Winter Beach Walk

This week had some unusual twists and turns, and I found myself in Maine for a day...a bit unexpectedly. But a trip to Maine is nothing to sneeze at...don't need to twist my arm...I'm there! I spent most of the day exploring the charming shops in Portland and leisurely browsing through an enormous antique store. And I was really, really hoping that the timing in the day would work out such that I had the opportunity to take a walk on the beach. By 4:30 in the afternoon, I had made it to Goose Rocks Beach, where the snow and the sand met, and commenced my walk.

On our recent trip to Florida, I was shocked at how many people were on the beach...in February! As a native southern California girl, you would never see that many people on the beach in the winter there. And you certainly don't see it in New England! But I was looking forward to this bit of solitude. As I stood there and scanned the landscape, it was just me and one other woman and her dog way, way down on the far end of this beach.

I found the ripples on the sand were fascinating. And they were hard packed...like they were frozen.

I was thrilled to find a large, intact clam shell!

I walked briskly, because...well...I'm a brisk walker and because I only had about 30 minutes of daylight left. But I did manage to make it to nearly the end of the beach area before turning back. Lately, I've been changing up my exercise routine and trying to go for a walk or do Barre closer to sunset, when my body is starting to feel a bit droopy. So far, I've been pleasantly pleased by what a boost the exercise gives me at that point in the day. It just seems to energize my body and my mind and propel me forward with more energy than I normally have going into the evening.

The beach houses all around were standing silent. Maybe some of them are lived in now, but I suspect that most are utilized only in the summer time.

Heading back into the sunset. More people, all of them walking dogs, were on the beach at this point.

I left the beach feeling completely refreshed! I was so glad I took the time for the walk!