Podcasts about Farallon Islands

In this special highlight reel, we revisit the most unforgettable moments from the past few months of Ageless Athlete. These are stories that stuck with me—narratives that challenged how I think about fear, recovery, aging, and what the human body (and spirit) can do when fully committed.You'll hear:A nurse in her 50s swimming 30 miles through 43-degree water toward the Farallon Islands—without a wetsuit.A son running beside his father through the fog of Alzheimer's.An ultra-runner finding joy mid-chemo.A solo paddleboard crossing of the Atlantic Ocean.Affirmations taped to walls that became lifelines.And reminders that fear, suffering, and setbacks are often the path itself.If you're new here, this episode is a great introduction to what Ageless Athlete is all about. And if you're a regular, this is a chance to revisit the stories that deserve a second listen.

When we see those who are struggling in life, we should be there for them as others were for us. #theloriclineshow Interested in learning more about becoming a devoted follower of Christ? Go to follow.lifeword.org! ~~~ Have you ever received a ‘whale of a' thank you? Well stop your scroll and let me tell you the coolest story that actually was a ‘whale of a' thank you, because it was actually done by a whale!  Seriously! So let me start with explaining the phrase. Anytime you say a ‘whale of a' anything, it means an exceedingly good example of a particular thing. So if you were doing a great job, it would be awesome to hear your boss say, ‘you're doing a whale of a job'! Or if you went to a party you could say ‘I had a whale of a time'! Ok… you get it! So there was an actual whale that in its whale way, said thank you and showed gratitude.  It actually happened back in 2005. It was in December, six miles from the Farallon Islands, a chain of rocky islands about 30 miles west of San Francisco, California. A 50-foot-long female humpback whale was spotted near the Farallon National Wildlife Refuge and it was entangled in crab fishing gear and nets.  This whale, estimated to weigh 50 tons, was on its usual migratory route between the Northern California coast and Baja California when it became entangled in the nylon ropes that link crab pots. A crab fisherman spotted it first and made the call for help. A team of divers and rescuers located the trapped whale and evaluated the situation.  These whales are huge, but the team seeing how badly this one was trapped, realized the only way to try and save it would be to have divers get in the water, swim up to it and cut the ropes. There were about 20 ropes, which each are 240 feet long with weights every 60 feet, so imagine the stress on this animal with these weights pulling it down, ropes digging into its skin, wrapped around its tail and even one in its mouth. It was a struggle for this humpback to stay above water simply to be able to breathe.  As the whale floated passively in the water, four divers took about an hour cutting away the ropes. The diver that cut away the rope from the mouth of the whale shared it was an epic moment in his life as he and the whale made eye contact while he freed her from the ropes.  Once the whale was free, it swam in circles and then this 50 ton humpback whale swam up to each diver, one by one, and nuzzled them gently, as if to say thank you, before swimming away.  I love this story for a few reasons.  First it reminds me how easy it is to get trapped in sin and the cares of this world and when we do sometimes the tangled mess we find ourselves in, we can't get out of on our own. We need to welcome loving hearts who are willing to jump in the deep water with us.  Second I'm challenged to remember there are those around me close to drowning. Father, help ME see and hear the cries of help that may be around me and give me the courage to jump into the deep to lend a helping hand.  And third, when I am set free from the ropes that hold my heart in fear, worry or the heavy weight of lies that try to hold me down and keep me from breathing in deep and being all God wants me to be… I need to stop and give thanks to God for setting me free from those chains on a daily basis. I Corinthians 15:57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. The victory and freedom we can walk in because of Jesus, is worth a whale of a thank you to God each and every day! That's the truth. Be encouraged. You're not alone. God loves you so much. No matter where you may find yourself, in the water trapped, diving in to help or maybe you need to say thank you… through it all God gives us the victory.  I'm Lori Cline.

""Swimming in 43-degree water with no wetsuit, knowing sharks could be nearby, pushes every cell in your body to scream for warmth and safety. But that's where mental toughness comes in. You break it down—30 minutes at a time—pushing past the pain and fear to discover another level of yourself."

It's our biggest NWA of the year as the boys unbox #001 of the DOXA Sub 300 'Great White' – our 15th collaborative edition, this time with a beloved and legendary dive watch maker. In this Episode, the boys share the inspiration for this special collaboration (the shark-infested waters surrounding the Farallon Islands), and go deep on the watch's unique design signatures to reveal the concepts behind them. And don't forget to RSVP for DOXA Day, this Saturday, December 7th as we celebrate this launch with a special in-store party! As always, you can reach the boys for questions and comments at podcast@topperjewelers.com. Thanks for your support, and thanks for listening! Follow the boys on Instagram:  • Russ: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@russcaplan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ • Rob: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@robcaplan_topper⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ • Zach: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@zachxryj⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Wrist check, topics, and watches discussed on this week's episode: - Rob: Zodiac Super Sea Wolf Topper Edition - Russ: Oris Diver Sixty-Five Topper Edition - Zach: Hamilton Khaki Field Engineered Garments - Grandma Shelly on 'Small Business Saturday' - ⁠RSVP for DOXA Day (Saturday, December 7th)⁠ - RSVP for Topper's Holiday Party Presented by Oris - Premium Standard H hats & ballcaps - The Devil's Teeth book - Ocean Adventures, Jean-Michel Cousteau Oh, and by the way: • Zach: Near Miss, a short film by Josh Berry • Rob: Skeleton Crew on Disney+ • Russ: old comfort movies on Tubi, like Almost Famous (bring your own turkey leg + mayo)

Amy Gubser Amy Gubser, is an extraordinary 56-year-old grandmother who this year became the first person ever to complete an unassisted swim from the Golden Gate Bridge in SF to the Farallon Islands - a 30-mile stretch of cold, shark-infested waters off the California coast. Moreover, what makes this achievement even more remarkable is that Amy only started her marathon swimming journey aged 46.Throughout a fascinating conversation, Amy describes her path from early morning swims in San Francisco Bay through increasingly arduous challenges, including consequently crossing the treacherous North Channel between Ireland and Scotland. Furthermore, Amy shares her insights into the physical and mental preparation required for ultra-marathon swimming, from nutrition strategies to managing the understandable fear of great white sharks and jellyfish swarms.In addition to her swimming achievements, Amy discusses how her work as a nurse has informed her mental toughness, the importance of breaking age-related stereotypes, and as a result, her mission to inspire others - especially women - to pursue ambitious goals at any age.With upcoming swims planned for Scotland's deep and mysterious Loch Ness, therefore Amy is proof that human potential knows no bounds when matched with determination, careful preparation, and above all her simple mantra: 'I can do hard things.'Amy's story is an inspiring reminder that it's never too late to pursue extraordinary achievements. Note to self! Now over to Amy. Timestamps00:00 Introduction03:10 Who is Amy as a Human?05:35 Childhood and Family Background10:48 Early Swimming and Lifeguarding14:26 Nursing Career and Mental Toughness26:12 Rediscovering Swimming33:24 First Marathon Swim: Gibraltar Straits35:59 Conquering Lake Tahoe37:20 The North Channel Challenge39:24 Molokai to Oahu Swim39:56 Local Swims and Challenges40:47 The Alcatraz Swim42:15 Manhattan Island Swim45:23 Nutrition and Hydration Strategies53:18 Facing the Farallon Islands55:34 Shark and Jellyfish Encounters01:01:32 Mental and Physical Endurance01:06:24 Inspiration and Future Goals01:11:11 Advice for Aspiring Swimmers01:18:04 Final Thoughts and Inspirations Social posts Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/amygubser92?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Links in show Books:"The Devil's Teeth" (Book about the Farallon Islands mentioned as inspiration)- "Tough Broads" by Caroline Paul (Recent book Amy highly recommends)- Young Woman in the Sea (About Trudy Ederle, first woman to swim the English Channel) Films/Media: Documentary about Mercedes Gleitze Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we're slinging rocks at some of the more interesting and notable headlines to come out of the outdoor industry and community over the past week.On this weeks slate:Can Justin ace Colin's National Bike Month quiz? (03:55)Gamel's new safety oriented commuter bike helmet, The Remarkable (13:28)Bay Area swimmer sets record by swimming from the Golden Gate Bridge to Farallon Islands (21:03)A report from The Guardian declares the Midwest the new hotspot for outdoor activity in the United States (27:53)Skechers & John Deere announce a new shoe collaboration aimed at virtually everyone (32:25)Paddling Magazine's Joe Potoczak joins Colin & Justin to talk about the latest details that have emerged regarding the death of Thomas Robison who died attempting to paddle the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. (36:23)Head to www.rockfight.co and sign up for News From the Front, Rock Fight's weekly newsletter!Please follow and subscribe to THE ROCK FIGHT and give us a 5 star rating wherever you get your podcasts.Have a question or comment for a future mailbag episode? Send it to myrockfight@gmail.com or send a message on Instagram or Threads.Subscribe to Adventure Journal to get more Justin Housman in your life.Check out Long Weekend Coffee for the best cup of coffee for your next adventure. Be sure to enter promo code 'rock10' at checkout to receive 10% off of your first order. Thanks for listening! THE ROCK FIGHT is a production of Rock Fight, LLC.

