Posse of humpbacks wards off orcas
In a thousand miles or so of a-roamin’ and a-ramblin’ across the state the past few days, here are five of the most riveting outdoors stories of the weekend:
1. Humpbacks to the rescue: The story of the recent attacks of roaming bands of orcas on gray whale calves in Monterey Bay has attracted a lot of attention (as described April 17 in The Chronicle). But the best part of the story has been missed by many: During one attack, a pod of 40-foot humpback whales circled the feeding orcas, then trumpeted as loud as elephants, reported field scout Giancarlo Thomae, to chase the orcas off the attack site.
2. Avoid wildlife kills: As spring arrives in the Sierra and Shasta-Siskiyou ranges, deer are migrating to higher elevations to feed on newly sprouted vegetation. The next full moon is May 10, which makes the next week an extremely dangerous time to drive at night in these areas. A car at 50 mph is traveling 73 feet a second; a moment of inattention can mean a collision. Slow down, blast your horn, expect animals on the road in front of you, and don’t expect the deer, or any other wildlife, to know you are fast approaching.
3. Hot weather: Temperatures are forecast to rise into the 90s at midweek at lakes in the Sacramento Valley and low-lying foothills, with filling lakes, cool water and good fishing. On our trip to Shasta Lake, we caught and released 40 bass.
4. Kill the queen: The warm weather has the wasps and hornets out to start their spring cycle. They are emerging from their holes, looking for a queen to make a nest for summer. Now is the time to get out your traps. Kill the queen now and you can ward off a summer of trouble from a nest.
5. Trout opener: Though most rivers in Northern California were too high and cold for fishing during this past weekend’s opening of the trout season, thousands of anglers streamed to the Eastern Sierra to fish the openers at many lakes there. Sunday was gorgeous at Mammoth Lakes and Bishop, the wind finally down, and my pick for the best scenery, fishing and most serene setting was ... Convict Lake.