...And We Will Have Snow

Chapter 3-2: Sea Lions

The forty foot cabin cruiser, like the hydrofoil boat that still served as the island's shuttle to the mainland, was powered by a small Sun Bottle so there were no fuel worries. With unlimited range, it made sense to have a boat with overnight accommodations to make extended trips possible. Ryan had it fully fitted out with excellent communications gear, radar and sonar as well as the usual amenities. Niño had already mastered all the equipment, and Ryan told him he might soon qualify to be a sea captain.

They had computer access to maps showing all the known locations of sea lion rookeries and other haul-outs among the channel islands. The plan was to frequently anchor offshore near one of these and swim in for closer looks. On returns to the boat they would log their findings, and relay the data home. Neither Ryan nor Niño lacked respect for the shape dream and its implications. They would not invoke it frivolously. Even so, they relished the adventure.

***

Dreaming themselves into sea lion form as they dive from the boat, they follow the herds as they forage. Swimming in strange waters is exciting for both of them. Ryan still loves it as he always has, but he finds himself more than usually exhilarated as through their shared sea lion dream the thrill of Niño's exuberance adds to his own.

As expected, among the sea lions they find some they know from the San Juan Islands region, but as on dive after dive they move farther north, more and more of the herds are the larger Steller sea lion type. Niño dreams with them, and might have shifted to their slightly different form if they were not so huge. But doing so would have meant accreting substance from the surrounding sea water to add to his natural body mass. He knows this would make the dream harder to maintain, so he keeps to his familiar California sea lion form.

Each time they return to the boat they mark the maps with new haul-outs they have visited and record other observations such as the location, type and abundance of the fish the sea lions are feeding on. Ryan and Niño often feed with them to avoid returning to the boat for "people food." While swimming they share each other's thoughts via the sea lion dream. Even when on the boat there is little talk, for they remain in the shaman dream together. So it is an eerily quiet adventure for Niño, reminiscent of being in the forest dream with his father.

The sea itself is never quiet. The sounds of wind-lashed waves roiling the surface and crashing against the shores are ever-present. Against this constant background there is the haunting song of the male humpback whales, a long, endlessly repeated sequence of modulated squeaks, creaks and groans they all sing, over and over, varying little.

Overlaying the song is the occasional call of the mother whales, telling the others where the schools of herring can be found. There they gather to form their bubble nets, herding the tiny fish into dense balls, then plunging up through them with maws agape, engorging vast quantities at each gulp.

Pods of dolphins are drawn to the same vast schools of forage fish, practicing similar herding tricks. Gulls wheeling above plunge deep into the mass to take their share, and the sea lions are never far behind, snapping up strays. They all add their clicks, whistles, squawks, moans and barks to the siren symphony of the sea.

With nearly a month of cruising they gather data as far north as the Alaskan fishing grounds Cheryl is interested in. Back in the Hecate Strait region between the British Columbia mainland and the islands of Haida Gwaii, they revisit Stellar sea lion rookeries in the area where the young pups are beginning to forage with their mothers.

As the foragers feed on schools of herring they often drift away from their rookeries, and haul out wherever is handy to rest the pups. Most of the haul-outs are on off-shore islands, often little more than a low jutting rock. But occasionally there are stretches of coast where such islands are scarce. The on-shore haul-outs are often close to forested land. As they observe this behavior, Niño wonders about the safety of the pups, but guesses the dangers are small since the visits to such places are infrequent.

Ryan decides the fun is over. They have seen enough and it is time to head home. Niño has already told him that he wants to go ashore on Haida Gwaii and spend some time on the main island. He has learned what he could about the First Nation culture of the Haida from the internet, and is excited by the idea that the shaman heritage of the people on these islands extends back unbroken for at least ten thousand years. He believes their cultural accommodation to island life is a naturally evolved example of the kind of culture needed in the new Sun Dome communities he has been helping to deploy. He wants to experience it directly. He will return home later by another route.

Ryan has no qualms about taking the boat home on his own, so the plan is set. Contemplating the adventure ahead of him, Niño can't suppress his excitement. As Ryan prepares to start the boat's motors to head home, Niño dives over the side. He is in sea lion form before he hits the water.