This week on the pod, we are covering Julia Hannafin's debut novel, Cascade. Julia weaves the most poetic sentences and paragraphs into a masterpiece covering all aspects of grief, gender, and the human experience.Haylie and Lauren sigh and laugh and dissect this beautiful novel about a young woman who goes to the Farallon Islands on a scientific expedition to track white sharks and meanwhile discovers herself through dealing with her own grief and understanding of her own true, wild nature. We hope you have read this book or if not, decide to go out and grab yourself a copy after this episode.Julia's Socials:Instagram: @hannaf1nPurchase the Book: HereFollow us on Instagram: @LesbianBookClubPodFollow us on Tiktok: @LesbianBookClubPodEmail: LesbianBookClubPod@gmail.com

Julia Hannafin discusses their debut novel, Cascade, as well as the research she did into the Farallon Islands, writing from life, bird shit, grief, working with Great Place Books, the difference between writing for TV and writing novels, and more! Born and raised in Berkeley, Julia Hannafin now lives in Los Angeles. They have written episodes for television. Cascade is her debut novel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's episode of The Lives of Writers, Sara Rauch interviews Julia Hannafin.Julia Hannafin is the author of the debut novel Cascade (Great Place Books, 2024). They also write for television.Sara Rauch is the author of the book-length essay XO, from us at Autofocus Books. She's also the author of the story collection, What Shines from it, from Alternating Current Press. Her book reviews and author interviews have been featured in the LA Review of Books, Newcity Lit, Lambda Literary, The Rumpus, and elsewhere._____________Conversation topics include:-- writing in LA-- writing for screen and audio-- journaling as a kid-- truth in fiction-- Julia's first novel CASCADE-- expanding a short story-- the novel before the "first novel"-- quiet drama-- a young narrator with a thread of danger-- publishing as the first novel by Great Place Books-- sharks in the Farallon Islands-- researching the book-- predator/prey-- internal/external worlds-- desire, gender, identity, and place-- addiction, obsession, and denial-- time and pressure-- new work and ghosts_____________Podcast theme music provided by Mike Nagel, author of Duplex. Here's more of his project: Yeah Yeah Cool Cool.The Lives of Writers is edited and produced by Michael Wheaton.

This episode was originally released March 10, 2021.Kimberley Chambers is a marathon open water swimmer from New Zealand. After a freak accident left Kim Chambers with a mere one-percent chance of walking unassisted again. Determined to prove the doctors wrong, Kim spent two years rehabilitating her leg and has now regained almost full functionality. She began swimming again as part of her rehabilitation, and has since become the sixth person in the world to complete the Ocean's Seven swimming challenge. In 2015, she became the first woman to swim from the Farallon Islands to the Golden Gate Bridge – a distance of about 30 miles. Many consider it to be the hardest marathon swim in the world.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Show outline; SF Bay halibut/striper fishing; Marin coast rockfish; Farallon Islands rockfish/ling cod; Ft. Bragg rockfish/ling cod; Lower Klamath steelhead; Crescent City albacore

Did you know what was made when humanity's oldest yeast was exhumed (Brendan Frazier and the mummy had nothing to do with it just fyi), How about the culprit for eight people dying in a freak drowning accident in the UK? What about the massage oil used for cuisine's most popular bovine? Yep, that's right. It may have something to do with beer. Tune in to hear some of the kookiest beer stories ever told told by the coolest kids west of san Francisco and east of the Farallon Islands which are directly west of San Francisco, so yeah sure when you match them up against a couple of rotting octopus carcasses and shipwrecked seamen, they're pretty darn funny.

There's a lost continent waiting to be explored, and it's right below our feet. We'll dig into the deep human relationship to the underground—and why we understand it from an instinctive point of view, but not so much from a physical one. (Hint: We're afraid of the dark.) In an episode originally published November 2021, National Geographic photographer Tamara Merino will take us subterranean in Utah, Australia, and Spain, where modern-day cave dwellers teach us how to escape the heat. For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard. Want more? Go below ground with National Geographic Explorer Tamara Merino to see how these communities have been living—quite comfortably—for a very long time. In Vietnam photojournalist and National Geographic Explorer Martin Edström created 360 images of the world's largest cave, Son Doong. It's so big that a forest grows inside of it. Ever zip-line to a remote island? Cartographers did, 30 miles west of San Francisco. What did they see when they mapped the hard-to-reach landform known as the Farallon Islands? Caves. China is home to some of the most intricate cave systems on the planet. These explorers used a laser scanner to capture never before seen images of undocumented caves. Also explore: South Dakota is famous among cavers for its web of cave mazes. Take a look at what they've found under the Black Hills. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The egg, writes Lizzie Stark, is a "universe in a shell." It's an ingenious piece of tech that contains everything a developing embryo needs, and it's a symbol of the cosmos in creation myths across cultures. It's been a tool of political protests, the target of wildlife poachers and the center of a Gold Rush-era territorial war on the Farallon Islands. It's also inspired painters, conceptual artists and countless cooks. We talk to Stark about her new ode to the ovoid “Egg: A Dozen Ovatures.” This segment originally aired March 28, 2023. 

The Egg War is the rather bizarre story of how a colony of Common Murres on the Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco sparked conflict during the American Gold Rush in the 1850-60s.  It is a wild tale of murder, piracy, lighthouse keepers with delusions of grandeur and an awful lot of people wearing hats. Join me for a silly story.To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweekWant birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at weekly.bird@outlook.com and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.Notes:California Gold Rush: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Gold_RushFarallon Islands: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farallon_IslandsCommon Murre: https://ebird.org/species/commur?siteLanguage=en_AUAuks: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AukMurre eggs: https://americanornithology.org/distinctive-egg-color-variations-in-common-murres/The Egg War: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/when-california-went-war-over-eggs-180971960/Penguin eggs: https://www.capetownetc.com/news/penguin-egg-whites-may-turn-clear-when-boiled-but-this-is-not-a-breakfast-idea/ 

The egg, writes Lizzie Stark, is a "universe in a shell." It's an ingenious piece of tech that contains everything a developing embryo needs, and it's a symbol of the cosmos in creation myths across cultures. It's been a tool of political protests, the target of wildlife poachers and the center of a Gold Rush-era territorial war on the Farallon Islands. It's also inspired painters, conceptual artists and countless cooks. We talk to Stark about her new ode to the ovoid “Egg: A Dozen Ovatures.” Guests: Lizzie Stark, author, "Egg: A Dozen Ovatures"

In 1848, gold was found in them thar hills of San Francisco! One of the largest mass migrations in American history shortly followed. Along with the increased population came a shortage of resources and a demand for eggs. While chicken eggs were almost impossible to supply to the new San Fran population, a bird known as the Murre produced a bountiful supply of eggs just 26 miles west on the Farallon Islands, aka “The Devil's Teeth Islands” and "The Islands of the Dead". As an alternative protein source, these eggs demanded a high price in San Francisco and lined the pockets of those who could transport them from the island with lots and lots of money. What ensued was capitalism at its finest; corporate greed, the decimation of nature, and war... oh, and egg pirates! Join us for a tale from American history and listen as you can almost hear Cash's eye begin to twitch as he does his best not to go into full-on rant mode. EVERYTHING'S FINE! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/middleagedandmediocre/message

For more than 20 years, the African American Theater Arts Troupe at UC Santa Cruz has provides a sense of community for Black students on campus while also celebrating Black playwrights. Often, it's the first time Black students see plays that explore life experiences they can relate to. Reporter: Doug McKnight, KAZU If you look out west from San Francisco, when the fog clears and the light is just right, you might be able to see a cluster of islands jutting out of the ocean, like sharp, misshapen teeth. The Farallon Islands, 27 miles west of San Francisco, are a national wildlife refuge, and home to the largest seabird breeding colony in the contiguous United States. The islands — and the waters around them — are also brimming with a variety of wildlife, including thousands of seals and sea lions, gray and humpback whales, sharks and even orcas. Reporter: Izzy Bloom, KQED

