We stayed in beautiful Morro Bay for six days, waiting for the next window of favorable weather between Pacific storms. The weather pattern shifted while we were in Morro Bay – apparently influenced by a 500 millibar “highway” from west to east that was bringing one storm in after another with about a day between them. The folks at the yacht club were warm and welcoming, and invited us to attend their Friday night pizza party.
We had a great time in Morro Bay, hiking, birding and enjoying this lovely, walkable little town. On our first day there, we walked around town and explored the waterfront.
We saw sea otters at the commercial fishing wharf! Apparently, the local sea otter population has grown to 50 sea otters!
We also had hot soup and salad at a wonderful local café called the Shine Café.
One day we walked out to Morro Rock at sunset. On the way we saw 14 sea otters at once!
One of the highlights of the trip was learning more about the Morro Bay estuary, which is managed by the Morro Bay National Estuary Program. The estuary is protected from the Pacific Ocean by a long sand spit, and is one of the largest and most important wetland areas on the central California coast. The estuary is home to a rich diversity of plants and animals, and is a key resting place on the Pacific flyway for numerous migratory bird species. Each year, as many as 20,000 shorebirds spend the winter there.
Long-billed Curlew 
Willets