A warm December day pulled me to the coast again.
Today's destination was Halibut Point State Park. It is south of where I stood yesterday and it features rocks instead of sand. It is a rocky granite edge, a pool of water in what was a quarry, a different kind of beauty.
Steady rain fell this morning.
While it was still misting a bit when I headed to the coast at noon I decided to take a chance on a walk on the beach at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge. I didn't want to waste today's unseasonable warmth! The mist stayed with me as I started walking under a predominantly gray sky. By the end of my wander the sky had changed to pure blue behind interesting white clouds. It was a good afternoon to walk by the ocean.
clouds and gray sky, on arrival
an hour later, blue sky!
The small amount of snow we had this week remains on the ground. That pushed me to walk on the beach today, knowing that the high tide would have cleared sand for walking close to the ocean.
The high water mark at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge didn't fully clean the beach; it left a few patches of white.
It's that time of year, the time when I wander through the photos that I've published during 2024 to find my favorites. It's always an interesting exercise, one that takes time and changes day-to-day until I have made my final choices.
From the beginning of the year, here are my selections.
daffodils
A walk in the woods shows many shades of grays and browns.
Luckily pine needles add color with a pop of green.
Ponds in Harold Parker State Forest are showing skim ice, the first step in forming a solid surface.
Reflections can still be seen in between the patches of ice.
It was a day with a constant changing sky, a day that felt like a good day to walk by the sea before the predicted rain arrives.
I had a wonderful low tide walk at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge. I shared the beach with many birds and just a couple of other humans.
Winter (and December!) is here. Meteorological winter started on the 1st of the month; chill air tells me the season is here.
The ponds at Harold Parker State Forest are even starting to wear a skim coat of ice. The ice can be seen close to the shoreline, interrupting the reflection of the trees.