Carol Patton's Website:  https://adventuresofmo.com/Transcription:Intro  00:03Welcome to Changing the Rules, a weekly podcast about people who are living their best lives and advice on how you can achieve that too. Join us with your lively host, Ray Lowe, better known as the luckiest guy in the world.Ray Loewe00:17Welcome to the luckiest guy in the world podcast called Changing the Rules. We're sitting here today in our brand new podcast studio in Willow Street, Pennsylvania. We have a revisiting guest, we have Carol Patton, who was a freelance writer all of her life. We're going to get to her in a minute, and she's going to talk about her project that she's working on. But we're going to do something else today. We have Luke Cagno sitting at our board and we just decided that we're going to pull him into the podcast today because Carol is going to ask me a bunch of questions I don't know the answer to. And I don't want to feel stupid all alone. So welcome, Luke. And Carol Patton out in Las Vegas, how's the weather out there today?Carol Patton00:59It is beautiful. No more wind like it was yesterday. Thanks for having me.Ray Loewe01:16Okay. So first of all, let me say that Carol was a freelance writer for most of her life, and she changed, kind of as the industry changed, and she picked up a project that is immersing her in life right now. And let me remind you, if you want to know more about Carol, she was on one of our earlier episodes. If you go through our files, it happens to be Episode 84, and she was on in September of 2021. So, Carol, we're all a year older now, and maybe wiser, maybe not. So say hello to everybody.Carol Patton01:54Good morning, everyone. Or I should say good afternoon, depending where you are in the country. It is a pleasure to be here, we are going to have lots of fun today.Ray Loewe02:02Cool. So the MO project is what life is all about for you right now. And you know, you're so lucky to have a project like this because I don't think people have a project that can drive them and can be as interesting as this one has turned out to be. So give us a quick synopsis of what the MO project is all about and what you're trying to do.Carol Patton02:27Sure, many years ago, I started writing a children's story about a dog and a bird that finds a key attached to a key chain that says Florida, they don't know where Florida is. So they travel on top of a delivery truck without the driver's knowledge to every single state in the country, and they learn things about every state. And the story teaches them a little bit of geography, history, cardinal directions, but most importantly, it's fun. And how this project started was it sort of took on a life of its own, because I started discovering so many fun facts and interesting things about every state. But I could not cram them into each chapter. So I started expanding the book, which is called The Adventures of Mo. And now it's a project, it has many legs and arms and attenae. And so now I've written state blogs, more than 20 so far, with all of these interesting facts and bits of trivia that people might be interested in learning about.Ray Loewe03:33Now, before we go into the actual triviality stuff over here, this project has taken you into a whole different lifespan, because you go out now and you talk to kids in schools, right?Carol Patton03:46Yes, I've done over 16 presentations so far.Ray Loewe03:50And your goal here is to get kids interested in learning about the United States and about life. And what else?Carol Patton03:59Well, I want to get them first interested in reading and writing. Many kids, you know, second or third graders, they find it boring, they'd rather be playing a video game or outside. So what I do is I talk to them about how writing and reading can be fun. And I use The Adventures of Mo as an example, I do a guided imagery of one of the chapters, and they have a lot of fun, it's very interactive, and that sort of gives them a sense that writing is not just writing your ABCs. It's not boring, it can be a lot of fun. So that presentation seems to go well in elementary schools and for your listeners, if anybody wants to use me as a speaker, it's free. Just contact me and I'd be happy to do it over Zoom.Ray Loewe04:46We will give everybody your website so that they can find you at the end of this thing. But you know, as we've been talking over the last year, I started thinking about some of the stuff that you're doing and I used to go out and give a lot of presentations as an adult. And I just started thinking, wow, when you go into a different state, it's really helpful if you can talk about the city or the state that you're in and give some facts that you learned, it kind of breaks the ice. And all of a sudden, I found out, wow, you've got a resource here, for adults who do this kind of thing. And then the other side of that is, grandchildren come into play. When you're a grandparent, and you're trying to bond with your grandchildren, wouldn't it be great to have some fun things to talk about at the beginning of a conversation? Or even better if you're taking a road trip with your grandchildren, to be able to talk a little bit about some of the things that we're going to see and we're going to find out, and so that's the background. So let's start here because we've got tons of these things and we're going to ask me some questions that I'm not going to be able to answer. That's why Luke's here, so I don't feel so bad. So do you want to start with what adults might do with this thing?Carol Patton06:11Yeah, I picked two states. One state was really interesting trivia that may be more appealing for adults. And the second state the trivia may be more appealing for kids. But you can go on the website, and you can decide for yourself because obviously, it just depends on the age and your interest level. So okay, Luke, and Ray, tell me what state does this happen in. There's a small town that is called Earth. It's probably the only place on this planet that is named Earth. Do you know the state?ay Loewe06:46I have no idea. Luke, you got anything?Luke Cagno06:48I can't remember if we talked about this earlier or not. But I can't remember. I think it was Idaho.Ray Loewe06:57No, it's got to be a southern state because only southerners would think this way. Right? Okay, so give us the answer.Carol Patton07:03Okay, well, these three trivia are all from the same state. So let me give you the other two and then I'll give you the answer. According to state law, all thieves must give authorities a 24-hour oral or written notice of their intended crime before committing it. Apparently, this was supposed to help reduce theft. And apparently, you've got to comply with the law before you break it. That's the second stat.Ray Loewe07:30All right. Give us number three.Carol Patton07:33Number three, in 2014, there was a small town that voted to reschedule Halloween to October 30th because Halloween conflicted with the local high school Friday night football game.Luke Cagno07:51This all sounds like something Texas would do. Is it Texas?Ray Loewe07:57We know you cheated because we know you got the answer earlier but you sound good now anyway. Okay, so if I were going to Texas and I wanted to give a speech and I wanted some fun facts, how would I find these on your website?Carol Patton08:10Well, you go to the website and go to the footer or the bottom of the website on any of the pages, and there's a footer it says blog, just click on that. Right now 20 State blogs reposted, 30 are completed, we post one week. And I will complete all 50 states, I just haven't done it yet. But you can at least get a lot of rich content on about 20 states right now.Ray Loewe08:36Okay, have you got it got any other examples of things that I as an adult would want to know?Carol Patton08:42Yeah, you've got to hear this. Do you want me to tell you the state? Because the story is overwhelming.Ray Loewe08:49Yeah, so tell us the state and tell us the overwhelming story.Carol Patton08:52Okay, this happened in Idaho in 1914. There was a six-year-old girl named Mae, and she was actually mailed from her hometown to where her grandparents lived. And back then, it took many hours by car to drive there. Her parents wanted to send their daughter to visit her grandparents but the train fare was too expensive. However, they discovered that they could mail a package up to 50 pounds for just 53 cents. And guess what. Mae only weighed 45 pounds. So her parents got creative, and they purchased 53 cents in stamps, attached them to her coat and they mailed her and apparently, the post office had to honor that. She traveled the entire distance. It was from Grangeville to Lewiston in Idaho. And she traveled that distance in the trains mail car, and she was safely delivered to her grandmother's home by the mail clerk on duty. So I guess this maybe the first and last time a person was actually mailed, I don't know.Ray Loewe10:03I've got two comments on that. Where does child abuse fit in here? Although she was delivered first class, and you know, maybe it wasn't. And then the second thing is trying to figure out what the post office would do today. Do you ever track a package and find out it starts in Idaho, goes to Cleveland, and then someplace in Florida before comes back to Idaho again? Carol Patton10:26Yes, but you know, at least she was the only person in the truck at the time. She wasn't crammed in a seat like you are in airplanes. So she may have had a more comfortable ride, I don't know.Ray Loewe10:37Where do you find this stuff?Carol Patton10:41It's all out there. It's all out there on the internet. I do a lot of research. As a journalist, I'm used to doing research, so I know how to conduct it. But you just contact a variety of sites, you look under state facts, tourism, kids facts, there's a lot of websites that focus on that. And there's probably 10 sites that I traditionally go to, just to see what they have, and then see what else is out there. So this is how I find it. You know, it can be a couple hours worth of work easily. But it's fun.Ray Loewe11:13But you've got it now on your website, under a State blog, and I can find it. Okay, so let's take a different scenario here. Suppose I'm a grandparent, and I'm going on a road trip with my grandchildren. Pick a state that maybe we're going to go to and how do we get our grandchildren fascinated, motivated, and amused about where we're going?Carol Patton11:39Sure. I'm sure grandparents and parents are tired of hearing are we there yet? Right? You hear that 1000 times. And I know a lot of parents play the license plate game, how many cars have different license plates? Well, here's another game you can play in the car and your kids can actually learn a lot. For instance, I'll give you the kids state that I chose. This state has a city called Santa Claus. And every holiday it receives over half a million letters at Christmas time. You know, the city says that it responds to each letter, doesn't necessarily honor the request, but what state is the city in? A kid, I think, would be interested in hearing that. The same state also has a park called Wolf Park. If you make a donation to this park, you can get kissed by a friendly wolf. Parents may not be so enthusiastic about that, but the kids would be. And I know a lot of kids play baseball. Where was the first pro baseball game played? It was played in this state all the way back in 1871. So those are the kinds of things that the website has, the kinds of trivia, some are for adults and some are for kids. But you learn and have fun all at the same time. So do you know what state that was in? All three of those?Luke Cagno12:56It's got to be in New York, right?Carol Patton12:58Nope, 49 more to go.Ray Loewe13:02Yeah, I have no idea. So tell us because I don't have time to go online right at the moment and find the answer.Carol Patton13:10Indiana. They have Santa Claus, Indiana Wolf Park is in Indiana and again, the first pro baseball game was played in Fort Wayne, Indiana on May 4, 1871.Ray Loewe13:24Okay, let me reverse this a little bit. And one of the things in prepping for this is you did send me a list of these fun facts. And let me just read one and you can comment about how it fits into the whole thing. So you had one down here. Speaking of adventures, have you ever heard of a Bronco Charlie? So tell us about Bronco, Charlie.Carol Patton13:52It's the Pony Express. Kids learn about the Pony Express, I think in third grade, if I'm not mistaken, but they know all about it, when I go and do the presentations they know. And this is one of the presentations with guided imagery. I say close your eyes, imagine you're on horseback. There's no cell phone, there's no hotels, no TV, no road signs. And you've got to travel a full day as fast as you can to deliver this mail. And so we get into that what would it feel like? Would you be afraid? It could be raining, it could be snowing, it wouldn't matter. You could be really hot. And so they really get into this. And Bronco Charlie was the youngest Pony Express rider. So I asked them how old he was. And I'll get responses anywhere from 2 years old to 82 years old. But Bronco Charlie, I'm gonna say he's 11 and a half. He was 11 and a half because some websites said he was a 11, others say he was 12 so we'll split the difference. So he was 11 and a half. So they love learning about that stuff. And you can make it fun. It's fun for parents and fun for adults.Ray Loewe 14:59Okay, Here's another one that you put on your list. Every summer, 550 glass balls are hidden on a US island for tourists to find and keep. What's the name of that island and where is it? And if you don't know, I have the answer here that you fed me earlier.Carol Patton15:20Yes, it's Block Island in Rhode Island. And there's an artisan community there, they make these beautiful glass balls, and they hide them all over the island. And they're numbered. So when you find them, they ask you to report the one so they can check the number off and you get to keep them. So one of the stories is about dogs on a hunt to find these glass balls. So, you know, I know some people who've been to Rhode Island, they've never even heard of this. So I'm finding things that are some of them are common, some of them are not. Can I say the one about Michigan, Ray?Ray Loewe15:59Sure. Carol Patton16:01Okay. Michigan is the only one in the world that has a floating post office. It's located on the Detroit River, and it's called the J. W. Westcott. I think it's the second. And it's the only boat in the world that delivers not only mail, but packages, and also pizza to crew members stationed on ships that are traveling on the river. The boat is an official Postal Service mailboat, it even has its own zip code. It started doing this since 1952.Ray Loewe16:37So do you have to put stamps on the pizza?Carol Patton16:41You know, all I can say is I think Uber and DoorDash are in trouble. I don't know.Ray Loewe16:46All right. So we're not going to go through all of these because we want them to go to your website and look because that's where you can really get into this. But which state elected the first female or woman to Congress? And I have the answer so you don't have to look it up.Carol Patton17:07Well, I have the answer too, but that I'm going to leave that up to you to say the answer.Ray Loewe17:11All right, because Luke's not going to know this one. It's Montana.Luke Cagno17:14I was going to say Ohio. Ray Loewe17:15Well, Ohio is known for a lot of things in here. Did you have any of these that you picked up when you were cheating and looking at the list?Luke Cagno17:23No, I didn't get a chance to read them all.Ray Loewe17:25Okay, well, that's good. So that way you don't cut into my time over here. Carol Patton17:30What about Wyoming? You got that one? Ray Loewe17:35No, but go ahead.Carol Patton17:37Which state had, well we know it's Wyoming now, but which state has a dirt landing strip reserved for people from Jupiter? It's called the Greater Green River Intergalactic Spaceport. Luke Cagno17:51Has it been used? Carol Patton17:54If it has, nobody's telling us.Ray Loewe17:57You're kidding me? Carol Patton18:00I am not kidding you. I'm not kidding you. So they actually have a dirt landing strip. And I think people from Jupiter, I think they're called Jovians, I'm not sure, I could be mispronouncing that. Luke Cagno18:11I think that's right.Ray Loewe18:13Okay, so just a quick rundown of a couple others that are here. Which state invented 911? And I know the answer to that is Nebraska. Last place in the world I would have expected this to happen. And one other one from here. The state nicknamed the mother of presidents. I kind of knew this one because I grew up there. But Ohio, and it's because there are so many presidents that started their life there. So what are some of the creative things that we can do with this? We can teach kids fun things about history and about learning and about doing research.Carol Patton18:59Yes. This is a great resource for teachers, they can even play a form of Jeopardy in the classroom by using these trivia questions. They can do extra credit on exams. Teachers can be really creative with this stuff, that's just an example of some things they can do. And even sitting around the dinner table with parents and your kids. You know, if the conversation gets a little stale, you can mention any of these and it launches into a wonderful conversation.Ray Loewe19:30I can see this now. We're having pizza with our grandchildren. So which floating post office delivered this? Carol Patton19:38Exactly.Ray Loewe19:39I'll tell you I really got I got a kick out of this postage thing. I had been to Hawaii and I know you can mail a coconut from Hawaii to anywhere by putting a stamp on it, and you actually write the message on the coconut. But mailing your daughter or granddaughter I think that's a little much. All right, you got any others in here that will amuse us and enlighten us and fascinate and motivate us?Carol Patton20:04Yes. This city's name was decided by a coin toss. If I say the city, you'll know the state. So I'll give you the city in the state. It was Portland, Oregon. Okay. So it had the coin landed on the other side, what would Portland have been called?Ray Loewe20:28No idea.Carol Patton20:31Boston.Luke Cagno20:37So then what would Boston have been called? Ray Loewe20:40I guess it would have been Boston, Massachusetts versus Boston, Oregon. All right, we only have a couple minutes. And we're going to sum up because we want to let people go and look for this. So first of all, give us the website that they're gonna go to again.Carol Patton20:57It's Adventuresofmo.com. And then if you want to look at this trivia, scroll all the way down to the bottom to the footer, and you'll see blogs and just click on that. And 20 blogs are there already. Ray Loewe21:14All right. Give us a couple more of some of the more diverse things over here so we can leave people with examples. And then we'll sign off leaving people wanting.Carol Patton21:25Okay, where did the country's first train robbery occur?Ray Loewe21:31All right, Luke, this is up your alley, go ahead.Luke Cagno21:35The first train robbery in the country occurred in Indiana.Carol Patton21:41How did you know that? Were you related to the robbers or something?Ray Loewe21:46Yeah, it's right. So is that where Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid were or is it somebody else that pulled this off?Carol Patton21:53It's somebody else. I think they were called the Reno brothers. And when I heard that, I thought they were from Nevada, because of Reno, Nevada, but they weren't. And  they stole something like the equivalent of today, a quarter of a million dollars, something like that. So it was a lot of money. Oh, here's one for the musicians out there. The last time the liberty bell rang was more than 150 years ago. What musical notes did the bell strike when it rang?Ray Loewe22:22All right, Luke is a guitarist, I'm non-musical here. I bet you have no idea what this is. Luke Cagno22:29I read the start of it, but I didn't get to the end of it. I'm gonna guess it's probably an A.Carol Patton22:42No, E-flat. E-flat.Ray Loewe22:44Now, who decided this? Was the bell made to do this or was this just what happened?Carol Patton22:51I think it's just what happened. I have no idea who decided to make it an E-flat sound or ringing in terms of an E-flat. But let's see if I have any others. Okay, in the 1800s, dozens of shipwrecks happened between Alaska and a chain of US islands. Can you guess the name of these islands?Ray Loewe23:17Hawaii.Luke Cagno23:18What islands are there around Alaska?Ray Loewe23:21Well, I don't know there's Hawaiian Islands and there's the Marshall Islands. And I don't know what else.Carol Patton23:29Ever hear of Devil's Peace islands off of California's coast? That's where they are, between California and Alaska. Dozens of shipwrecks happen. I think they're called Farallon Islands too if I'm pronouncing it correctly.Ray Loewe23:42You know, there was one other one on here that I thought was interesting. And that had to do with there is a state that if you stand anywhere in the state, you're within 85 miles of one of the Great Lakes.Carol Patton23:57Yes. Anywhere you stand in the state. And that's my home state.Ray Loewe24:02Well, it makes sense if you look at a map, and I think this is what you're trying to do is get kids to look at a map. Because when you look at the state of Michigan, you got all the Great Lakes around. So it's got to be Michigan, right? Carol Patton24:14Exactly.Ray Loewe24:15All right. We're nearing the end over here, give us two or three quick in succession, and then we're going to leave people to do the research on their own.Carol Patton24:25Okay, I'll give you two more only and they can be good for kids or adults. Only one state capital has three words. Which state? Only one state has one syllable, which state? And let's see what else. Which state had the most men sign up to fight in the Civil War? Like I said, I have tons of these. And how many of you know the names of the four US presidents whose faces are carved into Mount Rushmore? Not everybody knows that.Ray Loewe25:01All right, let me guess at that. It's Roosevelt, Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln.Carol Patton25:06Okay, you get the prize. Ray Loewe25:09Well, I've been there. But you're right, you wouldn't really know that. Okay, so kind of let's recap, because we can go on and do these for a long time. And, and one of the reasons I knew Carol could do this is we meet for virtual cocktails every Thursday afternoon, and Carol comes up here, and we will not let her escape the afternoon without giving us a few of these. We call them factoids instead of fun facts on the air and she always amuses us with these. But again, let's just kind of recap about the purpose of The Adventures of Mo. It is to get kids engaged in reading, writing, learning, right?Carol Patton25:54Learning about the country, the amazing history, and geography of this country.Ray Loewe25:59Okay. And anything else you want to say before we sign off?Carol Patton26:04Just try a chapter. Or if you don't, go on and look at one of the blogs, because the blogs have a lot of information about history, about fun stuff. It could be anything. Ghost stories,  for instance, and I can't I'll be the one without the answer. What state has the most registered ghost towns in the country? You'd be surprised. I'm not gonna give you the answer.Ray Loewe26:30All right. We're leaving that wanting. So, Carol Patton, thanks so much for being with us again. As you do more research and you get more of these fun facts, we're going to have you back again, just because the world needs to know these things. All right. Carol Patton26:47Absolutely. Thanks. That was fun. Ray Loewe26:48Okay. So the adventures of Mo, we'll write this out in our notes so that you can find the website. And Carol, thanks so much for being with us on Changing the Rules again, and Luke, sign us off, please.Outro  27:04Thank you for listening to Changing the rules. Join us next week for more conversation, our special guest and to hear more from the luckiest guy in the world.

