Did you brave the weather and visit Año Nuevo State Park for our Seal Adventure Days or the Sunrise Photography tours? If so, you were part of a great series of events and can feel good that your participation will result in park improvements across our entire Coastside.
Those early risers who attended a Sunrise Photography Day were rewarded with close up views of thousands of elephant seals. We have seen many of the resulting photographs, and they are outstanding. It turns out these enormous and often loud residents make for perfect models in their stunning natural environment! Most weekends were gorgeous, and the overall feedback from participants was excellent.
Rain did make a visit on the Seal Adventure Day weekend, but as we tell our visitors: we may not like getting wet, but the seals love it! A little bit of rain inspires the seals to be more active rather than sunbathing on the beach. Rain jackets were in order, but it made for some great viewing opportunities. Compared to last year, it was downright pleasant! We are always inspired when a group comes back from the tour soaking wet but with smiles from ear to ear. It’s not called Seal ADVENTURE for nothing!
To those that continue to return to the elephant seal events — and especially the first-time attendees — we thank you from the bottom of our park-loving hearts. Your ticket purchases and donations of more than $45,000 this year will go directly to our local state parks. Not to Sacramento or the County offices, but directly to CSPA and then to our parks when they need help with projects like the new staging building at Año Nuevo, Pigeon Point Lighthouse restoration, trail repair, new signage and much more.
If you haven’t had a chance to attend the Sunrise Photography or Seal Adventure Days, we hope to see you next winter. As a reminder, if you join CSPA at a $250 or higher level, you’ll receive two complimentary tickets to Seal Adventures. Regular tickets are $96, so by donating at that level you will almost have received the full value of your donations. We’ll have donuts and coffee waiting for you!
— Bill Murray, CSPA President