I grew up in a region of long, beautiful sandy beaches on Long Island and the New Jersey shore. But when I first ventured north of Portland, Maine, I discovered they had beaches, too. But most of the beaches were relatively tiny affairs with blotches of sand and lots of stuff called “shingle.” Nothing like the long sandy beaches of my childhood.
What was shingle? Let’s say pebbles, flat stones, and gravel without going into a protracted explanation. Where I landed, there were a few shallow coves that folks called beaches. My first time at the beach, I looked at an expanse of pebbles and asked where the sand was. The only beaches in that area of the coast would count as mirages.
But I err. There was one spot that might qualify. But it was more of a tidal flat. At low tide, it could attract a good population of people clamming and digging for blood worms. But it wasn’t the sort of place you’d want to sunbathe because a flat could be a buggy place in August with the Greenhead flies darkening the skies, biting you, and the mosquitoes deferring to their more vicious cousins but looking for the odd chance to drain you. So, while living in that part of Maine, I traveled south of Portland if I needed a day at the beach. But if desperate, a pleasant visit to the shingle beach might do. Bring a thick blanket.
Discover more from Louis N. Carreras, Woodcarver
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Yes, those damn greenhead’s nasty things for sure but the beauty of the rough Maine coast calls to me weekly here in NH.
Agreed, but you are still a bit south of the Fall Line which basically dissects the coast around Portland. South of Portland there tend to be longer smoother beaches and beyond Portland more rocky coves and shingle beaches. I love them both, but tend to be a habitué of Plum Island these years.
Yes, Plum Island is another place I can be found walking in the winter with camera in hand. That coastline washes away then they pay to bring the sand back up onto the local beaches, it is a fight I am sure will be lost.
I’ve been waiting for several years for a major storm to blow the island into two or more segments.
Yes, and so very possible.
Excellent 👌😊
Never really ventured to the “beaches” of Maine when I lived there, but then every 4th of July we would meet the rest of the family on Long Beach Island in New Jersey, so I got my fix of sandy beaches, warm ocean and Philadelphia food!