Twenty-seven miles west of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Farallon Islands jut out of the Pacific. On the clearest of days, the grouping of 20 islets is visible from shore. We dive into the history of these islands — from their earliest human visitors, to the people who have called them home over the decades. Then, we take a trip to the islands with reporter Izzy Bloom to learn about the animals that are thriving in this wildlife refuge. This episode answers a question from Bay Curious listener Ali Moghaddam. Learn more: In Search of Whales (and Other Creatures) at the Mysterious Farallon Islands Bay Curious: The Gold Rush Delicacy That Started a War—Eggs Video: The Farallon Islands - "California's Galapagos" Reported by Olivia Allen-Price and Izzy Bloom. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Darren Tu and Brendan Willard. Additional support from Kyana Moghadam, Jen Chien, Jasmine Garnett, Carly Severn, Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez, Jenny Pritchett, Vinnee Tong, Ethan Lindsey and Holly Kernan.

'Like You're on a Different Planet': Visiting the Mysterious Farallon Islands If you look west from San Francisco, when the fog is clear and the light is just right, you might be able to see a cluster of islands jutting out of the ocean like sharp, misshapen teeth. The Farallon Islands sit 27 miles west of San Francisco. They get their name from the Spanish word farallón, which means “sea cliff.” For our series Hidden Gems, The California Report's Izzy Bloom braved the rough waters to get up close with wildlife a lot of Californians have only ever imagined. Women Share Their Experience of Getting an Abortion Before Roe Made It Legal With abortion rights in jeopardy, many women are sharing their personal stories. For those who terminated pregnancies before it was legal in 1973, the memories can be especially painful. KQED health correspondent Lesley McClurg has the story of three women.   Blues Singer Marina Crouse Celebrates a Language She Had to Fight to Learn Fourth-generation Californian Marina Crouse is well known for her powerful voice singing the blues. Now she's got a new album out in Spanish, and it features songs originally sung by Eydie Gorme. Marina Crouse, who's based in the Bay Area city of El Cerrito, has reimagined and re-interpreted Eydie Gorme's music with her new album, “Canto de mi Corazon.” Crouse talks to host Sasha Khokha about why she decided to honor Eydie Gorme in this way.

