So doesn’t it look like an Idaho?  A skinny one, perhaps, but still.  The stones on and near the beach continue to amaze me with their variety and beauty.  And some of them are just weird.

The most gorgeous thing today was the formation of 22 (!) pelicans flying in various configurations.  First they were in a straight line; then they broke into a V; then they dipped and circled; then they re-formed their straight line.  22 of them!  They were intercepted, nearly, by a group of three.  That’s unusual.  They seem almost always to fly in even numbers.  Was the fourth one asleep?  Eating?  Ill?  Guarding the nest?  In “time out?!”  I did notice, though, that they took turns flapping their wings: first the lead bird flapped and then resumed soaring/floating; then the second one; then the third one.  Is it a rule?  Do they discuss it first?  I’ve never seen them switch places, but do they?  Do they vote?

It’s hard to decide where to look while I walk: up at the sky and birds, down at the rocks and kelp and shells,  out at the water and waves, or back toward the cliffs.  So I do all four, in turn.  I was mesmerized by the pelicans, so I did not take their photo.  That’s ok.