August 2004 Westport Pelagic Trip

Jeffrey S. Pippen

Here are some pics I took (August 6-7, 2004) from a Gray's Canyon pelagic trip aboard the Monte Carlo skippered by Phil Anderson with Chris Anderson as a wonderful mate (Westport Seabirds). Leaders Mike Donahue and Scott Mills did a great job spotting birds and calling out field marks. These photos were taken with a Nikon Coolpix 4500 digital camera with a 4x optical zoom (not ideal for bird photography!), so most are small and/or fuzzy. Phil & Chris have much better photos on their website, though.


I flew into Portland. Here's Mt. St. Helens from the plane!
Arrived in Westport the evening of the 6th, just in time to catch the annual chainsaw carving contest...
Can ya guess why this one got my vote for the best? (Hint: look at the subject matter AND his shirt...)
The sturdy vessel
Pacific White-sided Dophins came to ride the bow.
Immature California Gulls (left) were always visible. And here's a terrible shot of my lifer Tufted Puffin (right).
Sooty Shearwater (Puffinis griseus)
Westport, WA
7 Aug 2004

We tallied over 7000 Sooty Shearwaters by day's end.

Sooty Shearwater (Puffinis griseus)
Westport, WA
7 Aug 2004

Many had to scoot out of the way of the boat.

Sooty Shearwater (Puffinis griseus)
Westport, WA
7 Aug 2004
Sooty Shearwater (Puffinis griseus)
Westport, WA
7 Aug 2004
Dall's Porpoises (Phocoenoides dalli) also came in to play with us!
Dall's Porpoises (Phocoenoides dalli)
Westport, WA
7 Aug 2004
When we got to deep enough water, we got our Black-footed Albatrosses (lower left, upper right).
Black-footed Albatross (Phoebastria nigripes)
Westport, WA
7 Aug 2004
Black-footed Albatross (Phoebastria nigripes)
Westport, WA
7 Aug 2004

Click for butterfly photos from Mt. Rainier & Mt. St. Helens taken after the going on the pelagic trip.
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Created on ... August 26, 2004 | jeffpippen9@gmail.com