The Egg Wars—a hidden Gold Rush kitchen—when food was scarce and men died for eggs. We travel out to the forbidding Farallon Islands, 27 miles outside San Francisco's Golden Gate, home to the largest seabird colony in the United States. Over 250,000 birds on 14 acres. But it wasn't always so. One hundred seventy years ago it was the site of the “Egg Wars.” During the 1850s, egg hunters gathered over 3 million eggs, violently competing with each other, and nearly stripping the island bare. In 1969 the Point Reyes Bird observatory began working to protect the Farallones. The islands had been through a lot. The devastating fur trade of the 1800s. The Egg Wars. During WWII the Islands were used as a secret navy installation with over 70 people living on the island. From 1946-1970 nearly 50,000 drums of radioactive waste were dumped in the Farallon waters. Fisherman often shot high powered rifles at sea lions and helicopters were causing whales and other animals to panic. Today the Farallones are off limits to all but researchers, some who live out on the desolate island for months in the old lighthouse there. Surrounded by thousands of birds, they wear hard hats to keep the gulls from dive bombing their heads. The Islands are a sanctuary—The Farallon National Wildlife Refuge, managed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. The Kitchen Sisters were given permission to travel out to the islands on one of the supply runs that goes out to the islands 2 times a month. The Farrallon National Wildlife Refuge is managed by US Fish and Wildlife Service Our story features: Gary Kamiya, journalist and author; Mary Jane Schram, Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary; Peter Pyle, Farallon Biologist; Ava Crosante, Illustrator; Peter White, Author of Farallon Islands—Sentinels of the Golden Gate; Skipper Roger Cunningham; Pete Warzybok, Scientist Farallon Islands; Russ Bradly, Farallon Program Leader for Point Blue Conservation Science. Special thanks to: Melissa Pitkin, Point Blue Conservation; Doug Cordell and the San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex; Edward Jenkins; Julia Gulka; Sean Gee; Keith Hansen, Eve Williams, Gerry McChesnwey; and the Farallon Marine Sanctuary. The Kitchen Sisters Present is produced by The Kitchen Sisters, Nikki Silva and Davia Nelson, with Nathan Dalton and Brandi Howell. We are part of PRX's Radiotopia Network.

On this episode of the California Now Podcast, host Soterios Johnson speaks with three San Francisco insiders and uncovers some great ways to experience the City by the Bay. First, Johnson speaks with Josh Armel, owner of the Painted Ladies Tour Company. Armel discusses the city's rich past and the unique advantages of touring San Francisco's historic neighborhoods in vintage Volkswagen buses. Each of the lovingly restored vehicles have their own personality, not to mention eyelashes that adorn their headlights. Next, Johnson learns how to plan the perfect literary-inspired weekend with Erica Messner, co-founder and editor-in-chief of The San Franciscan magazine. From taking in poetry readings at a local pub and tasting out-of-this-world focaccia in North Beach to whale watching around the Farallon Islands, Messner has no shortage of hidden gems to explore. And finally, Johnson connects with MeeSun Boice, owner of the bar/restaurant Mersea on Treasure Island. The island, Boice points out, is one of San Francisco's best-kept secrets and well worth a visit. And with a new ferry service coming soon, it's about to become much more popular.

Several Republican-led states, businesses, and other opponents have put Biden's mandates in legal limbo for weeks, with federal courts having halted their enforcement pending the outcome of the legal challenges. The Farallon Islands are home to squawking seabirds, floppy harbor seals, brightly freckled arboreal salamanders and rare, delicate camel crickets. They are also home to what ecologists have called a “plague-level infestation” of European house mice. The NYPD rookie filmed giving her lieutenant a raunchy lap dance at their Bronx precinct holiday party has been identified — and she describes herself as a “highly motivated and determined individual.” See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The 133 foot schooner Adventuress has been to the Artic and was used by San Francisco Bar Pilots to transfer pilots to and from cargo vessels near the Farallon Islands. Today Adventuress is operated by the non-profit organization Sound Experience, as a platform for environmental education about the Puget Sound. In this episode we board the Adventuress with Associate Teaching Professor Julie Masura as well as a group of current UWT students and recent grads. Masura and Associate Vice Chancellor for Research Cheryl Greengrove teamed up with Sound Experience to provide students with a chance to do some field work. 

There's a lost continent waiting to be explored, and it's right below our feet. We'll dig into the deep, human relationship to the underground, and why we understand it from an instinctive point of view — but not so much from a physical one. (Hint: we're afraid of the dark.) National Geographic photographer, Tamara Merino, will take us subterranean in Utah, Australia, and Spain where modern-day cave dwellers teach us how to escape the heat.   For more information on this episode, visit natgeo.com/overheard  Want more? Go belowground with National Geographic Explorer Tamara Merino to see how these communities have been living—quite comfortably—for a very long time.  In Vietnam photojournalist and National Geographic Explorer Martin Edström created 360 images of the world's largest cave, Son Doong. It's so big that a forest grows inside of it. Ever zip-line to a remote island? Cartographers did, 30 miles west of San Francisco. What did they see when they mapped the hard-to-reach landform known as the Farallon Islands? Caves. China is home to some of the most intricate cave systems on the planet. These explorers used a laser scanner to capture never before seen images of undocumented caves. Also explore: South Dakota is famous among cavers for its web of cave mazes. Take a look at what they've found under the Black Hills.

Join us for a conversation with TNS Host Steve Heilig and artist-naturalist Keith Hansen about his new book of illustrations: Hansen's Field Guide to the Birds of the Sierra Nevada. Identify and learn about more than 250 birds of the Sierra Nevada. From tiniest hummingbirds to condors with nine-foot wingspans; from lower-elevation wrens to the rasping nutcrackers of the High Sierra; from urban House Sparrows to wild water-loving American Dippers, Field Guide to the Birds of the Sierra Nevada showcases Keith's sixteen-year project to illustrate the birds of the Sierra Nevada. Download a PDF of Keith's illustrations to follow along with the audio podcast here: https://tns.commonweal.org/podcasts/hansen-heilig/attachment/keith-hansen-tns-slides-080621/ Keith Hansen Coming from a long line of artists, Keith took up illustrating birds in 1976, his senior year of high school. After extensive travel, he volunteered for the Point Reyes Bird Observatory, both at the Bolinas Palomarin Field Station, and nine adventures to the Farallon Islands. Capturing and gently handling hundreds of birds for banding studies gave him an intimate understanding of their build, anatomy, plumage and character, all crucial things for a budding bird artist. Over the years, he created bird illustrations for books, scientific journals, magazines, newsletters, and logos. Taking about 14 years to illustrate the 320 species that occur in that great mountain range, and five years to write, his latest book is Hansen's Field Guide to the Birds of the Sierra Nevada. Keith's workspace, The Wildlife Gallery is located in Bolinas. Host Steve Heilig Steve is a longtime senior research associate with Commonweal, a co-founding director of the Commonweal Collaborative on Health and the Environment, a host of dialogues for the New School, and in other programs originating at or founded at Commonweal. Trained at five University of California campuses in public health, medical ethics, addiction medicine, economics, environmental sciences, and other disciplines, his other work includes positions at the San Francisco Medical Society, California Pacific Medical Center, and as co-editor of the Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics. He has served on many nonprofit boards and appointed commissions, and is a trained hospice worker. He is a widely published essayist and book and music critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, Huffington Post, and many other publications.

In this episode, we chat about updates on cicadas and west-coast pelagics, Olympian-quality birds, the fear of owls (and fear of showing people owls), and more birdy stuff. Send us your questions for our next episode, where you can Ask Us Anything!Topics covered include: Cicadas and their affinity with prime numbers; bird and mammal reports from Farallon Islands pelagic trips; the underdogs of the Bird Olympics (we couldn't resist); bird names for sports teams;  an introduction to bird and dog breed comparisons; oclophobia (which appears to be a fear of owls); and hey, you guys are really listening!Highlight bird species: Golden eagles and a full Olympian lineup, including a plethora of notable seabirds; Red Knots, with emphasis on Rufa Red Knots; Flammulated and other hard-to-find owls. Locations mentioned: Local spots around Alvaro in Half Moon Bay, CA, and George in Philadelphia, PA; Farallon Islands; and you know, here and there. Links: The Little Red Knot That CouldSend your topic ideas to lifelistpodcast@gmail.com

George, Mollee and Alvaro chat together for the first time on Life List. Mollee introduces herself, and the amazing rooftop tent! Alvaro mentions his first June trip to the Farallon Islands, CA. George “cancels” on Subaru at the Philly flower show. But the main discussion is about the Aloha State. Mollee gives us her impression as a first-time birder to Hawaii. George impresses us with his fish knowledge. And we all discuss how Hawaii is amazing, and also a conservation emergency zone. Some native species have become quite rare in just a decade! Climate change is causing the “mosquito line” to move up in elevation, carrying avian malaria with it. We discuss GMO mosquitos and perhaps mosquito birth control through technology! Hawaii has its conservation success stories, especially when considering the native seabirds. Mollee also had her lifer pelagic in Hawaii. We chat about pelagics in Hawaii vs North Carolina, vs California. Shorts on a pelagic, vs freezing cold on a pelagic. And can you pull off the “Jaques Cousteau look?”Topics covered include: Pop-up tents, Philly flower show, Hawaii bird conservation, Hawaii sea birding, Mollee's first pelagic, the Atlantic's first Wedge-tailed Shearwater, and pelagic birding in general. Highlight bird species: I'iwi, ‘Akeke'e, ‘Akikiki, ʻAkiapōlāʻau, Chickens, Moas, Hawaiian Petrel, Bulwer's Petrel, Wedge-tailed Shearwater, South Polar Skua, Black-capped Petrel, Newell's Shearwater. Locations mentioned: West Virginia, Farallon Islands (CA), Big Island, Kauai, Hatteras pelagic birding Links: Farallon Islands and pelagics with AlvaroMosquito Birth ControlPacific Rim Conservation – Bird Conservation in HawaiiOikonos – Seabird Conservation in HawaiiAlvaro's Hawaii tripsNorth Carolina pelagics with Brian Patteson Send your topic ideas to lifelistpodcast@gmail.com

Senior Fellow, The Ocean Foundation, Richard Charter joins the show. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

During the Gold Rush, people flocked to the San Francisco Bay Area to make their fortunes. A few entrepreneurial folks realized seabird eggs could provide protein to the hungry miners. Matthew Tuckner heard there was even a war fought over eggs on the Farallon Islands and wanted to know more. Additional Reading: The Gold Rush Delicacy That Started A War: Eggs The Kitchen Sisters Present podcast When California Went to War Over Eggs (Smithsonian Magazine) Originally reported by Nikki Silva and Davia Nelson for The Kitchen Sisters Present. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Suzie Racho and Brendan Willard. Additional support from Erika Aguilar, Jessica Placzek, Kyana Moghadam, Paul Lancour, Carly Severn, Ethan Lindsey, Vinnee Tong and Don Clyde.

