Auto Tour - Point Reyes National Seashore - 1-17-11

          We headed out to Point Reyes for the third weekend in a row. With no real hike planned, we opted for a day of auto touring. We’ve had great luck seeing wildlife in the past two weekends and today was no exception. We explored the Pierce Point Road area, as well as Mt. Vision, Marshall Beach Road, Drakes Beach, Bear Valley and Limintour Road.
          As we first came into Point Reyes the sun was out and it looked to be a beautiful day. Within an hour or two the fog rolled in thick. We headed up to Mt. Vision which was poking out of the fog where we ate lunch and enjoyed the sun before moving on.
          We saw many birds of prey as well as several coyotes and even a bobcat. I’m not a wildlife photographer but the images below are what I was able to capture. Currently all I own is a point and shoot, however, after borrowing a friends DSLR with a 300mm lens I quickly realized my photography would greatly benefit by owning a DSLR.

Turkey Vulture

Great Blue Heron

          We saw several coyotes scampering in the grass beside the road. The fog was thick but I managed to capture a couple.

Coyote

Coyote

Lining the fence posts along the road were many birds of different species.

Finch ??

Red Tailed Hawk

American Kestrel

Red Tailed Hawk in Flight

We then drove by a bobcat which we could barely see due to the fog.

Bobcat in the Fog

We also passed by another coyote which we stopped and watch hunt for a while.

Coyote

Coyote

Turkey Vulture Feeding on a Carcass

Gopher

Black Tailed Deer

Quail