event.
  The arch, shown above, broke and the rocks came rushing down.  The resulting pieces of rock momentarily turned the surf brownish red with the small pieces.

The arch lies in ruin
Photo: Robert Wills

Visit:

www.its.caltech.edu/~rwills/blog  for more information

Falling!
Photo: Robert Wills

 

A sad day

1940 Ford Pickup - click to enlarge
 

  There were three garage fires in nearby towns yesterday, all had the loss of some valuable stuff.  In Winterport a retired mechanic lost a life time of tools and two antique cars a 1940 Ford Pickup and a 1949 Chevrolet convertible.  It would cost thousands of dollars to replace the loss.
  In Corinna another retired mechanic, who still took work at home, lost his garage and a life time of tools.  Cars he was working on were also lost.  He had no insurance, a very sad thing indeed.
  In Lewiston (which really isn't too nearby) a 1998 Porche was lost in a garage fire along with a newer, less expensive car.
  The first fire was caused by sparks as the owner was using a grinder, he didn't notice the smoldering rags.  The second fire had a unknown cause, probably connected with a wood stove or a chimney that wasn't cleaned - we'll never know.  No cause was given in the third instance.
  It was a sad day for three hard working men.

1949 Chevrolet convertible

Goodbye Old Friend

Waldo-Hancock Bridge - click to enlarge
Photo: www.wikipedia.org

  The Waldo-Hancock Bridge is being demolished, replaced in 2008 by the Penobscot Narrows Bridge and Observatory.
  Opened in 1934 the Waldo-Hancock Bridge was the first suspension bridge in Maine and the only bridge over the Penobscot River downstream from Bangor.  It connected Prospect in Waldo County to Verona Island in Hancock County.
  The job of taking down the old bridge was delayed by the removal and replacement of Osprey nests on the towers, nesting poles have done the trick.  The demolition company first sent tugs and a barge to Brewer to load a huge crane which will do the lifting during the tear-down.  The granite piers will remain in place and interpretive information will be posted on the roadside (that's a sign).

Old and New
Photo: Kevin Bennett, Bangor Daily News
 

First deck section removed
Photo: Kevin Bennett, Bangor Daily News

People counting people, what is this?

First up is one of those things from people who think they're old, they are not in my book old yet.

Do you see what I mean?  Those people had TV and seat belts!  These guys are just babies.  I'm old.
We didn't have TV until I was 14 and we didn't have indoor plumbing until I was 12 - - - and this guy is worried about Atari and VCR.  Makes me wonder if he ever saw a telephone with a rotary dial.

Next up, is funny.

 

And last but no least:
Hat's off the the North Dakota State Bison!  They have won the NCAA Division 1 FCB Championship for the second year in a row.  Right there in Frisco Texas.