A day at the beach

It was a sunny but windy day and the tide was low, a perfect morning for the park and beach at Canoe Cove. We love to visit that beach with our daughter and grandchildren, so we headed out early to get maximum time there at low tide. The kids were so exited when they jumped out of the car, all laughing and talking at the same time. The Cove is a great place for all of that energy. 

First they checked out the playground at the park. Meanwhile the tide was headed to its lowest point and before long, we headed down for a walk in the sand and tidal pools. We watched a pair of Great Blue Herons fishing for an early lunch. 

Also, this is an area of coastline which is home to seals. They are in the distance in this photo but as so often happens, I didn’t notice them until I looked at the photos later.

This cove drains off most of its water during low tide so all that remains is water in low lying areas. The exposed sand shows the action of the water on the sea bed. 

Seaweed is strewn around the beach and we spent some time observing the Toothed Wrack variety 

which anchors itself to rocks via a holdfast. 

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if each person in the world had a holdfast to anchor us when the storms of life are particularly rough?

We explored the animal life remaining on the beach including barnacles and periwinkles attached to the rocks. 

The periwinkles in the tidal pools were crawling over the sand and explored our feet when we walked among them.

It was an interesting sensation. Around the exposed seabed, we found several dead crabs which were intact. 

We didn’t find any starfish that day however.

Several jellyfish were in tidal pools and stranded along the beach. 

The children always avoid them but are curious about them too.

Overhead, the Bank Swallows darted through the air in pursuit of insects and from the exposed shoreline, we watched as they entered and left their nests through the holes in the bank above the sandstone.

Along the shoreline, driftwood of various sizes stands against the elements, 

while trees drape their roots over the elevated shoreline. Those trees will eventually be but a piece of driftwood too.

Our grandson played with toys to make a channel in the sand. It flooded later with the rising tide, a lesson in tidal action he will remember.

The girls had mud baths, coating themselves in some muddy sand along one of the tidal pools. They had a natural spa day with the mud bath and the periwinkles tickling their feet.

Lunch in the park at a covered picnic table was a cool affair in the shade on that windy day.

As we left the park, the rising tide sent people off the beach as the Cove filled with the rising sea.

Canoe Cove at low tide is a great place for children to explore and swim. The added bonus of the day park facilities makes it an ideal location for families to spend the day.