Botany Bay Plantation, a set on Flickr.
Via Flickr:Edisto, South Carolina
Though the Atlantic is more ‘tame’ than the Pacific, the tree boneyard is a testimony to the power of water, no matter the temperament.
Botany Bay Plantation, a former working plantation, is currently managed for game and wildlife. While the beach is accessible, there is a guard standing watch to ensure that no one takes any shells, since shelling is prohibited. The difference between this beach and the shelled beaches is astounding…you can nearly visibly see the difference in the sand’s composition. Beach visitors are surprisingly thorough at removing nearly all sizable pieces of shell on heavily visited beaches!
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On to the Pacific! Specifically, Samoa, to the Lost Coast, to Trinidad, and near Orick, California.
I must say, I could have stopped in Utah or Nevada–such beautiful and stark scenery, but the views here are outstanding in other, and greener, ways! We’ve been lucky with the weather so far, but this area *isn’t* where the phrase “sunny California” originated. In fact, the ‘Redwood Curtain’ thrives on all the moisture that falls here, either in the form of rain or dense fog.
It was shocking to us to see waves rolling through one side of the harbor entrance that are large enough to trouble decent-sized boats. We’re still very shy when it comes to the Pacific, not wanting to meet a sneaker wave, but we’ve enjoyed the tide pools, sea stacks, and harbor seals. It still takes my breath away when a wave crashes up a tall sea stack!
An amazing feat seems to be the survival of the tide pool animals. The tides’ schedule here deviates from the Atlantic’s. There is one large and one small high tide, with corresponding low tides, so some animals won’t see water for 18 hours or so. That’s a long time to hold your breath!
Of course, future posts will cover the tide pools and redwoods and banana slugs and I am overly eager to explore more, but this summer I am taking a brief detour to New Hampshire to work a park there, so the scenery of this blog will change yet again…it feels like the middle of everywhere!
Pacific, a set on Flickr.
