Just as First Responder Dana settled onto the couch and flipped on the tv to watch the Seattle Mariners game, Seal Sitters hotline operator Kristen called: there was a seal on the beach at Lincoln Park. So, Dana gathered her stranding gear and headed down Beach Drive toward the park, hoping to find parking at 2pm on a beautiful Sunday afternoon.

Lugging cones down the trail, through the crowded park , she saw way too many (illegally) off-leash dogs roaming the beach. As she got closer to the seal’s reported location by Colman Pool, she had to ask a woman to leash her dog and warn another couple walking directly towards the pup.

Thankfully, the reporting party, Stan, had stuck around after notifying the hotline and helped Dana get a perimeter up to give the young seal, born last year, a buffer zone. The park was packed with people on such a sunny day. Volunteer scheduler Karen T lined up Seal Sitters volunteers thanks to our online calendar and volunteer Barbara, who happened to be out walking, stopped to lend a hand.

Young passerby Lucas, enjoying an outing to the park with his family, was excited to help out with his younger sister Zoey. He announced to his mom that he wants to become a volunteer. Seal Sitters MMSN encourages children to join our network and learn valuable lessons about protecting wildlife and the environment. Volunteers, including John and Ralph (at left), talked to a seemingly endless wave of pedestrians and cyclists, all curious about the resting seal. First Responders Eilene (top photo) and David came late in the afternoon and stayed with Dana and other volunteers until dark.

The seal, who was nicknamed Pisces, was too thin and had prolonged coughing spells. We will keep an eye out for Pisces’ return, but hope that given her vulnerability due to health struggles, she will seek the safety of the offshore raft at the north end of Lincoln Park instead of dangerous urban beaches.

Tags: Pisces

Monday was Miracle’s seventh consecutive day hauling out on the rocks just north of Don Armeni boat ramp. First Responders Eilene and David arrived at 7:30 am and noticed that the seal was already snoozing on a brand new rock – in the corner of the cove, just below the sidewalk. A perimeter was set up to give her a little space and Scheduler Melinda J was notified.

Just before 10am, as the tide was receding, Miracle abandoned her post, tumbling down a few rocks and into Elliott Bay, but swam to a nearby large slab of concrete extending into the water. She promptly scooted up onto it (photo left) before climbing up to a higher rock. She spent the rest of the morning and afternoon perched at this location. A steady stream of Seal Sitters volunteers arrived for two-hour shifts to keep her safe.

Around 6:15 pm, with the rising tide surrounding her rock as it grew dark, Miracle entered the water and was last seen bottling in the black water, drifting to the north.


MIRACLE STILL ABSENT FROM THE ROCKS TODAY
First Responder Lynn saw Miracle approach her favored haul-out early Tuesday morning, but then she disappeared and has not been seen since.

Surrounding shoreline has been checked frequently the past two days, including Jack Block Park, but still no sign of her - or any other young seals for that matter in our neck of Elliott Bay.

Today, First Responder Robin picked up a dead weaner at Weather Watch Park across from La Rustica Restaurant. The seal is definitely not Miracle. WDFW will perform the necropsy and we will let you know if there are any significant findings.

Tags: Miracle

Early this morning, First Responder Robin and volunteer John sipped coffee and waited for weaner Miracle to show up at the small cove along Harbor Avenue. Thankfully, the small seal swam past yesterday's bad location and crawled up onto her old familiar rock near the cement overlook. We quickly closed the area with "Share the Shore - Protected Marine Mammal" tape.

Scheduler Jimi was happy to report that there were sufficient volunteers on the calendar to cover what was sure to be a long day, since the next high tide was after 6pm. Melinda J and Cathy M were first to show up to lend a hand, followed by Margy, Molly and Kelsey (photo left), Kristen A, Barb Z, Karen T and Todd with daughter Caitlin. 8-year old volunteer Lina, who named Miracle, came with her younger brother and mom Rebecca. First Responders Lynn, David and Dana all stopped by to check in on things.


There was a surprising amount of pedestrian traffic today, despite the wind, showers and cold that only worsened as the day wore on. At one point, volunteers collapsed their umbrellas and ran for their cars as a brief squall, complete with a thunderclap and lightning swept through.

Miracle was more alert to activity today, perhaps a result of yesterday's mishap, but zonked out for a really long snooze all afternoon. The only thing that spooked her were three paddle boarders in the Bay who came fairly close around the point, within about 75 yards. Skittish Miracle almost abandoned ship again as we held our collective breath, fearing another fateful tumble down the rocks like yesterday’s. However, she stayed put and finally settled back in and fell asleep, dangling half off her perch (above) for the rest of the day.

Volunteers got caught in a few dousing rain showers today, but spirits were not dampened in the least. Just as vols Jay and Dori were headed down for their 5pm shift, Miracle slid off her mossy perch and swam off into Elliott Bay in search of perch...or any of the many other forage fish or even squid for dinner.

Thanks to everyone who kept Miracle safe again today. Volunteers did a tremendous job interacting with and educating the public. We expect a repeat performance from Miracle tomorrow.

Tags: Miracle

TRICKSTER MIRACLE CHANGES THINGS UP
Early this morning, First Responder Robin and volunteer John watched as harbor seal weaner Miracle attempted to haul out onto one of her favorite rocks below Harbor Avenue. In anticipation of her arrival, a tape perimeter was already in place. The tide was quite high this morning and Miracle hadn't exactly timed things right. Her third try was at 7:43 and she stayed on the rock for a mere minute or so before water swept over her and she slipped back into the Bay.

