The conference in San Diego was at an end and I woke up with a morning to kill ahead of an impossibly long flight back to Singapore. If I was going to spend 19 hours sat on an airplane then I would need a long morning walk to stretch the legs. I grabbed my camera and set off for La Jolla Cove.

I had seen Brown pelicans flying over my San Diego dock hotel. I love to photograph these odd looking birds so I asked Google for pelicans and was pointed to La Jolla (pronounced Lah HOY-ah) Cove. An Uber whisked me to my destination where I climbed out of the car and took a deep breath. My lungs filled with cool morning air that carried a familiar fishy cocktail of saltwater and sea lion poo. A scent that excited my nostrils, and electrified my soul.

A hummingbird zinged past my face as I followed the sound of a braying sea lion. I climbed the steps to the cliff top and looked down. The ocean lapping at the beach below was foamy from the playful twisting and turning of sea lions. Nearby, a heap of sea lions were baking themselves on a slab of ocean-smoothed sandstone. The perimeter of the rock was decorated with a line of Brandt’s cormorants, perched like sapphire-eyed gargoyles.

I scanned the craggy cliffs and soon spotted a pelican preening itself on a ledge. I made some photographs and settled down to drink in the sights and sounds of this ocean-going menagerie.

I fired off a few more shots of pelicans on the cliff. These West Coast birds are so photogenic. The adults in breeding plumage have wonderful blood red throat pouches, in contrast to the brown pouches of their Atlantic cousins. The base of the sword-shaped, orange bill runs into peacock blusher, ice-blue eye and a butter-dipped head.

I watched several pelicans gliding back from their ocean hunting trips. It’s a truly awesome sight to see a squadron of Brown pelicans gliding low over the surface of the Pacific. while I watched several squadrons returning to shore, I imagined myself standing on the same spot 80 million years ago, watching Pteranodons returning to the cliffs.

I meandered along the winding path, daydreaming about a time when reptiles ruled the skies, when something on the rocks beyond the guardrail caught my eye. I was sure that I’d seen something scurry, so I paused. Presently, a small furry face popped up, and then another, and then two more. A small colony of California ground squirrels where scurrying between the rocks, surfacing from time to time to search for sweet treats dropped at the nearby churros cart.

I rested a while on the guardrails to watch a line of pelicans on the edge of a sheer cliff. Every now and then a bird would break from its preening routine to tumble into a swoop, before rising on the ocean thermals, and gliding out to sea with barely a wing beat. As a space opened on the cliff, another bird would swoop up on to the jagged edge. The sun hung perfectly to illuminate the stained pewter of the pelican’s feathers, while casting the rocky backdrop in shadow.

I made some shots of preening, plunging pelicans. I adored how they popped against the black background of the shadowy cliffs. Where the vertical rock met the sea, the algae seemed to fluoresce green and gold in the reflected sunlight. All of Nature’s beauty was on show for me in this perfect moment.

I walked back along the cliff path to the sound of boisterous barking California Sea lions. I watched the portly pinnipeds squabbling over the best sunbathing positions. A group of Harbor seals had hauled up on the beach below; another species gifted to me by the ocean, before I departed. Pelicans positioned themselves at a safe distance, not wanting to be collateral damage in any of the blubbery brawls that were rumbling on the rocks.

I checked my watch. It was time to head to the airport. I reluctantly packed my camera and walked away, leaving the cliffs of La Jolla behind. It had been a long trip. A few hours spent at La Jolla Cove was exactly the wild immersion that I needed. The California sunshine, and the rich waters of the Pacific Ocean are always ready to provide perfect incidental wildlife experiences.

If you liked the article consider liking, commenting, and sharing it! It makes the hard work worthwhile.

For more wild content follow Incidental Naturalist. If you don’t have a WordPress account you can follow via email. No spam emails.

Categories: USATags: animals, birds, California, Nature, photography, Travel, USA, wildlife