Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
Rainy Day at Redondo Beach
Saturday started out clear and (mostly) sunny. We were desperate to get out of the house after a long, rainy week, so we headed to Redondo Beach in Des Moines (the one in Washington not Iowa.)
But the sunshine was fleeting and by the time we arrived at our destination, the wind had picked up, the sky was turbulent, and rain began to fall.
Storm clouds hovered in the distance and whitecaps whipped up the water.
Bob wondered whether we should walk or not; it was freezing cold and it felt like the picture below, drained of all color.
“Well, you see, dear, there’s a rainy-day challenge so at least I’ll get some pictures of rain,” I thought but didn’t say.
Instead I replied, “Let’s walk down the boardwalk and if it gets too cold, we can always turn around,” and so we did.
We persevered and the rain subsided;
the gulls were grounded and fishing in the surf.
On our return we saw scuba divers – in the 46 degree waters of Puget Sound; even with wet suits they are brave souls, indeed!
They were no doubt hoping to see Pacific Octopus (the largest in the world,) whales and porpoises, along with many small creatures we saw inside the Mast Center Aquarium next door, an aquarium we stumbled upon, not knowing it even existed.
It was small but charming and we loved all the colorful creatures, both plants and animals.
I especially loved discovering something new – a Grunt Sculpin – a fish that can walk (or at least hop.)
According to Wikipedia, “The grunt sculpin generally remains close to shore and is often found in empty giant barnacle shells. The common name comes from reports that the fish vibrate or “grunt” when held. Its defining feature is its tendency to “hop” along the ocean floor on its orange fins.”
So……. I didn’t exactly get pictures of the rain except from a distance. But I did enjoy the fresh air, gulls, starfish, anemones and even a walking fish.
~ Susanne
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 
You salvaged a miserable day of wether with some really cool images and I love the video!
Thanks, John! It was indeed a day salvaged! I loved seeing that little fish hop around! And what I didn’t put in the story, was that afterwards we had burgers at Dicks which is only 15 minutes away!
Wow, you made some beautiful photos, Susanne! Thanks for sharing. 😊
Thanks so much John!
You’re welcome, Susanne. 😊
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Who needs actual rain drops with view like those, Susanne! Stormy weather images are always so interesting and Washington state sure has a LOT–on both sides! How fun to find an aquarium, too! Great shots, and wow, a hopping sculpin! Your image of the aquarium looking through the window looks like its raining fish 🙂
Aw thanks so much for your kind words! We do get (more than) our share of rain, but it usually looks like dark gray skies and not that interesting. Either way, we had a great day full of surprises!
Looks and sounds like it was a very brisk walk! Nice that you discovered a new aquarium to explore and warm up inside.
A walking fish sounds like an evolutionary ancestor, very cool. 🙂
It was cold, indeed! The morning sunshine fooled us but it was a fun day after all!
A lovely day – even without sunshine!!
It really was! Thank you!
Looks like a very Northwest day, but the aquarium was an excellent find.
Thanks, Graham. That was definitely a surprise and made it a special day.
I had to smile when I read that you thought about saying you wanted to walk because of the rainy day challenge, but thought better of it, as very similar things have happened to me. Sometimes my husband has no idea why I want to take a particular path 😆 In any case, this one paid off for you. Not only does the beach look great in this weather, very atmospheric, but the aquarium is a real bonus. I love the anemones in particular, and was fascinated by the grunt sculpin video – I had never heard of this fish either!
I’m glad I’m not the only one who keeps the challenges in mind! 😄 It was a refreshing walk and the little aquarium, run by a local college, was a pleasant surprise! So many interesting creatures and when that little fish started ‘walking, well now that was icing on the cake. 😊
It was worth the trip for the discovery of the delightful small aquarium. Lovely photos and video, Susanne.
Best wishes, Pete.
Thanks so much, Pete! The aquarium was the reward for enduring the rain and cold!