Ron Elliot probably has more close encounters with great white sharks than nearly any other person. Ron is a retired urchin diver who has spent countless hours underwater at the Farallon Islands. He continues to dive at the Farallons, even after a recent encounter during which he found himself facing a massive shark charging him with open jaws…. He didn’t escape unscathed. Watch Near Miss, a film by Josh Berry featuring Ron. And help support shark research at the Farallons, which has suffered a loss of funding during the COVID pandemic.

On this episode of the Talking NorCal podcast, Zach talks about his trip north where he hiked up Castle Crags, biked the Lake Siskiyou Loop, golfed at the Mt. Shasta Resort and caught rainbow trout in Clear Creek (2:34). Then, Bob surprises Zach with a few songs meant to inspire rain in Northern California (16:00). Then they break down the news of the week, including the controversial plan to drop poison on the Farallon Islands, another death at the Lodi Skydiving Center, more dead whales washing ashore near the San Francisco Bay and a Sacramento trail being named one of the top in America (22:36). Finally, they sit down with Alyssa Winkelman and Ari Kosel to discuss their incredible journey kayaking from Mt. Shasta to the San Francisco Bay on the Sacramento River (37:55).

Can we find a solution? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1878. Light-house at Farallon Islands, Pacific Ocean.  The New John Batchelor ShowCBS Audio Network@Batchelorshow#PacificWatch Special: Poison Bombing Farallon Islands and the Tiny Houses of the LA homelesshttps://www.mercurynews.com/2021/04/22/biden-administration-revives-farallon-islands-poison-plan/https://www.dailynews.com/2021/04/22/north-hollywood-tiny-homes-community-nears-opening-activists-protest-at-ceremony/ 

James Dilworth is a sailor and boat builder. He built a 17-foot catamaran, strapped it to the roof of his car, took it down to Mexico and spent time exploring the Sea of Cortez. Once, in a challenge from the Discovery Channel, he built a boat with 3-grand in 3-days and attempted to sail it to the Farallon Islands. When I first met James he was getting ready to fly to the Philippines where he’d bought a traditional dug-out canoe, outrigger sailboat to take between the islands. In this conversation he shares the highs and lows, close calls and unforgettable experiences from his many adventures.

Kimberley Chambers is a marathon open water swimmer from New Zealand. After a freak accident left Kim Chambers with a mere one-percent chance of walking unassisted again. Determined to prove the doctors wrong, Kim spent two years rehabilitating her leg and has now regained almost full functionality. She began swimming again as part of her rehabilitation, and has since become the sixth person in the world to complete the Ocean's Seven swimming challenge. In 2015, she became the first woman to swim from the Farallon Islands to the Golden Gate Bridge – a distance of about 30 miles. Many consider it to be the hardest marathon swim in the world.

On this episode of Talking NorCal, Zach and Bob discuss the controversy surrounding names and monuments in Northern California, including Fort Bragg, Squaw Valley and Christopher Columbus (2:24). Then, they get into the news of the week including Yosemite closing campgrounds, Lassen completely reopening, a mountain lion wreaking havoc in San Francisco, a monster mackinaw on Donner Lake, blue whales near the Farallon Islands, a high school graduation atop Sierra-at-Tahoe and the sunflower fields blooming in NorCal (32:20). Finally, they highlight their trip to Bidwell Park in Chico (59:50).

On clear days, the rocky contours of the Farallon Islands can be seen emerging from the horizon. This week, we venture 27 miles off shore to learn about the islands' past and present.

While the Bay Area shelters in place, some vets are still working to give sea lions the care they need. We go behind the scenes at the Marine Mammal Center. Then, we answer a question about the Farallon Islands that came from a listener like you. And, we continue our tour of Golden Gate Park, in celebration of its 150th anniversary.

Hey Area is where we find answers to questions you ask. Brit Byrd wanted to know, “Why does San Francisco have the Farallon Islands? They’re thirty miles off the coast, but they’re legally part of San Francisco. What’s up with that?” The Farallones are these islands off the coast of San Francisco, and Brit noticed them on the internet. One day he was looking at San Francisco and noticed that the county line jutted thirty miles out into the ocean and circled some tiny little dots. On a clear day you can just make out the islands from the city — they’re like jagged teeth sticking out of the Pacific. To understand why they’re part of San Francisco you first have to understand what they’re like, so I went to the visitor center for the Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary. It’s at Crissy Field in the Presidio. These days the islands are protected as a national wildlife refuge, and only a handful of people get to set foot on them. One of those lucky people is Mary Jane Schramm . She

In this episode Isaiah and I talk about his 2019 Washington State Big year and his birding story.  Isaiah is a top young Washington State birder, and I hope you find his story interesting.  I also talk a bit about my upcoming vacation to Kauai and the issues with exotic species in Hawaii.   You can contact Isaiah via the e-mail address available on his eBird profile page which also has up to date information on his WA big year progress and links to photos, etc. https://ebird.org/pnw/profile/MzA3NTU4/US-WA-073 Here is a link to Episode #26 with Tim Larson and the issues about house mouse eradication on the Farallon Islands off the California Coast.  https://birdbanter.podbean.com/mf/play/aen4nt/The_Bird_Banter_Podcast_Episode_26_with_Tim_Larson.mphttps://birdbanter.podbean.com/mf/play/aen4nt/The_Bird_Banter_Podcast_Episode_26_with_Tim_Larson.mp33 You can also reach out to Isaian on Facebook or Instagram. Stay tuned for more about my upcoming Hawaii birding experiences.   Until next time, good birding.  Good day!  

Thanks for your patience during our hiatus! Katlyn is getting settled in on Maui, Slater just got back from San Juan Islands and Eric has been holding down the fort in Monterey but he did make it out to the Farallon Islands last week!  Listen in to hear us catch up with each other on all our adventures. We are starting to get in to a routine and we were successful with recording via skype so we should be back on a regular posting schedule soon!

With his new film Near Miss, Director Josh Berry has created a poetic portrait of Ron Elliot. An urchin diver and keen underwater observer, Elliot has spent countless hours underwater at the Farallon Islands, much of it in the company of Great White Sharks. Berry's latest film showcases a very close encounter Elliot had with a very large shark. Visit the Near Miss website for more information on screenings. Josh and I discuss the film, sailing, surfing, and exploring the Bay Area.

In this episode of the TriSwimCoach, Kevin interviews Kim Chambers of kimswims.com. Kim completed many water swims and one recently featured on a Netflix documentary is an ocean swim from the Farallon Islands to San Francisco in Northern California In this inspirational interview, they talked about her life growing up, how she got injured and hospitalized, introduced herself into swimming, swimming from Farallon Islands to San Francisco, featured in Netflix and more. Topics discussed in this episode: Her life growing up How swimming came to her life How long she was hospitalized Swimming in the San Francisco bay If you think you can't do something or you're afraid of doing something, that's exactly the time that you should do it Exposure to cold water How she picked the places she wanted to swim Her thoughts when she was swimming at the Farallon Islands (sharks?) The most difficult part of the swim Her motivation when she's swimming How Netflix end up featuring her Finishing her 30 mile epic swim Charity the she's helping Links & Resources: Kim Swims (Netflix)  2-Day Swim Clinic / Boston Nomad Health Coach Nomad Health Coach on Facebook Warrior Canine Connection Kim on Instagram Kim on Twitter Kim Chambers Website  Email Address: hello@kimswims.com **If you've enjoyed this episode of Tri Swim Coach Triathlon Swimming, please subscribe and leave us a rating & review over on iTunes to help spread the word. Thank you!**

Returning triumphantly from the Farallon Islands with a box full of clues, Helen and Anders have finally tracked down a reel to reel tape player. They can finally listen to the words of Helen Hunnicup Sr. What will we learn?? All bets are off this week when we finally, finally find some clues we can sink our teeth into. If you want to see what we’ve learned so far, check out all the details from this episode on our blog post. Duration 43:25 Credits Produced by Cat Hollander and Max McCal Intro vocals by Hans Fricke Intro music is Blame by Fresh Body Shop End credits music is Blind Love by Jeris Logo by Nikki Johl Character art by Tessa McCal Photo by Ingo Schulz on Unsplash This episode’s spirit guides were Olivia Kingsley and James Folta

Helen and Anders make secret, illegal landfall on the Farallon Islands and seek out a clue to the Hunnicup family treasure. Helen Senior's lost watch? Mysterious astroturf? A seal who can communicate the weather? If you want to find out what we found out, you'll have to listen! Duration: 44:14 Credits Produced by Cat Hollander and Max McCal Intro vocals by Hans Fricke Intro music is Blame by Fresh Body Shop End credits music is Blind Love by Jeris Logo by Nikki Johl Character art by Tessa McCal This episode’s spirit guide was Keara McCarthy

We’re on our way! Today we get on a boat and head toward the Farallon Islands. But it’s not just ocean sounds and Anders being uncomfortable. We have a guest! Our boat is being piloted by the fantastic Carol Firestone, a legacy treasure hunter with big ambitions and one hell of a tale to tell. Join us as we take an ocean voyage, and finally set sail for the next clue in the Lost Hunnicup Treasure! Duration: 40:28 Credits: Produced by Cat Hollander and Max McCal Intro vocals by Hans Fricke Intro music is Blame by Fresh Body Shop End credits music is Blind Love by Jeris Logo by Nikki Johl Character art by Tessa McCal This episode’s spirit guide was Bri Cala

