A Quick Diversion: Stormy Day at the Beach!

I needed a bit of a break — as well as certain "found objects" — so I decided to avail myself of a few hours of clear weather to take a trip down to our local beach.

Although I could see the trees and bushes in our back yard whipping around in the wind, I figured our beach wouldn't be too bad because it's around the other side of a point and protected.

A dramatic blend of light and dark

Well, I figured wrong!

It was even windier down at the beach. The thing is, we have a lot of what they call "microclimates" around here, which is why out weather sometimes just doesn't make sense.

Anyway, the occasional bits of sunshine with the mountains in the background and the clouds coming through made for some beautiful sights. Of course, it's hard to capture with a camera what you see with your own eyes!

A moment of bright sunshine on Protection island, across the bay

I hadn't planned on there not being much beach at all, but the combination of tides and storm surge meant there was only a narrow strip of sand and rocks... and sometimes not even that.

As a result, I got splashed a couple of times, even right against land, well inside the 2nd sandbar which normally breaks up the waves.

I had come down there to find some small pebbles of a particular size and shape, which I need to use in an art project for a Christmas present.

Thankfully, there were some to be found, when the waves drew back.

The wind made it all a bit tricky (and cold!), because it was so strong that my eyes were constantly watering so I couldn't see very clearly. And anyplace with exposed sand... well, it was blowing, like being inside a sandblasting chamber!

This seagull was actually flying backwards, most of the time!

One of the things I really like about the beach is that when you take the time to just pause and look, you can find so many wonderful examples of "nature as art."

Here, a small piece of red seaweed came to rest on a dry stone...

At the end of about 30 minutes, I had mostly found the small black pebbles I was looking for... and my face and fingers were going numb from the cold!

Even so, it was really nice to get "out of the box" for some fresh air.

On my way back to the car, I was treated to one more sun/sky/water panorama:

That low white cloud reminds me a bit of a dragon coming in from the left, with the small tuft at right being steam coming out of its nose.

This post was partially inspired by @axeman's weekly Landscape/Seascape Photography and Art Contest which you can find in the World of Xpilar community. Check it out!

How about YOU? Do you ever go to the beach when it's stormy weather? Or do you even live near a beach? As always, comments, feedback and other interaction is invited and welcomed! Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!

(All text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is ORIGINAL CONTENT, created expressly for this platform — NOT A CROSSPOST!!!)
Created at 20201218 17:32 PST
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