Robin and John stood by patiently, knowing she would undoubtedly return when the tide receded a bit. Robin happened to look to her left and noticed a wet weaner perched on a sunny flat rock, just out of the water about 50 yards or so to the north (photo above). First Responder Lynn had just driven down to see what was up. The three of us were all concerned that this new haul-out was not a good one, only feet below the sidewalk. It would be challenging for Seal Sitters to keep people back and allow Miracle to safely rest, since we could only close off a few feet of what would be a busy walkway on this sunny, but windy, Saturday. A serious concern was that within hours she would be high above the rocky shore as the tide receded - and vulnerable to a fall and injury if disturbed.

We hoped Miracle might abandon this new post and return to her usual, safer and quieter hangout. Instead, she settled in for a nap, despite the sidewalk and street commotion - and we began stretching yellow tape between informational signs and cones.

Scheduler Kelsey checked the doodle calendar and began making calls to volunteers. Huge thanks to reliable volunteers Melinda J, Buzz, David D, Dori, Jay, Karen T, Libby, Kelsey and Buzz who helped keep people moving along the sidewalk. First Responders David and Lynn both put in long hours again today, assisting Robin with crowd control on their day “off”.

CAR ALARM AND NOISE ACTIVITY CREATES DANGER FOR MIRACLE
As the tide receded, Miracle was resting high above the craggy beach and waterline (photo below). Volunteers did their best to manage crowd noise and disturbance directly above the sleeping Miracle, but one problem arose that we couldn't anticipate. The alarm of a car that was parked within 30 feet began blaring. Miracle looked up, but miraculously settled in for another snooze. The alarm finally stopped.

As more and more people biked, skateboarded and walked by and stopped to take photos and chat among themselves, Miracle became increasingly skittish to all the activity. But still, she managed to get some rest.

Then, early afternoon the alarm blasted again - at the exact same time, a low-flying military jet roared overhead. That was just too much for Miracle. She awoke in a panic and frantically tried to figure out how to get off her high, barnacle-encrusted perch and escape into Elliott Bay. Crawling off her rock, she promptly fell - out of sight.

Finally, we could see Miracle’s nose between the huge, jagged rocks at sea level. She didn't move. Was she injured or wedged in? After about half an hour of no movement and with the tide close to reaching her, we thought we'd better investigate for fear she might drown. Robin carefully crept down the rocky wall to get a peek, ready in case she had to attempt a rescue.

Thankfully, Miracle wriggled out of her hole upon seeing Robin. She looked a tad bit bloodied (probably barnacle scrapes), but swam off. Volunteers Kelsey and Dana arrived just after Miracle vanished, but helped search the surrounding shoreline to no avail. We're hoping between the disturbances, falling off the rock and Robin's looming presence, that Miracle will go back to her much safer haul-out tomorrow! And we hope, too, that she didn't suffer any significant injury from the fall.

Tags: Miracle

      
DAY TWO FOR MIRACLE
Yesterday morning around 8 am, Miracle was in the same spot along the rocky shoreline as the day before, this time facing the Space Needle across Elliott Bay. Hotline operator Dave notified First Responder Lynn who drove to the cove and set a perimeter. The weaner dozed through a gusty, wet morning. Volunteers Jay and John noticed some prolonged coughing spells and labored breathing.

The rising tide began sloshing Miracle around and, reluctantly, she pushed off at 1:30 pm. But instead of swimming away, Miracle went to the middle of the small cove and bottled, a resting behavior where seals are vertical in the water with only the face exposed (photo above), for almost 10 minutes. First Responder David stayed along the railing while Lynn went out onto the cement viewing area. Miracle surprised both of them by hauling out on another rock below the outlook.

Lynn snapped some quick photos before partially closing off the viewing area, directly above the seal, with yellow tape and a signboard. There was a brief encounter with one perturbed man who complained that public access should not be restricted, even though it was only a small area with plenty of access left for the public to enjoy views and activities. Lynn patiently explained that undisrupted rest was vital to a young seal’s survival and that Miracle’s right to space and safety was ensured under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Miracle stayed on the new rock for only about 15 minutes before that, too, was swamped by waves. This time, Miracle swam away and didn’t reappear. Thanks to Jay, John, David, Dave Y and scheduler Cathy who kept Miracle safe yesterday.

DAY THREE AND COUNTING
First Responder Lynn thought she would be first on the scene early today, but when she pulled up at the angle parking on Harbor volunteer John and weaner Miracle were already there. John said he arrived at 7:15am, just as Miracle hauled out on a favorite rock. The weaner slept off and on all morning and was in a good position for passers-by to see.

It was a lovely sunny day and Lynn knew we’d have more onlookers than the previous rainy days. Scheduler Abigail was able to send lots of volunteers out to help - John, Jay, Margy, Jimi, Carol, Karen, Barb, Buzz and Bob. Miracle was fully visible, so folks got a great view from the sidewalk - even better when First Responder David set up the scope.

Anticipation levels rose with the tide - all eyes were on Miracle as we watched the water splash over her perch. Miracle did not want to leave - the joke was that we should have named the pup “Velcro” since she seemed stuck to that spot. When Miracle was eventually dislodged, she swam along the rocks and clambered out again, only to be swamped again.

Miracle moved to a few more spots before giving up and swimming off to the south - then returning to the cove and rocks - then again swimming off to the north. The human entourage followed from shore, watching as long as the pup was visible, just in case she decided to return for more rest. Miracle was last seen drifting towards the mouth of Elliot Bay.

More likely than not this persistent weaner will return tomorrow for another lengthy stay. There must be a pretty good food source nearby since seals typically haul out close to where they forage.

Tags: Miracle