Sunday April 21, 2024 - The wind forecasters must have a busted compass, as they once again missed the wind direction mark today. However, their anemometer must be working OK because the wind was light as predicted, so the seals hauled out for our viewing pleasure. Good seal days have been in short supply lately, so were were happy to share a good seal watch with several small groups of seal seekers on this cool, cloudy Sunday.

The end of the seal season is in sight, and our lengthy Spring chore list will keep us from visiting Rome Point on weekdays this week. Late morning to mid-afternoon will be good for seal observation most of this week. By next weekend, the low tide will shift to late afternoon. The opportunity to see the peak numbers of seals on the rocks has passed, but smaller groups of seals often put on a worthwhile show, even for experienced observers. If the weather is suitable we will be back in the seal watching game once again next Saturday and Sunday.

We took a look at our past seal counts recently, as we were curious when we had last seen over 150 seals on the rocks at Rome Point. It turns out that March 27, 2021 was the last seal count that exceeded the 150 seal benchmark, and we have to go back to spring 2018 to see multiple consecutive counts of greater than 150 seals. We were aware that the past several seasons we have been seeing fewer seals than we have in years past, and some of that can be accounted for considering the lower number of observations that we made during the Covid years of 2020 and 2021. Spring 2022 and 2023 were very busy years for our small business which resulted in less free time for seal watching during those spring seasons, which is a factor that makes drawing conclusions from our observation records more uncertain. Still, we would assert that there are not as many seals making there home in Narragansett Bay as there were 10 years ago, for reasons that we continue to ponder as our seal counts gradually become slightly lower each season.

One good thing about windy days... which messed up our seal watching plans on many days in the past month. However, the wind serves to keep boats and kayaks away. Pleasant Spring weekend weather brings with it the possibility of watercraft activity in the area, which can spoil an otherwise perfect seal day if paddlers or boaters scare the seals away. This time of year we make an extra effort to arrive at the beach 2 to 3 hours before low tide in an attempt to to stay a step ahead of seal-watch-spoiling boats or kayaks. Check back here for reports and updated forecasts, we hope to see you on the beach soon!

The links below connect to short seal videos we posted on YouTube for your seal watching amusement.  Seal Pup Follies was recorded in Maine in June 2012 and Linebelly Rising is a short clip showing the former Rome Point kingpin climbing to the top of his favorite pointy rock. 

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