Monterey, CA to Visit Ellie & Aaron
 March 24 - 27, 2017

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I finally had the chance to visit my good friend Ellie and her kind husband Aaron in their new home in Monterey California this year, and it was a great trip.  We went on lots of sight-seeing adventures together. It was a great trip! 
 
   
Cannery Row is just a short walk from their house My first view of the beach, but certainly not the last! 
   
 Nothing says beach like a sea gull Beautiful blossoms from a tree in Cannery Row.
   
 Aaron peeping into the historic buildings in the tourist area My first view of seals on the beach, they are in the lower right
   

 Beautiful coastline views

  
   
Aaron is impervious to cold, except on his ears.  So here Ellie provides ear-warming services. Saturday we went to Point Lobos Marine Reserve for an amazing hike 
   
There were dramatic coastline views at every part of the hike Here water shoots out between the gap in the rock
   
 Ellie & I near the water spout Ellie & Aaron - still in love after a whole year of marriage!  :-) 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 Interesting rock formations Ellie, almost getting splashed by the waves hitting the rocks beside her
   
Interesting photo shoot in progress Sea otters - is there anything cuter?!
   
   
   
 One of many beautiful coves along the walk  
   
   
   
   
   
   

  

  I found this little "sea thing" in the bluffs above a cove, 
 so then we had some fun with it on Aaron's head.
   
   
   
   

 Fun pics

  
   
   
   
   There is a seal in this picture, but it is hard to see.  It is toward the left near the shadows.
   
 A closer shot of the seal. Turns out, there were lots of them in this cove - nursing their babies on the beach.
   

Baby harbor seal 
   
   

Beautiful arch in the rocks
  Some birds were hanging out in this area, I think they were cormorants.
   
Part of the mating ritual is for the males to show off their blue throats, like in this shot.  
   
 There were docents in the area who shared a lot of great information with us, if only I had a memory. A seal and some birds all sunning together.
   
 There is an Oystercatcher in the upper left of this shot. Another shot of the Oystercatcher.  The docents were very excited to see this bird.
   
   
   
 Ellie at the far right, thinking deep thoughts Love! 
   

Love this erosion pattern, it's like art. 
 What a great picture of these two!   
   
 Coming up from this pretty beach Another look at the cove with all the harbor seal mother and babies
   
The road was closed to Big Sur, but made it as far as the landmark Bixby creek bridge. The beach beside the bridge
   
   
   
   
   

Next it was a visit to the town of Carmel-By-The-Sea, 
where I got this shot of Ellie looking so pretty! 
  On Sunday we went to the Monterey Aquarium, an amazing place.  We started with the 
otter show, which I could watch again and again.  
   
 They are so cute and playful The trainers have them hide toys before each show, then they get treats for finding them 
again and bringing them back. 
   
The otters are so sleek and fast under water. This huge school of fish was mesmerizing in the huge overhead tank.
   

My silhouette against the jellyfish tank 
They had many kinds of jellyfish, all lit so as to make them glow beautifully.  
   
   This one was iridescent.  Really amazing! 
   
 A ray, swimming by in the huge tank. The largest tank has lots of fish in it to simulate the deep sea environment.  Prey and 
predator share the same tank, but a frequent feeding schedule helps keep the peace.
   
The Kelp Forest feeding show was fun - especially when he hand-fed a giant sea bass. The giant octopus was very active when we visited, in previous visits Ellie reported that it 
had been very still, but it was moving like crazy when we visited. Hope that means it was happy. 
   

It was hard to get a clear shot in the dark area and with it moving, this is the best one
I managed to get.  What an interesting creature.
 I left the people in this shot to show how large it is.  
   

Everyone loves seahorses, right?!
   
   

I really love this picture of a Moray eel
   The wave crash exhibit was very popular.  You stand inside a glass dome
 and the waves crash down over you.  
   
   Touristing at Cannery Row
   

Aaron joined us at this point for a walk to Fisherman's Wharf
   
   
   
   
   
   
 Seals in the harbor  
   
   On the wharf
   
 We made dinner out of sampling clam chowder up and down the wharf It was very good! 
   
 Catching the trolley for a ride back, we had a great weekend together!   
   
   
   
 

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