A gift of a day
Today's forecast was for a 50% chance of rain. I assumed it wouldn't be a great day for outside play, but oh! what a nice surprise.
The sky cleared by mid-morning, so I headed out on my bike. Riding, rolling, enjoying... Gray clouds returned, and so did a little bit of rain. It was light enough that it really wasn't a bother at all, and by the time I rolled back home the sky was clear once more. Hmmm... I wonder...
Yes, I headed out again, this time for some walking by the ocean. Do you hear a theme here? The ocean seems to be calling to me more often, doesn't it?
Today's destination was Crane Beach in Ipswich. It's only 24 miles from home, but that's 24 miles by surface streets, and it takes close to an hour to drive there. It was well worth the drive, one that I need to remember to take more often.
Crane Beach sits on Castle Neck, beautiful white sand beaches stretching along both the Atlantic and the inland side of the peninsula. I spent most of my time walking on the ocean side, and some time exploring the trails that cross the dunes. I have so much more walking to do there!
Like Parker River, this beach is a nesting area for the protected piping plover. While Parker River's beaches are owned by the birds (and closed to people) this time of year, Crane Beach remains open but has bird nesting areas fenced off. I wonder though... I suspect that the approach at Parker River is better for the birds, no surprise since it is a National Wildlife Refuge. I did see a few piping plovers skittering on the sand close to the closed areas.
More photos can be viewed in my gallery Walking in sand, Crane Beach.
