Saturday, April 3, 2010

Moon beach


The weather was lovely yesterday, so Mike and I drove to the beach
and landed on the moon...










Well, not really the moon. It just looked like it.


The coast was completely fogged in. The tide was way out and the shapes it left behind were nothing like I've ever experienced. Humps and bumps and crevices as far as the eye could see. Coupled with the lack of detail in the haze, it seemed the perfect setting for a sci-fi movie. It even felt eerie being there...

We could hear the waves crashing, but we couldn't see them. The mysteriousness had us moving forward cautiously. We even turned our heads in slow motion as though fearing what might be creeping behind us...

It was a totally different "beach" experience!

With cameras clicking, we continued on. I kept hoping the sun would burn through the haze. It was obvious it wanted to. At times we could feel warmth on our faces. Little peek-a-boo's of filtered sun lit dots of landscape then disappeared again.


People emerged in and out of the fog.



Sand dunes in Maine... No, wait. Maine doesn't have sand dunes. Cape Cod has sand dunes! The beach had been terribly beaten and broken this past winter. One horrific storm with record high tides swallowed the land. Popham Beach was virtually unrecognizable.


Suddenly, much to my surprise, we came upon purple sand! Its a dream for me. For those of you who don't know me well, I'm a purple freak and here I find purple sand!!! Wow. I was in heaven. How lovely it was. I wanted to take some back with me, but I had nothing to put it in. Why do we go to the beach without a zip-lock bag in our pockets? There are always little treasures we want to gather and take home.



A bit further down the beach, we saw the reason for the purple sand... Trickling from the mainland was a stream of blue and purple carving its way, like the empty branches of a tree, towards the sea. What chemicals are leaching, I wondered? Suddenly the purple sand seemed much less appealing...

We didn't stay there as long as we expected to. Afterwards, Mike and I laughed at the strange experience it was. We did have a nice walk together. Taking photos is one of our great pleasures and Mike was just breaking in his new camera. The foggy conditions created a good opportunity for him to try new buttons. Apparently his new baby has plenty of buttons to push and he always claims he's just a button pusher...


Michael McAllister, seconds before getting his feet wet...


7 comments:

  1. Isn't that a great feature about the beach Susan? No two visits are ever exactly the same. I enjoyed seeing your foggy pictures. I love walking ( or fishing )the beach in the fog.

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  2. Susan,
    Thank you for this awe inspiring tour of your beach on a foggy day. You know that I won't be going anywhere and you make me feel like a world traveler as I visit your blog.
    Thank you again . . . . Nora

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  3. I loved this post. How lucky for you to live so close to the ocean. I'm in Indiana and that is terribly far from the sea. Luckily for me I have a small lake to view the beauty of water. I love the fog.. it is so mysterious and spooky and it lets you enjoy a scenic view as it slowly emerges from the mist. That purple sand sounds scary. Being around farm land myself, we have to wonder what exactly is leached into everything we walk on, touch, drink and breathe in.

    You're husband looks happy as a clam with his new camera. Does he publish his photos anywhere?

    Have a great Easter Weekend!

    ~Jaime

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  4. J'aime l'ensemble des photos que tu as choisi judicieusement pour ton blog. En aurais-tu prise une de Mike les pieds dans l'eau ?!...
    Il me tarde de venir te voir et admirer ce merveilleux spectacle.
    Tu as du remplir ton âme d'énergie...Bisous

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  5. what a lovely thing to do and such magical pictures. Living in the city, I get cravings to get out and be in nature and adore the sea and countryside. So nice you captured your walk like this and shared your findings :)

    Amelia.x

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  6. Susan,
    I'm really concerned for you and afraid your little niece has taken a turn for the worse. I'm praying for her and those that love her so very much.
    Nora

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  7. I loved the shaker architecture. great colors.

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