Lennard Island Lighthouse
Lennard Island V0R 2Z0 Tofino, BC, Canada

The tenth day of Christmas: Moving on to 2019, this is just a selection of shots from that year. Looking at a couple of these pics makes me long for that pre-pandemic era. Hopefully, post-pandemic times won't be far away.

The ninth day of Christmas: We spent Christmas 2018 in Parksville with Caroline's sister and her mom, and Seamus and Georgina. One regret we have about spending twelve Christmases out on the lights is that we weren't able to spend that time with extended family (just like everybody else this year!). Thankfully, Seamus was able to join us most years. These are a few shots taken around Lennard in November and December, before we left for Parksville.

The eighth day of Christmas: We stayed on Lennard Island for Christmas, 2017 and Seamus was able to come out from Saskatoon for a visit.

On the seventh day of Christmas (by my count): I was going to share photos from Christmas, 2017 but that meant leaping past the best vacation we have had since moving on to the lights, and that didn't seem right. We flew to Paris on the first of September, 2017 and, after a week there, moved to Lyon, Geneva, Zermatt, Neuchatel, Milano, Venice, Umbria, Rome, Dubrovnik and Cavtat, Croatia, and then on to Chania, Crete (note that we're going south) for the last two weeks of October. Be forewarned: there is very little to do with lighthouses in these photos.

The sixth day of Xmas: In 2016 we went up to Quatsino Lightstation in November. I think it was our third (and last) time working there and the first time we spent Christmas day there. Took a couple photos of our neighbours as we flew up to Kains Island from Lennard.

We have a new resident on Lennard (we are practicing social distancing). Leonard (different spelling to avoid confusion), as I like to call him or her, is a Cackling Goose, and has been here for 5 or 6 days. We have had geese stop in for a short stay in past autumns but usually there's a small group. We hope Leonard is healthy and just needs a rest before heading further south for the winter. But it could be that he's a loner, or a rebel ('ain't going to fly in no stinkin' V formation!'), looking for a little place on the coast to call his own, a getaway from that frantic migration, an alternative lifestyle than involves less travel, fewer hunters, and more 'me' time.

The day began early yesterday with a delivery from the Bartlett. They stayed offshore and sent the Bartlett 1 in with a drum of gas for us. Grainy shot because it was still quite dark. The afternoon weather was gorgeous, as nice as our summer days, and we had an uncommon visit from a juvenile Great Blue Heron. I couldn't get close enough for a good shot when it was on the point (but I liked the leg/wing stretch) and it was just as far away when s/he lifted and then landed on the reef for a silhouette pose.

I went for a walk along the shoreline this morning. Looked like the fog was going to lift but then it rolled back in. (Nothing but blue sky now!)

Setting moon over our reef yesterday at 5 am. Orange tint courtesy of smoke drifting down from the south. Brings back Deep Purple memories of high school dances back when: 'Smoke on the water....'

A rare sight for me: crepuscular rays near sunset.

Had one of the nicest days of the summer yesterday.

Just a couple water pics, both taken on a clear, calm day. In the first, the salmon fishing continues, and the second features a view of Lennard Island from Knob Rock (the breaking water is just swell breaking on the rocks; when I say calm, I mean no wind and no wind wave - nothin' but swell.) These were taken before the rains fell last week. We received close to two inches of rain and that topped up the cisterns nicely. The first ten years out here our summers were known for their drought-like conditions but we've had nice periodic rainfalls every month during the last two summers.

Yesterday began a little misty, drizzle moving through regularly, but it was obvious from the boat parking lot out front that the Chinook were running. By late afternoon there was still a good crowd, many of the same boats were still out there, when Lil Salty called to say the killer whales were coming through again. They were 1/2 to 1 mile away from the station but got a shot of a couple surfacing alongside Lil Salty and one of the bull's fin further offshore.

In the fog on the trail around Lennard Island.

A final few shots from the killer whale visit last week.

The colours of Lennard Island on the first day of August, 2020. Took advantage of the sunshine to capture some bright colours. Fog has since rolled over the water and over the station, dimming the light somewhat. The first day of Fogust, indeed.

Thanks to a heads-up from L'il Salty we got down to the winch house deck in time to see these killer whales racing toward us, and I mean racing! Boat that called said 14-16 knots and you can see in the photo of seven abreast that they were flying. They slowed down in the lagoon to look for lunch but all the seals were safely up on the rocks. As they headed SE a couple cut back and came halfway back through our channel, so I was able to get a few close-ups.

The Cedar Waxwings picked a sunny summer day (yesterday) to make their annual salal-berry-eating trip to Lennard.

We've had fog: Marcel returning home in the Beamsville just as the fog was lifting a couple days ago. Cape Ann in the background in Cox Bay.

https://www.westerlynews.ca//ucluelet-receives-1m-for-mu/

https://www.facebook.com/CanadianCoastGuard/videos/197420218284895 (You might be able to tell that we both we're recovering from really bad colds.)

Fog along the coast on the way home to Lennard.

Leaving Shoal Point yesterday after an unscheduled break (CCGS Bartlett on the left and Sir Wilfrid Laurier on right). All is well and it's good to be home.

Just a recent shot of Lennard from the water out front.

https://www.ucte-ucet.ca/the-shelling-of-estevan-point-li/ This is an odd article that showed up in my FB feed (I am a UCTE member). Even though it refers to Don Graham I think much of it may have come from his book. It also refers to a Fifth Estate program and google tells me it aired in 1995. So I'm not sure why UCTE is putting this story out today but it is an interesting and yet to be resolved mystery.

https://www.kolbetimes.com/gazing-outward-looking-inward/ Caroline's G&M article, with some photos added, was reprinted on this website.

http://virtual.mmbc.bc.ca/exhibits Rick James sent me this link to a virtual exhibit of great Pine Island photos from the past.

We got a call from the Fordes, who were out our way watching a pod of transient killer whales in our lagoon, so I managed to take a few photos before the whales moved around the reef and headed behind the island.