This week our guest is Seal! Not the singer. Sorry, that was misleading. But our guest is named Seal, and she has lots of advice for us about the Farallon Islands, where we’ll be going soon. We' get real about the island, its inhabitants, and where there might be clues to the Lost Hunnicup Treasure. Seal gives us all the details about what it’s like to be there, and how it’s been, adjusting to new her life in San Francisco. We don’t want to give too much away, but she has a secret you don’t want to miss. Duration: 45:03 Credits Produced by Cat Hollander and Max McCal Intro vocals by Hans Fricke Intro music is Blame by Fresh Body Shop End credits music is Blind Love by Jeris Logo by Nikki Johl Character art by Tessa McCal This episode’s spirit guide was Corinne Allarde

Harriet Hunnicup, Helen’s awful cousin, came on the podcast, against our better judgment, to talk about her own hunt for the lost Hunnicup treasure. She’s terrible, but we had to do it, because it’s her turn to use the family boat — the only boat we can reliably take to the Farallon Islands. Harriet tells us about her weird boyfriend, her creepy obsession with death, and why she thinks her childhood was unfair. We’re really sorry you have to hear this, but we’re… I guess… glad we had her on anyway. Duration: 43:08 Credits Produced by Cat Hollander and Max McCal Intro vocals by Hans Fricke Intro music is Blame by Fresh Body Shop End credits music is Blind Love by Jeris Logo by Nikki Johl Character art by Tessa McCal This episode’s spirit guide was Caitlin Harrington

Kim Chambers was 30 years old, an athlete and a powerful executive, when she slipped and fell down a set of stairs. The injuries she sustained changed the course of her life. In 2014, she became the sixth person (and third woman) to complete the Oceans Seven. In 2015, Kim became the first woman to swim 30 miles from the Farallon Islands to the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, a swim that’s incredibly dangerous.

Racing to work, this record breaking ultra marathon swimmer, suddenly loses her footing and crashes down the stairs, smashing her right leg violently on the ceramic pot below. Her limb begins to blow up from the blunt force trauma and the swelling won’t stop as she is raced to the emergency room. Doctors must work feverishly to save her leg. They have only 30 minutes before they will need to amputate. What makes Kimberley Chambers story so remarkable is she was only minutes away from losing her leg 11 years ago after a horrific accident. Not only did she learn to walk again after her life literally came crashing down, but she took up swimming for the first time in her life and became a record breaking long distance swimmer. Kim is one of only a few people to complete the Ocean's Seven, a challenge consisting of seven open water channel crossings. One of the crossings includes the frigid North Channel waters, between Ireland and Scotland, where Kim was stung by 100’s of jellyfish and nearly died from hypothermia. In 2015, she became the first woman to swim from the Farallon Islands to the Golden Gate Bridge – a distance of approximately 30 miles, over 17 hours, in shark infested waters. Kim is about facing her fears head on, refusing to take no for an answer, and jumping in to the unknown at the very deep end, which for this marathon swimmer, literally means the ocean.

Kiwi, record-setting, marathon open-water swimmer KIM CHAMBERS is courageous AF, photo by director Kate Webber Kim Chambers Record-setting, marathon open-water swimmer Kim Chambers (www.kimswimsfilm.com) from New Zealand, has conquered great odds to be here. Still very much in recovery mode from yet another life-threatening medical setback, she came on to share valuable lessons from her story of perseverance, resilience and hope. It was a grave injury and severe depression that took Kimberly Chambers to the water. This week she was the first New Zealand woman to be inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame. (And, let me be clear, Kim was a bad swimmer when she started on this journey in her early thirties.) Her swims have taken her around the world, along the way raising $1.7 million for veteran organization. For Kim, these swims are not simply athletic events, they are journeys of the self, stretching her mind and her body and her spirit. Among many notable achievements, she is the first and only woman to swim through a 30 mile stretch of ocean populated with the largest concentration of great white sharks in the world. No wet suit. No shark cage. To learn more, listen in and be sure to check out the award winning documentary, KIM SWIMS, capturing her story, and available now on iTunes, Amazon, Vimeo. Discussed in this Episode: Reconsidering what is possibleAcute Compartment SyndromeKim Chamber's severe injury and the possibility of never walking againIdentity wrapped up in material thingsSpiritual journey of Kim's swimsThe emotional impact of being sickKim's darkest moments after her injuryBody image concerns, scars, and not wanting to be seen in publicTrying to fix yourself before going back into the worldPerfectionismSelf-WorthPlayfulness/ childlike wonderLearning, practicing, training, finding joy againBeing broken as an opportunity to rebuildSwimming the "ocean's seven" Multiple near-death experiences: Sharks, jellyfish, hypothermiaFacing your fearsCourageSupport systemsThe fears both Kim and I are facing right nowThe infamous swim from the Farallon Islands to the Golden Gate BridgeGuillain- Barre SyndromeLessons in traumaSurrender, patience, letting go of people pleasingWhen pushing stops workingSwimming in shark inhabited waters Resources Kim Swims FilmThe Guest House PoemSwims with Sharks before Breakfast Ted TalkSwimmer Kim Chamber's Instagram Kate Webber's instagram Weekly Challenge: Ok, this is a big one so take a deep breath. Ready? Think about something that scares you, write it down, then commit to facing the fear. I know. This is big and scary in itself. Here's the thing: It can be anything! It can be responding to an email or jumping in the water with a bunch of great whites! The good news is that in this episode, Kim Chambers and I both give away our own fears that we are committed to facing. Listen in, be inspired! Support this Podcast: Become a patronFollow me on IG @sheajackiesubscribe/rate/review on itunes or any other platformFollow me at www.jackieshea.comJoin the Healing Out Loud with Jackie Shea Facebook group  Other Episodes like this: Body Image after a Double Mastectomy Happy Listening! With Fun and Love, Jackie

Diving or Swimming with Great White Sharks: Experiences You Should Have Podcast Show Notes Diving or swimming with Great White Sharks is on many people's bucket list and I got to swim with this amazing apex predator 8 years ago in 2010. However, this podcast (please listen above) is about Dive Instructor, Sarah Mayte's experience of diving and swimming with Great Whites in Mexico. Sarah's trip was incredible. They saw over 20 different Great White Sharks over the course of 3 days. At one time, they had 6 circling their cages at one time. Sarah was very lucky because when I went at the same time 8 years ago, we saw about 4 Great Whites. Sarah led her dive trip through Jack's Diving Locker and she booked this trip really early and went with a group of friends and coworkers. Their boat had about 30 guests, and 13 of them were part of Sarah's group. Now wouldn't that be a fantastic trip to go on with your friends and family? Where is the Best Place to go to Dive or Swim with Great White Sharks? Not many people know this, but the best place to go for fantastic visibility and a great encounter is Guadalupe, Mexico. It's a tiny island west of Baja Mexico, and it takes about 24 hours via boat to get there, which is why you would go on a small liveaboard boat for this kind of expedition. The worst place to go swimming with Great Whites is the Farallon Islands. You can't chum there and the visibility is low. Many people go to South Africa, however, the visibility isn't very clear and the sharks are hit or miss. The most reliable place to see Great White Sharks is Guadalupe. Photo by Jeff Milisen How Do You Get to Guadalupe, Mexico to Swim with Great Whites? You first fly to San Diego, California, then a bus will pick you up at your hotel. Sarah's bus had a big life-sized Great White Shark on the side of it. They drive you across the border to Ensenada, and you have to walk across the border and get your passport stamped. Then you head to the port, and get on your boat! Photo by Jeff Milisen Then it's about a good 24-hour boat ride to get to Guadalupe. You sleep, eat, dive, and swim right off the boat, the boat becomes your home, hence why it's called a liveaboard. How Long is the Expedition to Swim with Great Whites in Guadalupe? The average time needed for this trip is at least 7 days. It will take up a day to get from San Diego to Ensenada, then 24-hour boat ride to Guadalupe, 3 days with the Great Whites, a 24-hour boat trip back to Ensenada, then your bus ride back to San Diego, and you also need to allow time to get to San Diego from where you live. Budget at least a week if not more for this incredible experience. What is Your Average Day Like at Guadalupe? They opened the cages at 6:30 in the morning, and yes, everyone must use a cage (even though I personally would feel safe without the cage). There was no sun out and the water was cold, about 67-68 degrees. You might be tired, haven't had your coffee yet, but who needs coffee when you're jumping into cold water surrounded by Great Whites. The boat started chumming at 6:30, and the small fish showed up, then the Amberjacks came. About 20 minutes into sitting around underwater in the cage, waiting for the sunrise show up, Sarah, saw a figure and was the biggest one they saw on their trip about 16-18 feet. Her name was Lucy and she has a deformed fin. She's scraped up and ragged because many sharks are. Many Great Whites actually have scars from where Cookie Cutter sharks have bitten them, pretty interesting to see. You spend the entire day in the cage or up on the boat eating and warming up. Photo by Jeff Milisen Sleep, Great Whites, Eat, Great Whites, Eat, Great Whites, Eat Great Whites, Story Telling, then Sleep... not bad at all. The first day they saw 15 Great White Sharks and the second day they saw 10 Great White Sharks. What was Sarah's Favorite Part About the Trip? Sarah's not a photographer and loves watching animal ...

