At the beach today out of the trees on the bluff flew this Blue Heron.  It was high tide and fishing must have been slow.  He flew right over me.

Then he landed in the madrona forest where I took his photo.   He was just hanging out waiting for the next school of fish at low tide.

Madrona trees are lovely to look at.   They have this reddish bark that molts in late summer just like the birds do.  See the new greenish bark peeking out from under the peel?  Their old branches can die off and they have a grey twisted gnarled look.  If the heron had not come flying out of another tree, I would never have spotted him.  See how well he blends into the branches of the tree?