Open water swimmer Kim Chambers has endured just about the most frightening things the ocean has to offer: great white sharks, jellyfish stings, hypothermia, brutal currents and fierce winds. She has conquered the Oceans Seven, a series of marathon swims in channels around the world, and is the only woman to complete the 32-mile swim between the Golden Gate Bridge and the Farallon Islands. The documentary film of that swim, "Kim Swims," comes out Oct. 2. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feather River salmon, Lake Oroville salmon, Scott Leysath - wild fish & game recipes, East Carson River trout, Delta striped bass trolling, Farallon Islands rockfish & ling cod, Eagle Lake trout, Bullard's Bar & Hell Hole kokanee, Folsom Lake trout & salmon

In today’s bonus episode, Majo speaks with Kim Chambers, one of the world’s best marathon swimmers and the sixth person to complete the ultimate open water challenge “Oceans Seven.” She also set a world record as the first woman to swim thirty miles to the Farallon Islands through one of the largest concentration of great white sharks. Surprisingly, Kim only discovered swimming a few years ago.A daughter of farmers and a ballerina for many years, Kim talks about the value of learning discipline and a strong work ethic, and shares about the accident that changed her life – setting her on a new life course. Her journey reveals what’s possible when you choose to jump into the deep end and follow your bliss.Show Notes:-On growing up on a farm in New Zealand, dancing ballet, and how Kim learned tenacity at a young age. [1:32]-Defining moments from adolescence: Attending an all-girls school, witnessing the death of a friend, and more. [6:20]-Kim talks about the impact of travelling a lot with her family, and studying Human Computer Interaction at Berkeley. [12:15] -The perks of classical training and discipline, plus how having a routine sets a strong foundation. [18:32]-Becoming a “completely different person in the last ten years”: Kim shares about the accident that nearly required the amputation of her leg (and how it was the best thing that could have happened to her). [22:54]-On her newfound desire for freedom, feeling drawn to the water, and getting started as a swimmer. [29:58]-Kim’s relationship to water: Making friends with dolphins, talking to sea lions, feeling spiritual connections with islands, and swimming with great white sharks. [34:29]-How Kim relates to fear, her most challenging swims, and her advice to other women wanting to take a new leap. [42:15]References: Check out Kim's adventures at http://kimswims.com/Music by Lucia Lilikoi – lucia.bandcamp.comGo to http://www.heroine.fm/survey and give us your feedback on the show so we can continue to delight you with Heroine – Receive an audio training on the Inner Critic as a gift in return!

In today’s bonus episode, Majo speaks with Kim Chambers, one of the world’s best marathon swimmers and the sixth person to complete the ultimate open water challenge “Oceans Seven.” She also set a world record as the first woman to swim thirty miles to the Farallon Islands through one of the largest concentration of great white sharks. Surprisingly, Kim only discovered swimming a few years ago.A daughter of farmers and a ballerina for many years, Kim talks about the value of learning discipline and a strong work ethic, and shares about the accident that changed her life – setting her on a new life course. Her journey reveals what’s possible when you choose to jump into the deep end and follow your bliss.Show Notes:-On growing up on a farm in New Zealand, dancing ballet, and how Kim learned tenacity at a young age. [1:32]-Defining moments from adolescence: Attending an all-girls school, witnessing the death of a friend, and more. [6:20]-Kim talks about the impact of travelling a lot with her family, and studying Human Computer Interaction at Berkeley. [12:15] -The perks of classical training and discipline, plus how having a routine sets a strong foundation. [18:32]-Becoming a “completely different person in the last ten years”: Kim shares about the accident that nearly required the amputation of her leg (and how it was the best thing that could have happened to her). [22:54]-On her newfound desire for freedom, feeling drawn to the water, and getting started as a swimmer. [29:58]-Kim’s relationship to water: Making friends with dolphins, talking to sea lions, feeling spiritual connections with islands, and swimming with great white sharks. [34:29]-How Kim relates to fear, her most challenging swims, and her advice to other women wanting to take a new leap. [42:15]References: Check out Kim's adventures at http://kimswims.com/Music by Lucia Lilikoi – lucia.bandcamp.comGo to http://www.heroine.fm/survey and give us your feedback on the show so we can continue to delight you with Heroine – Receive an audio training on the Inner Critic as a gift in return!

A hidden Gold Rush kitchen when food was scarce and men died for eggs… We travel out to the forbidding Farallon Islands, 27 miles outside San Francisco’s Golden Gate, home to the largest seabird colony in the United States, where in the 1850s egg hunters gathered over 3 million eggs, nearly stripping the island bare, to feed the ever-growing migration of newcomers lured by the Gold Rush.

“I love the feeling of anticipation that comes from having a huge, scary event on the horizon; in fact, that’s when I have a sense of living life to the fullest.”Kimberley ChambersClose your eyes and imagine yourself 30 miles off the coast of San Francisco, swimming in the freezing cold, shark-infested waters famously dubbed the Red Triangle. No wetsuit. In the middle of the night.Most would call this lunacy.Kimberley Chambers calls this home.This week's guest is one of the most accomplished record-setting marathon open water swimmers in the world. Her story is incredibly inspiring, but not for the reasons you might imagine. Her story is inspiring because just nine years ago, Kim was not a swimmer at all, suffering a life-threatening accident that nearly claimed her leg and her overall enthusiasm for life.The morning started out like every other morning. The New Zealand born former ballerina and rower turned software executive left her San Francisco apartment and accidentally tripped, toppling down a treacherous flight of stairs.We saved your leg. But it’s unlikely you will walk again.The doctor's verdict presented Kim with a choice: accept permanent disability. Or prove them wrong.Needless to say, she chose the latter.After countless surgeries and an excruciatingly prolonged rehabilitation, a friend encouraged her to try swimming. Although foreign to the water, she immediately took to it. A ticket to freedom. But the real turning point came the moment she first jumped into the frigid San Francisco Bay. In an instant, she had found sanctuary. To this day, it's a love affair with cold water and the tight-knit community of like-minded souls who embrace it that changed everything about her life and how she lives it.An inner fire ignited, Kim began to channel her newfound passion into a series of death-defying, envelope-pushing open-water marathon challenges that have redefined the limits of human potential and transformed her into the elite athlete she is today.Among Kim's many accomplishments:* In 2014, she became the 6th person (and 3rd woman) in history to complete the Oceans Seven – the marathon swimming equivalent of the Seven Summits mountaineering challenge, with each of the 7 swims chosen for their treacherous water conditions and potential wildlife risks;* In 2015, she set a new world record becoming the first woman to swim 30 miles from the shark-infested Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco;* In September 2016, Kim attempted a non-stop 93 mile swim from Sacramento to Tiburon. However after swimming over 24 hours and 54 miles, sustained 30 knot winds rendered it unsafe for her to continue;* And just two months later, Kim led an international team of swimmers to complete an unprecedented historic swim across the Dead Sea to raise global awareness around the environmental deterioration of that critical body of water.This is a conversation about the boundaries of human potential. It's about the capacity to turn tremendous adversity into boundless opportunity. It's about finding joy and adventure outside the comfort zone. It's a conversation about reframing identity to step into and own — really own — our most authentic, fully actualized selves.And I suppose it's about how to not get eaten by a shark.Delightfully engaging, ever humble, and beautifully human, Kim embodies everything you seek in a modern day female super hero.It was a pleasure to spend time with her and it is my hope that our conversation will leave you deeply reconsidering the limits of your own potential.I sincerely hope you enjoy the exchange.Peace + Plants, See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Dr. Jim Delgado of the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries Maritime Heritage program talks about some significant findings in the "graveyard off the Golden Gate" and white sharks have returned to the "red triangle" between Ano Nuevo, Farallon Islands and Tomales Point with lots of sightings near the coast. David McGuire of Shark Stewards shares an update.

Scot Anderson, shark researcher and Ron Elliot, former urchin diver/recreational shark watcher talk about the white sharks around Point Reyes and the Farallon Islands. What are the researchers looking at and hear Ron's amazing stories of diving regularly with white sharks.

Hear how the 2012 spring season is shaping up out on the Farallon islands and about the oceanographic conditions that dictate what wildlife will be breeding and feeding in the coming months. Also, hear about the Bluemind Symposium and how the Leatherback Sea Turtle may become the State of California's official marine reptile.

The Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco are a vital home to many birds and marine mammals. While the forbidding and inhospitable nature of the Farallones may be ideal for wildlife, it also makes this a difficult place for scientists to live and work. QUEST ventures out to these jagged rocks to get a glimpse of daily life on the islands and what it’s like there for the researchers from PRBO Conservation Science.

The Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco are a vital home to many birds and marine mammals. While the forbidding and inhospitable nature of the Farallones may be ideal for wildlife, it also makes this a difficult place for scientists to live and work. QUEST ventures out to these jagged rocks to get a glimpse of daily life on the islands and what it’s like there for the researchers from PRBO Conservation Science.

Scot Anderson has been actively participating in white shark research at the Farallon islands and off the coast of Point Reyes. Hear about how a once feared animal, is now a species of concern.

The Farallon Islands off the coast of California are prime habitat for the great white shark. QUEST ventures to these shark infested waters and discovers that the creature of our imaginations may not be the monster we think it is. See why scientists are tracking the movements of these magnificent animals in hopes of protecting them.

A companion guide to "The Farallon Islands - California's Galapagos", "Journey to the Farallones" and "Visit to the Farallones."

Lying 28 miles off the coast of San Francisco, the jagged silhouette of the Farallon Islands disrupts the clean line of the horizon. This foreboding knot of rocks sits amid one of the most productive marine food webs on the planet and hosts the largest seabird breeding colony in the continental United States. QUEST ventures out for a rare visit to learn what life is like on the islands and meet the scientists who call this incredibly wild place home.

Lying 28 miles off the coast of San Francisco, the Farallon Islands sit amid one of the most productive marine food webs on the planet and hosts the largest seabird breeding colony in the continental United States. QUEST ventures out for a rare visit to learn what life is like on the islands and meet the scientists who call this incredibly wild place home.

They've been called "California's Galapagos." Nearly 30 miles west of the Golden Gate Bridge lie the Farallon Islands. This year marks their 100th anniversary as a national wildlife refuge. While the islands are off limits to tourists, reporter Lauren Sommer caught a rare - and rough ride with marine researchers to learn about how unpredictable changes in our climate could be affecting life there.

Peter White, author of The Farallon Islands: Sentinels of the Golden Gate, talks about the vibrant history of the Farallons 26 miles west of the Golden Gate bridge. Hear about Spanish galleons, the egging days of the Gold Rush, shipwrecks, lighthouse keepers. What lessons can the past pave for the future?

Tom Kendrick talks about his book Blue Water Goldrush-The Odyssey of a Commercial Sea Urchin Diver.Tom is a former commercial sea urchin diver and shares tales from diving from the beginning of the CA sea urchin fishery, through its changes and his life changes. Initially in search of good surf spots, Tom's life took a quick turn. He takes us from the Channel Islands to the North Coast of Mendocino and the Farallon Islands on the show.